Arab Politics and the Rise of Palestinian Nationalism

Author(s): Muhammad Muslih

Source: Journal of Palestine Studies, Vol. 16, No. 4 (Summer, 1987), pp. 77-94
Published by: University of California Press on behalf of the Institute for Palestine Studies
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Arab Politicsand the Rise of

PalestinianNationalism
Muslih*
Muhammad
ofPalestiniannationalism
In thepast,analysesofthedevelopment
have
the role playedby Zionismand underratethe
tendedto overemphasize
internalArabfactors
thatled to therise,notonlyofPalestiniannationalism,but of otherlocal Arab nationalismsas well. In the case of Arab
itslocal (wataniyyah)
thosewhoembracednationalism-whether
or
writers,
pan-Arab(qawmiyyah)
variety-wereinclinedto blamethe problemsand
oftheArabnationalmovements
on theforcesofEuropean
contradictions
imperialism.
Theytendedto regardthepoliticalforcesthatemergedin the
oftheOttomanEmpireas
ArablandseastofSuez afterthedismemberment
withan alien poweror movement.On the other
the resultof a struggle
hand,Zionistwriters,
preoccupiedas theywerewiththe local Palestinian
scene,oftenoverlookedthelargerArabarenain whichPalestinianpolitics
evolved.1
do not standup to a close examinationof the
Such interpretations
forindependencein the
evidence.The politicalentitiesthat struggled
east of Suez afterWorldWar I werenew creations,fashioned
territories
fromthedebrisoftheOttomanEmpirebythestatesmen
offoreign,
colonial
powers.Afterthe finaldefeatof the OttomanEmpire,the old orderof
politicalallegianceto the dynasticsovereignof the Islamic state was
of MiddleEast Languagesand Culturesat Columbia
MuhammadMuslihteachesin the Department
Thisarticleisbasedon a chapterofhisbookTheOrigins
Nationalism
ofPalestinian
(Columbia
University.
Pressand Institute
forPalestineStudies,forthcoming).
University

78 JOURNAL
OF PALESTINESTUDIES

gradually
replaced
byoneofallegiance
to thecountry
inwhichone lived.
In otherwords,localnationalisms
beganto takerootin Palestine,
Syria,
andIraqandgradually
cametoprevail.It istoan examination
oftheearly
inPalestine
ofthisprocess
thatthisessayisdevoted.In ordertosort
stages
outthearray
offactors
involved
inthisprocess,
itisuseful
tothinkinterms
theideological,
oftwoframeworks:
thetransformation
ofpoliticalloyalty
from
onesetofideasto another;
andtheinstitutional,
thepoliticalelites
within
whoserankstheideastookform.

I. TheIdeological
Framework
Untilthenineteenth
theOttomanEmpire,whichencomcentury,
andethnicandreligious
passedmanydifferent
fornearly
six
regions
groups
ofloyalty,
wasthefocus
notina national,
butina dynastic
centuries,
sense.
In otherwords,
theloyalty
oftheArabs,Turks,Greeks,
andothers
wasto
theHouseofOsman.However,
theinfluence
ofWestern
ideas,particularly
theconcepts
ofnationhood
andsovereignty,
gaveriseto an unsuccessful
tomaketheconcepts
ofanOttoman
attempt
nationanda vaguely
defined
the
of
Ottoman
fatherland foci political
loyalty.2
thatemerged
Ottomanism
wastheideology
to wintheloyalty
ofthe
oftheEmpire,
theinhabitants
oftheArabprovinces
subjects
including
that
ofOttomanism,
laytotheeastofSuez.Twovarieties
oneconservative
and
werecurrent
onemodernist,
andintellectuals
within
the
amongpoliticians
inthelatter
Empire
partofthenineteenth
century.
Conservative
Ottomanismstipulated
wereinherently
thatIslamand itscivilization
superior
to
andEuropean
civilization.
Someofitsadvocates
Christianity
deniedthat
andtheirIslamiccivilization
theOttoman
territories
laggedbehindWestthosewhohad livedin Europe,conceded
ernEurope.Others,especially
in itsmaterial
thattheWestwassuperior
andindustrialization
but
progress
to theEastin terms
ofculture
andmorality.
wasinferior
On theotherhand,themodernist
ofOttomanism
stressed
that
variety
wasina sadstateandthattheMuslim
theIslamic
world
landshadstagnated
Fromthe perspective
of the
becausetrueIslamhad been corrupted.
ofthisview,Islamcouldregainitspastglory
ifitsoriginal
advocates
purity
if
and Muslims
wasrecaptured
to theachievements
of
adaptedthemselves
moderncivilization.

the twovarieties
of Ottomanism
had one
Despitetheirdifferences,
theaspiration
denominator:
fora singleOttoman
and
common
nationality
a common
the
to
Ottoman
ofethnicorigin.The
loyalty
state,irrespective
oftheOttoman
so theadvocates
ofboth
unityandcontinuation
Empire,

THE RISEOF PALESTINIAN

NATIONALISM 79

varieties
believed,
couldbridge
thegapbetween
theEastandtheWestand

protectIslamic civilizationfromWesternencroachments.3
It was this
Ottomanism,withits emphasison a commonOttomancitizenshipand
loyalty,
thatwasthereigning
ideologyin theEmpireuntiltheearlyyearsof
the twentieth
century.
It shouldbe stressedthatthe Arabsdid possessa specialawarenessof
theirethnicand culturalidentity
withinIslam. The same appliesto the
Persiansand Turks,sincethe threepeopleshad mademajorcontributions
ButuntilthefinaltwodecadesofOttomanrulethis
to Islamiccivilization.
awareness
on thepartoftheArabsdidnotstrainthebondto Islamand the
didtheArabsidentify
Ottomanhouseandstate.So strongly
withIslamthat
no expression
ofethnicor culturaldistinction
was manifested,
despitethe
factthatthe Ottomanstatewas ruledby a familyofTurkishdescentand
that the languageof the courtand of government
officeswas Turkish.
However,the gradualriseofTurkishnationalismin the latterpartof the
nineteenthcenturybeganto erodethe Arabs'senseof sharedidentityas
MuslimswiththeOttomanTurks.Turkishnationalism,
evoked
therefore,
a readyresponsefromthe Arabs: if the Turkswere a nation racially,
and politically,
so weretheArabs.
culturally,
The Arabresponsefirst
inpoliticalArabism(1908-14)
foundexpression
and thenin Arab nationalism
duringthe war.While the goal ofpolitical
Arabismwas reformin orderto insureArab rightsand greaterArab
of the OttomanEmpire,that of Arab
autonomywithinthe framework
nationalism
was completepoliticalindependence
forthe Arab provinces.
wasdying,and theonlyviableideology
Bytheendofthewar,Ottomanism
to takeitsplace was Arab nationalism.
Even thoughthe new ideologyof Arab nationalismwas by no means
it incorporated
an ingredient
universally
acceptedin theArabprovinces,
of
becauseit postulatedtheexistenceofa singleArabnation
superlegitimacy
thathad the rightto independence.The creatorsand advocatesof Arab
nationalismenvisionedthe establishment
of a pan-Arabsystem,the
nucleusofwhichwouldbe a unitedGreaterSyriaincludingLebanonand
Palestine.
The Palestinians
playeda rolein thegrowthofArab nationalism,
and
thisrolewasgreaterthanhas beensuggested
Yehoshua
bysomehistorians.
Porath,theauthorofa majorstudyon thePalestiniannationalmovement,
the extentof Palestinianinvolvement
minimized
in the Arab nationalist
His argument
is basedon theverysmallnumberofPalestinian
movement.
Arabswho wereattractedby the new ideologyof Arab nationalism,the

80

JOURNAL OF PALESTINE STUDIES

failureofthePalestinians
to rebelagainsttheTurks,and thenearabsence
ofArab nationalistsocietiesin Palestine.4
thistraditional
view
However,thereis otherevidencethatcontradicts
in thedevelopment
ofArabnationalism.
While
ofPalestinianinvolvement
the new ideologywas by no means widespreadin Palestine,thereare
to the new ideology,forexample,in
numerousexamplesof subscription
al-Karmil.5
Throughthispaper,whichwas popularin Palestinebecauseit
wasthemostoutspoken
opponentofZionism,thePalestinianintelligentsia
This exposurewasreinforced
wasexposedto theideasofArabnationalism.
Arab nationalistnewspapersoutsidePalestinesuch as alby influential
Muqtabas(Damascus)and al-Mufid
(Beirut).A numberofyoungPalestinto theidea ofArabnationalism
and whooccupied
ianswhowereattracted
Arabgovernment
in Syria
short-lived
seniorpostsin Faysalibnal-Husayn's
of Palestinianpolitics
(1918-20) triedto move thisidea to the forefront
afterthe collapseof the OttomanEmpire.6Althoughthis attemptultimatelyfailed,it gave impetusto a feelingamongPalestinianArabs that
nextto theircommitment
to Palestinetherewasalso a commitment
to the
of a largerArab entity.
cultureand future
in ArabnationLet us examinethenumberofPalestinianparticipants
alistsocietiesbeforethe armistice.
Accordingto ErnestDawn, therewere
126 membersof Arab nationalistsocietiesby 1914 of whom 22 were
to calculations
carriedoutforthisstudy,therewere
Palestinian.7According
confirmed
as members
ofArabnationalistsocieties
at least25 Palestinians
by the end of the war, threeof whomwere membersof the Ottoman
Parliamentwho overtlydefendedArab rightsin the empire.Of the 25
Palestinianmembers,13 came fromJabalNablus,9 fromJerusalem
(3 of
of Parliament),one fromJaffa,
one fromHaifa, and
themweremembers
one fromGaza. (See table1.) Moreover,ofthe387 namesthatappearedon
sentin supportof the Arab Congressheld in Parisin
the Arab telegrams
of thesewerefrom
June1913, a totalof 139 werePalestinian.Forty-four
The ParisCongresswas dominatedby Syrians,
Nablus and its environs.8
Lebanese,and Palestinians.Indeed,severalPalestinians,including'Awni
rolein organizing
the congress.
'Abd al-Hadi,playedan important
citedabovesuggestthreeconclusions.First,on thebasisof
The figures
populationestimatesfor the year 1915, the ratio of Palestine'sArab
nationalist
leadersto itstotalpopulationishigherthanthatofLebanonand
once againto cite Dawn's
lowerthanthatofSyria.It is pertinent
slightly
in Palestinetherewere3.1 Arabnationalistleadersper 100,000in
figures:
comparisonwith 2.4 in Lebanon and 3.5 in Syria.9Second, it seems
inconceivablethatall literateand politicallyconsciousPalestinianscould

NATIONALISM 81
THE RISEOF PALESTINIAN

Confirmed
as MembersofArabNationalistSocieties,1909-1918
Table 1: Palestinians
Al-Fatat(YoungArab Society)
'Awni 'Abd al-Hadi (Nablus)
Rafiqal-Tamimi(Nablus)
Zaki al-Tamimi(Nablus)
Muhammad'Ali al-Tamimi(Nablus)
HafizKan'an (Nablus)
Sidqi Milhis(Nablus)
Muhammad'IzzatDarwazah(Nablus)
IbrahimHashim(Nablus)
Rushdial-Imamal-Husayni(Jerusalem)
(Jerusalem)
Muhammadal-'Afifi
Mu'in al-Madi(Haifa)
Rushdial-Shawwa(Gaza)
Salim 'Abd al-Rahman(Tulkarm)
Al-'Ahd(The Covenant)
'Ali al-Nashashibi(Jerusalem)

The GreenFlagSociety
'AsimBasaysu(Gaza)
ShukriGhawshah(Jerusalem)
Mustafaal-Husayni(Jerusalem)
Al-Muntada
al-Adabi(The Literary
Club)
Rushdial-SalihMilhis(Nablus)
Jamilal-Husayni(Jerusalem)
'AsimBasaysu(Gaza)
Ottoman
Decentralization
Society
Hasan Hammad(Nablus)
Salim al-Ahmad'Abd al-Hadi (Jenin)
Muhammadal-Shanti(Qalqiliyyah)
Hafizal-Sa'id (Jaffa)
Bloc
TheArabParliamentary
Sa'id al-Husayni(Jerusalem)
Rawhial-Khalidi(Jerusalem)
Hafizal-Sa'id (Jaffa)

al-'Arabiyyah,
vol. 3 (Baghdad:Matba'at
Sources:Ahmad 'Izzatal-A'zami,Al-Qadiyyah
f-il-'Ahdal-Dusturialal-Sha'b, 1931); Tawfiq'Ali Baru, Al-'Arabw-al-Turk
'Uthmani1908-1914 (Cairo: Dar al-Hana, 1960), 309, 310, 319, 321, 434;
vol. 1,
al-'Arabiyyah
al-Hadithah,
Muhammad'IzzatDarwazah,Hawlaal-Harakah
30-33, Nash'atal-Harakah,354, 359, 371, 479, and Tis'una 'Aman,vol. 2,
(Cairo: Dar
69-72; Muhammad'Abd al-Ohani Hasan, Tarajim 'Arabiyyah
56-57;
al-Kitabal-'Arabi,1968), 213-23; al-Hut,Al-Qiyadatw-al-Mu'assasat,
al-Kubra,
vol. 1 (Cairo: Dar Lhya'al-Kutub
al-'Arabiyyah
AminSa'id, Al-Thawrah
al-'Arabiyyah,
n.d.), 8-11.
adoptedtheArabcauseforreform
Thesesocietieswereincludedbecausetheirmembers
duringthe war.Membersof
in theOttomanEmpireand theArabcauseforindependence
theParliamentary
Bloc wereincludedbecausetheydefendedArab rightsin the empire.

82 JOURNALOF PALESTINESTUDIES

have been neutraltowardJamalPasha's executionof PalestinianArab

itself.
nationalists10
or,as a consequence,towardtheOttomangovernment
ingeneraldidretaintheir
upperclassesandthePalestinians
The Palestinian
ofthisclasswerearrested,
loyaltyto theOttomanstate,butsomemembers
imprisoned,
or even executed.
withother
citedabove indicatethatin comparison
Finally,thefigures
rolein theearlyphases
Palestiniantowns,Nablusplayeda disproportionate
Two factors
combinedto enableNablusto makesuch
ofArabnationalism.
In thefirst
MuslimArab
a contribution.
place, ithad a morehomogeneous
or Haifa." Becauseof thishomogeJaffa,
populationthandid Jerusalem,
neity,Nablus producedlocal political and commercialelites, whose
withthe Europeanconwas MuslimArab, unmingled
politicalthinking
thattendedto permeatethe moreethnicallyand
ceptsof modernization
and Haifa. Second,Nablus
citiesofJerusalem,
Jaffa,
religiously
diversified
in the regionwhich,together
textileindustry
boastedthemostimportant
helped its inhabitantsmaintainstrong
with its famoussoap industry,
commercialrelationswith Damascus,Aleppo, Beirut,and even Cairo.
and imports
on theotherhand,wasbasicallya cityofpilgrimage
Jerusalem,
wasa pointofentryforpilgrims
Jaffa
withverymodesteconomicactivities;
and tourists.
Palestinians
rodethecrestofwhatseemedto be an
Althoughnumerous
Arab nationalistvictoryafterthe war, theirexperiencewith Faysal's
in Syriaexposedthe vulnerability
of the new idea of Arab
government
elites who formedthe
nationalism.Many of the young,transnational
nucleusofFaysal'sSyriankingdomtrulybelievedthatundertheleadership
wouldhave itsdayofglory.Buttheir
oftheHashemiteprincepan-Arabism
doctrine,whichpostulatedthe existenceof one indivisibleArab nation
with identicalinterestsand goals, could not withstandthe traumatic
realitiesimposedby the colonialpoliciesof Englandand France.
post-war
of
whichreplacedthe"universalism"
In otherwords,theArabnationalism
the OttomanEmpirewas not as concreteor as stronga realityas its
exponentsand advocateshad initiallythought.
wasnota fully
One shouldbearin mindthatby 1918Arabnationalism
developedideology,withgrassrootssupportand a programto serveas a
and foremost
as a
guideto action.It was, rather,an idea whicharosefirst
when
the
Turks.
its
leaders,
Thus,
Young
responseto the nationalismof
foundthemselves
mostofwhomhailedfromprominent
operating
families,
in whichtherelationsbetweensocietyand political
in a newenvironment
and in whichtherewas no sultanin the center
forceshad to be redefined

THE RISE OF PALESTINIAN NATIONALISM

83

to restrain
and stabilize,
theylearnedtheirfirst
lessonin thedifference
idealandthepressing
between
thepan-Arab
demands
oflocalpolitics.
The embraceof pan-Arabism
by the eliteswho travelled
between
of the
Damascus,Nablus,Beirut,and Baghdadafterthe capitulation
OttomanEmpirebore no fruit.The diversepoliticalambitions
and
and Iraqiswho constituted
priorities
of the Syrians,Palestinians,
the
inSyriaprovided
Arabgovernment
harshconfirmation
backbone
ofFaysal's
12 An examination
oftheactionagendaof
ofpan-Arabism.
oftheweakness
theDamascuspolitical
thethreenationalist
thatdominated
organizations
thispoint.The Iraqi-run
sceneillustrates
association
al-'Ahd(The Coveto theaffairs
ofIraq;theSyrian-led
nant)devoteditsattention
Jam'iyyat
Arab
front
and
its
al-Fatat
al-'Arabiyyah
(The Young
Society)
organization
al-'Arabi
on Syria;
Hizbal-Istiqlal
(theArabIndependence
party)focused
al-Nadial-'Arabi(the Arab Club),
and the predominantly
Palestinian
withPalestineand beganto
whichwasset up in 1918,was concerned
fromFaysalfollowing
the Faysal-Weizmann
draft
withdraw
its support
ofJanuary
1919.13 Faysal,
it shouldbe noted,wasinclinedto
agreement
in thehopeofsecuring
withtheZionists
British
forhis
cooperate
support
inSyriaas longas thatcooperation
French
did
policyofcountering
designs
Arabindependence.
notcompromise
Another
edifice
ofArabnationalism
wasthewayin
crackinthefragile
and Iraqielitesrelatedto one anotherin
whichtheSyrian,Palestinian,
in Syria.The conceptofArabnationalism
Arabkingdom
andthe
Faysal's
narrower
conceptofpan-Syrian
unityhad to competewiththegrowing
ofterritorial
nationalities
andIraqilines.
reality
alongSyrian,
Palestinian,
In Syria-thebirthplace
oftheideaofa singleArabnationrootedin a
and anticommonlanguage,
and destiny-theanti-Palestinian
culture,
than
one
Members
were
from
more
direction.
oftheold
winds
Iraqi
blowing
andIraqis
elitesviewedthePalestinians
Damascene
andAleppine
political
whocouldnotbe expectedto have local Syrian
as strangers
(aghrab)14
andPalestinians
whoexercised
concerns
at heart.5 The upstart
Baghdadis
in Damascusbecameincreasingly
an appreciable
measureof authority
of theold politicalelitesregarded
themas
alienatedin Syria.Members
world"
"hot-headed"
"confused,"
youthswhobelongedto an "invisible
16 The presence
in Damascusand Aleppo
of Palestinians
(rijalal-ghayb).
fortheir
asrecounted
callsincertain
triggered
quarters
dismissal,
byHusayn
a medicaldoctorfrom
whoworked
Fakhrial-Khalidi,
forthe
Jerusalem
17
ruleoverSyria.
ofPublicHealthin Aleppoduring
Department
Faysal's
movement
had fragmented
lessthantwo
Thus,theArabnationalist
theendofthewar.The Anglo-French
division
oftheempire's
yearsafter

84 JOURNALOF PALESTINESTUDIES

territories
hastened,
butwasnotsolelyresponsible
for,thisfragmentation.
werebeginning
Localnationalisms
to displacetheprofessed
sentiments
of
pan-Arabism.
Lookingat theDamascuspoliticalscene,a January
1920
a newepochinthehistory
Zionistintelligence
report
correctly
predicted
of
whichit calledthe "ArabNationalist
the Arabnationalist
movement
Movement
ofPalestine."'8
Arabcrisisthat
Indeed,therewasno collective
Arabplanofaction.InPalestine,
dictated
a collective
theprimary
issuewas
in thefaceofZionism,
a settler
movement
ofEuropean
nationalsurvival
In Syriaand Iraq the crisiswas not nationalsurvival
provenance.
but
a crisisofresisting
andFrance
political
independence,
attempts
byEngland
a framework
and offinding
thatwouldsatisfy
to achievehegemony
the
forself-determination.
aspirations
Hence, Arab politicalelites-Palestinian,
Syrian,and Iraqi-were
thepushofArabnationalism
withtwoforces:
andthepullof
confronted
as theywerebythepoliciesofEngland
and
localnationalism.
Disappointed
failedtotranslate
thepan-Arab
intoa concrete
Franceandhaving
doctrine
themselves-some
andbegrudgingly-to
the
reality,
theyresigned
painfully
andpriorities.
Nationalism
linkedto
overwhelming
pulloflocalconcerns
limited
piecesofterritory
andtheirpopulations
prevailed.
in this
thatthefailure
ofArabnationalism
One mayargue,therefore,
ofPalestinian
periodplayeda critical
rolein theemergence
nationalism.
The commonly
heldviewthatZionism
motivated
theArabsofPalestine
to
andformulate
theirnationalist
has
themselves
organize
politically
ideology
19The fragmentaoftruth,
a measure
butitis nota sufficient
explanation.
tionoftheArabnationalist
movement
forced
itsPalestinian
to
proponents
thatseparated
themfrom
confront
andacceptthefactors
theSyrians
and
of the Syriansand the Iraqis,the
Iraqis.For all the pan-Arabfervor
weresimply
not at the topof the Syrianor Iraqipolitical
Palestinians
it seemsunlikely
thatthe Palestinians
agenda.In thesecircumstances,
theirownindependent
nationalmovement
wouldhavefailedto establish
thescene,fortheBritish
evenifZionism
hadbeenabsentfrom
werein
Palestineto divideand rule.But sinceZionismwas also present,the
questionthenarises:whatwastheroleofthisalienpoliticalforcein the
ofPalestinian
nationalism?
emergence
First,it is logicalthattwoforces
engagedin a struggle
againsteach
other-inthiscasetheindigenous
Palestinian
andtheZionist
opposition
havelefttheirmarkon eachother.In themindsofArabsin
colons-must
inparticular,
andPalestinians
Zionist
colonization
underscored
general
the
ofaggressive
andorganization.
importance
leadership,
unity,
Furthermore,
thefearon thepartofthePalestinian
ArabsthatZionism
wouldone day

THE RISEOF PALESTINIAN

NATIONALISM 85

intheirowncountry
reducethemtoan alienated
minority
intensified
their
conviction
thatlocalPalestinian
interests
andwishes
shouldbe givenmore
seriousattention
by the Ottomanauthorities.
Hence the Palestinian
to thelaxity
oftheOttoman
statein checking
opposition
Zionistcoloniandinother
zation.In thisopposition
forms
ofresistance
toZionism
laythe
ofa strong
devotion
to Palestine.
beginnings
patriotic
on Palestinian
Second,thefewauthors
whohavewritten
Arabpolitics
in the
before
WorldWarI seemto agreethattherewerethreethreads
to Zionismin Ottomantimes:Ottomanloyalism,
Palestinian
opposition
20 Ottoman
andArabnationalism.
Palestinian
patriotism,
dictated
loyalism
of
because
it
was
bent
therejection Zionism
from
Palestine
uponseparating
theOttoman
thatit
state;Palestinian
patriotism
objectedon thegrounds
and Arab nationalism
was a deadlythreatto Palestinians;
called for
toZionism
becauseitsought
towrest
Palestine
opposition
Arab
awayfrom
the
cherished
of
Arab
handsandthwart
goal
unity.
whichwasupheldbytheoldernotableelites,ran
Ottomanloyalism,
untilthedisintegration
oftheempire
in
parallelto Palestinian
patriotism
wereon thewholeanti-Hashemite
1918.Itsadvocates
andunenthusiastic
On theotherhand,Arabnationalism,
aboutArabnationalism.
whichwas
urbanelites,wasintertwined
withPalestinian
espoused
byyounger
patrioand pro-Hashemite
tismuntil1920. Its adherents,
anti-Ottoman
after
order
Arabnationalist
thatthepan-Arab
1914,believed
postulated
bytheir
wouldprovide
Palestine
witha protective
doctrine
shieldagainst
Zionism.
wasthecommon
ThusPalestinian
characteristic
ofthetwomain
patriotism
Palestinian
urban
groups:the olderurbannotablesand the younger
notables.
It wasin thecontext
ofan increasing
Zionistthreat
to Palestine
thatthispatriotism
grew.
WhenPalestine
control
wasinthehandsofoldernotables,
fell,political
and strong
of the
manyof whomwerestaunchOttomanists
opponents
and his sons.The Arabnationalists
fromPalestine,too
Sharif-Husayn
feeble
a minority
towieldanypolitical
wereeffectively
power,
suppressed
by
JamalPasha. However,heartened
by the entryof Faysal'sarmyinto
inearlyOctober1918andbyFaysal's
Damascus
as headofthe
appointment
administration
setupthere,
theArabnationalists
military
thatthe
thought
fulfillment
of thedreamofArabindependence
at
was hand.Theyalso
in Damascus
believedthatbysupporting
FaysalandhisArabgovernment
assistance
fortheirstruggle
Zionism.
theycouldmuster
against
Formanyof theoldernotables,thesituation
lookeddifferent.
The
oftheOttoman
tothesementhatOttomandisintegration
Empire
signified
ismwasno longera viablepoliticalideology.
NorwasArabnationalism

86 JOURNAL
OF PALESTINESTUDIES

discussedabove. Mandelhas
attractive.
First,therewasthelocalpatriotism
rightly
suggested
thatfrom1910onward,whenthePalestinianArabsbegan
to see theZionistsas a threatto Palestinein particular,
they"increasingly
as 'Palestinians'in the contextof Zionism."' Seeing
spokeof themselves
Palestineput undera separatemilitaryadministration
and alarmedat
the oldergenerationof
Britainand herpro-Zionist
policyin the country,
Palestinianpoliticaleliteschose to focuson Palestineand the Palestinian
struggle
againstZionism.TheybelievedthatZionismwas a threatto the
Fromtheir
Arabsin general,buta directdangerto Palestinein particular.
Palestinian
nationalism
wastheappropriate
response
perspective,
therefore,
threatened
becausethe Palestinianswerethe mostdirectly
by the Zionist
ofPalestinianelite
movement.
On theotherhand,theyounger
generation
ofthe
thecauseofArabnationalism,
believingthatthevictory
championed
butalso
newideologywouldnotonlysecureArabunityand independence,
ofan alien entityin Palestine.
preventthe implantation
Membersof the older
There was also the questionof self-interest.
generationof Palestiniannotablessoughtto maintainand expand their
withthe hope of moldingPalestinianArab politics
positionsof strength
into a stablepoliticalorderthat theywoulddominateunchallengedby
An independent
Palestinewas morelikelyto provide
politicalnewcomers.
to continueexercising
themwiththe opportunity
politicalpowerfroma
positionof strength.On the otherhand, a PalestineunitedwithSyria
to take. Faysal'sentourageof
mightpose risksthattheywereunprepared
Arab nationalists,who hailed from
influential
youngerand increasingly
as thenewmastersof
Syria,Palestine,and Iraq,beganto assertthemselves
22 Thus, whiletheolderPalestinian
notablesdid not
theSyrianheartland.
dominatethe political
wishto see the ambitiousyoungArab nationalists
scene in Palestine,the youngermembersof the elite saw in SyrianPalestinianunitya chanceto climbthepoliticalladderand attainpositions
of local dominance.
Third,the eliteofsuchSyriancitiesas Damascusand Aleppo poseda
challengeto the positionsof olderPalestiniannotables.The networkof
urbanfamiliesin Syriawas much largerand, on the whole,
propertied
wealthierthanthe networkof Palestinianurbanfamilies.Comparedwith
Palestiniancities,Damascusand Aleppohad muchlargerpopulationsand
it was likely,werePalestineto
commercialimportance.
Therefore,
greater
their
mergewitha greater
Syria,thattheSyriannotableswouldoverwhelm
a scenariothe older Palestinianswerekeen to
Palestiniancounterparts,
avoid.

THE RISEOF PALESTINIANNATIONALISM 87

And theydid. Bytheend of 1920 thehope ofSyrian-Palestinian

unity
had beenfrustrated,
andPalestinian
nationalism
becamea preeminent
force
in Palestine.Zionismprovidedthe Palestinianswith a locus for their
struggle,
butit did notcreatethisforce.Zionismmayhave evolvedas the
andthepivotaroundwhichtheirpoliticsrevolved,
focusofthePalestinians
as a movementthat
but the originand growthof Palestiniannationalism
all PalestinianArabswerein thearenaofinter-Arab
encompassed
politics.
Justas local nationalisms
determined
thepoliticalpriorities
of the Syrians
thoseof the Palestinians.
and Iraqis,so theydetermined

II. TheInstitutional
Framework
On theeve oftheOttomandefeat,Palestinianpoliticsweredominated
whohad been linkedwiththeOttomanimperial
byurbannotablefamilies
These familiesconstituted
theinstitutional
framework
bureaucracy.
within
whichthe ideologiesofOttomanism
and Arabnationalism
competedwith
each otherand withinwhichthe Palestiniannationalistmovementarose.
Which werethe dominantfamilies,and whatwerethe sourcesof their
power?And whatpoliticalstyleand practicesdid theirleadingmembers
adopt?
in theirproperty
The sourcesofthepowerofthesefamilies
layprimarily
holdings,their traditionof learning,and their integrationinto the
in thelatterpartofthenineteenth
ofgovernment
Ottomansystem
century.
movementwhichit initiated,the Ottoman
Throughthe modernization
extendedits authority
over the administration
and public
government
institutions
of the state,thusmakinglocal politicalpowera functionof
serviceserved
positionin thebureaucratic
apparatus.A postin government
both as a symbolof statusand as a means throughwhich wealthand
influence
couldbe maintainedand expanded.23
The classthatbenefited
mostfromthissituationwasthatofthenotable
familieswhosemembers
filledpowerful,
seniorbureaucratic
posts.Besides
betweenthegovernment
and theirsociety,leading
actingas intermediaries
urbanfamiliesin Palestineusedtheirpoststo gainlegalrightsto moreland
In thisway,theywereable to emergeafter1860as the
andprivateproperty.
mostpowerful
politicalgroupin Palestiniansociety.Politicalleadership
restedalmiostexclusivelyin the hands of thesefamiliesfornearlyeight
decades-fromthe 1860suntilthe lossof Palestinein 1948.24
Amongthenotables,thoseofJerusalem
wieldedthe mostpower.The
theprocessofgradualconcentration
ofpoliticalpower
Husaynisexemplified
in the hands of the leading membersof one family.Their principal

88 JOURNALOF PALESTINESTUDIES

inthequestforpower
hailedfrom
theNashashibi
Other
family.
contestants
prominent
Jerusalem
families
suchas the'Alamis,Dajanis,and Khalidis
a largemeasure
ofpolitical
to the
power.Jerusalem's
sanctity
alsoenjoyed
underthedirect
faiths
anditsautonomous
status
control
three
monotheistic
after
theindependent
ofIstanbul
1887(theyearinwhichthePortecreated

andpower.25 Furthermore,
lentita specialsignificance
sanjaqofJerusalem)
courtofappeals,whichwassetup in 1910,
oftheJerusalem
thejurisdiction
extendedto the districtof Nablus, and the qadi (religiousjudge) of
over Gaza, Nablus, and Haifa.26Justas
exercisedjurisdiction
Jerusalem
important,Jerusalemacted as a capital for Palestine. It housed the
consulatesof Britain,France,Prussia,Austria,and Spain and was the
and an
a Latinpatriarchate,
residenceof a GreekOrthodoxpatriarchate,
27
Anglicanbishopric.
in the
had livedformanycenturies
families
ofJerusalem
The aristocratic
withNabluswheremanyleadingfamilieshad settledin
city.This contrasts
In addition,some
thecitytowardthemiddleoftheseventeenth
century.28
of Jerusalem's
families,notablythe houses of al-Husayni,al-Khalidi,
Jarallah,and al-'Alami,had held religiouspostsforhundredsofyearsand
ofimportant
waqfs(religiousendowments).29By
werehereditary
managers
in the
virtueofholdingtheimportant
ofJerusalem
postsofmayorand mufti
late nineteenthcentury,the Husaynisoutrankedthe otheraristocratic
the dominantpoliticalelite in the countryuntil
familiesand constituted
1948.30

of the Jerusalem
notableclass in what one
The heavierinvolvement
observercalls "economic-administrative
activity"(i.e., contractingand
employment)in the civil servicein the second halfof the nineteenth
centuryalso widenedthe economicbasis of the financialpowerof this
ruralfamilies
oftheurbannotable
class.31Someprominent
joinedmembers
class in their economic activities,thus broadeningthe coalitions of
urban
propertiedpoliticalelites under the leadershipof office-holding
notables.
ofseniorpostsin theOttomanimperialbureaucSince theassignment
oftheOttomanstate,supportforthesultanwas a
racywas theprerogative
No wonder,then,thatmanyofthebearersof
forappointment.
prerequisite
to Ottomanismuntilthe dissolutionof the
aristocratic
namessubscribed
empire.Afterthat,and forthereasonsoutlinedabove, it was onlynatural
forthemto embracethe idea of Palestiniannationalism.
Nevertheless,only certainmembersof leading Palestinianfamilies
in theOttomanstateapparatus.Many
succeededin acquiringsenioroffices
members
failedto attainpublicoffice,either
youngerand less prominent

THE RISEOF PALESTINIAN

NATIONALISM 89

becauseoftheirageorbecauseoflimited
As a result,
opportunities.
they
oftheOttoman
statethandidthe
hadlessofa stakein thecontinuation
oftheir
families.
Alienated,
olderandbureaucratically
established
members
Arabism
notables
embraced
andArabnationalism
to
theseyoung
political
and securehigher
promote
Arabrights,
protect
Palestine
fromZionism,
Eventhoughcertainmiddle-class
individuals
participoliticalpositions.
in theperiodundersurvey,
noneattained
top
patedin Palestinian
politics
liesinthefactthattheybelonged
to
leadership
positions.
The explanation
classthatdidnotenjoythetradition
ofinfluence
a lowersocioeconomic
Neither
theirsociety
northeBritish
occupier
viewed
andsocialleadership.
as
leaders
with
local
sources
of
natural
them
political
power.
Inpost-war
whosemembers
Palestine,
then,there
weretwomaingroups
in thequestforpoliticaldominance.
At the
enjoyeda marked
advantage
referred
to as "OlderPolititopweretheolderurbannotables(hereafter
in theOttoman
had heldpositions
cians"),whoforseveralgenerations
in localsociety.
andhadbeenthenatural
leaders
Belowthem
bureaucracy
withthemwereyoung
urbannotables
referred
to
andcompeting
(hereafter
whoon thewholehadnotbeenintegrated
into
as "Younger
Politicians"),
ofgovernment.
theOttoman
system
theOlderPoliticians
their
maintained
Schooledin Ottoman
politics,
Theiractionswerecircumvaluesintothemandatory
Ottoman
period.32
In thewordsof
cautiousanddiscrete.
spect,andtheirpoliticalbehavior
"These oldermen inherited
indecisionand laxity
Jamalal-Husayni,
warakhawah)
from
theOttoman
Thesetraits,
Jamal
etiquette."33
(muyu'ah
ofweakness
werenota reflection
or fear,butrathera modeof
asserts,
whichdenoted"good intention
and civic politesse"(husn
expression
In Jamal'sview such cautionand
al-niyyah
w-al-talattuf
al-madani).34
oftheBritish
andtheZionists.35
wereno matchfortherealpolitik
courtesy
The OlderPoliticians
alsotendedto actin a legalistic
manner,
relying
as a majorpoliticalinstrument
to promotethe cause of
on petitions
withthe Britishauthorities.
Palestinian
Theysoughtto
independence
and constitutional
terms,throughthe Muslimappeal,in pragmatic
Christian
Associations
theyheld.To mobilize
(MCAs) andthecongresses
theirpoliticalviews,theyused
the Palestinian
publicand disseminate
towncafes,as wellas thepress,
clubs,and
mosques,
churches,
guesthouses,
The political
schools.36
societies
coalitions
charactheysetupwerefamily
thedomination
ofa particular
terized
political
bytwosetsofrelationships:
as wasthecase oftheHusaynifamily
in theArab
bodybyone family,
Executive
Committee;37
andthefamily's
to increase
of
thenetwork
ability
and in theprocessto expanditsbaseofsupport
thus
itspowerpartners

OF PALESTINESTUDIES
90 JOURNAL

itsbargaining
itscompetitors
and thegovernenhancing
powervis-a-vis
ment.
It shouldbe notedthatfewrelatively
olderPalestinians
wereinvolved
in the causeof Arabnationalism
beforethe collapseof the Ottoman
'Awni'Abdal-Hadi(b. 1882)and Is'afal-Nashashibi
Empire.
(b. 1885)
ofTulkarm
wereamongthosewhowere.OlderstillwereSa'idal-Karmi
(b.
1852),Hafizal-Sa'id(b. 1841)whowasbornin Gazabutservedas mayor
in Ottoman
'Abdal-HadiofJenin(b.
ofJaffa
days,andSalimal-Ahmad
1870).Thesethreeoldermen,it shouldbe noted,hada talentforanda
in Arabiclanguage
andliterature.
interest
strong
totheviewthatintellectuals
weremoreimportant
Thislendscredence
thantheywereamongtheOttomanists.38
One
theArabnationalists
among
thatall intellectuals
subscribed
toArabnationalism.
cannotsay,however,
forexample,
In Palestine,
thereweresomeintellectuals
whocasttheirlot
untilitsfatewassealed.Salimal-Ya'qubi,
withtheOttomanregime
the
andorator(b. 1880in Lydda),supported
Palestinian
the
poet,journalist,
claimtothecaliphate
andattacked
theArabrevolt
Ottoman
anditsleader
As'adal-Shuqayri
theSharifHusayn.39
(b. 1860in Acre),an expertin
shari'aanda manwithsometalentforArabiccomposition,
the
supported
oftheOttoman
andcriticized
theArabnationalist
unity
Empire
movement
evenafter1918.40
The medianageoftheYounger
Politicians
tendedto be tenor more
Forexample,amongthe
yearslessthanthatof the OlderPoliticians.
Aminal-Husayni
Muhammad
wasbornin 1897,Ishaq
Younger
Politicians,
in 1896,'Arifal-'Arif
in 1892,HusaynFakhri
in 1894,
Darwish
al-Khalidi
in 1888,Rafiqal-Tamimi
in 1889,andFakhri
Muhammad
'IzzatDarwazah
sometime
al-Nashashibi
after1890.On theotherhand,amongtheOlder
MusaKazimal-Husayni
wasbornin 1853,'Arifal-Dajaniin
Politicians,
in 1883,'Umaral-Bitar
in 1878,andYa'qub
1856,Raghibal-Nashashibi
Farrajin 1875.4'
Eventhough
thetopleadership
oftheOlderPoliticians
andtheYounger
camefrom
Politicians
aristocratic
members
ofthemiddleclass-families,
inthepolitical
bothMuslim
andChristian-did
societies
ofthe
participate
twogroups.
'IzzatDarwazah,
AmongthemwereMuhammad
IshaqDarwish,
andSalibaal-Juzah.
Middleclassindividuals
apparently
playeda relatively
greater
rolein the Arabnationalist
ratherthanPalestinian
nationalist
groupings.

FeweroftheYounger
intheOttoman
Politicians
hadserved
It is
army.
inviewofwhatlittleisknown
aboutthem,thosewhohadwerenot
likely,
ofseniorgrade.Forinstance,
Aminal-Husayni
Muhammad
wasan aideto

THE RISEOF PALESTINIAN

NATIONALISM 91

a Turkishcommander
duringWorldWar I. Ishaq Darwish,'Arifal-'Arif,
and HusaynFakhrial-Khalidialso servedin theOttomanarmyduringthe
war.The YoungerPoliticians'experiencein school,in secretsocieties,in
the barracks,and in the Sharifianarmyinstilledin them a stronger
to politicalactivismthanto compromise.
disposition
Both the Older and the YoungerPoliticianswere influenced
by the
of the time,
liberalthoughtof Europe.In the mannerof the nationalists
westernization,
individual
theybelieved in constitutional
government,
Even thoughthe two groups
virtue,and the rightof self-determination.
emphasizing
a
identified
withIslam,theywereinclinedtowardsecularism,
and theindigenous
Jews.They
nationalideawhichincludedtheChristians
theirnationalismin religiousterms;thatis, theywerenot
did not justify
seekingpoliticalindependencein orderto promoteIslamicrevival.An
independent
Palestinewas not meantto be theservantofa widerIslamic
system;rather,Palestinewas perceivedas havingthe rightto be its own
judgeand master,withits own interestreigningsupreme.This was the
essenceof the two groups'oppositionto Zionismand theirinsistenceon
In theirview, if national interestwas the supreme
self-determination.
principleof society,whyshould the Palestiniansallow foreignJewsto
base in Palestinein orderto turnthecountryinto
establisha geographical
a Jewishstate?Or why should the Palestinians,who constitutedthe
lessthanbeingthemasters
oftheir
overwhelming
majority,
acceptanything
own society?This was, afterall, the thrustof the principleof self,
thatwas prevalentin Europeand Americaand whichhad
determination
becomeso fashionablein the Middle East in the second decade of the
twentieth
century.
The YoungerPoliticiansgradually
emergedafter1920 as thedominant
Arab
groupin PalestinianArab society.Like nationalistsin neighboring
the YoungerPoliticianscontinuedto assertthatall Arabswere
countries,
linkedbylanguageand cultureand to raiseas a matterofprincipletheissue
of Arab unity and independence.However, for the reasons already
national
discussed,theysaw theirfuturein thecontextofan independent
statein Palestine.Theirideology,strategy,
were
tactics,and organization
And even thoughthe class thatproducedthe Older
shapedaccordingly.
Politiciansand the YoungerPoliticianswas virtuallyunassailablefrom
below fornearlyfourdecades,the nationalismin whose name the two
was not createdby eitherof them.It was a
groupswagedtheirstruggle
genuinemovementthatencompassedall the Arabsof Palestine.At the
heartof thisnationalismlay a set of principlesderivedforthe mostpart
fromEuropeanpoliticalthought.Sovereignty
and loyaltyto a specific

92 JOURNALOF PALESTINESTUDIES

society
andterritory
rather
thantoa dynasty
ora religious
doctrine
werethe
whichdeeplyaffected
basesof thisideology
notonlyPalestine,
butthe
entireMiddleEast.

S
1. Amongthe authorswho treatPalestinian
of
nationalismmainlyfromthe standpoint
its struggleagainstZionismare Naji 'Allush, Al-Muqawamah al-'Arabiyyahfi
Filastin,1914-1948(Beirut:PLO Research
Center,1967); 'Abd al-Wahhabal-Kayyali,
Palestine: A Modern History(London:
Croom Helm, 1973); Ann MoselyLesch,
Arab Politicsin Palestine,1917-1939: The
Movement
(Ithaca
Frustration
ofa Nationalist
and London: Cornell UniversityPress,
of
1979); YehoshuaPorath,The Emergence
National Movement,
the Palestinian-Arab
1918-1929 (London:FrankCass, 1974).
oftheideasof
2. Fordetailson theemergence
and the OttomanfaOttomanpatriotism
therland,see NiyaziBerkes,The Developmentof Secularismin Turkey(Montreal:
McGill UniversityPress, 1964); Bernard
of ModernTurkey
Lewis, The Emergence
(London, Oxford,and New York:Oxford
Press,1968); serifMardin,The
University
A Study
GenesisofYoungOttomanThought:
Political
Ideas
in theModernization
ofTurkish
(Princeton: PrincetonUniversityPress,
1962); StanfordJ. Shaw & Ezel Kural
Shaw, Historyof theOttomanEmpireand
Revolution,
ModernTurkey,vol.2, Reform,
and Republic,the Rise of ModernTurkey
1808-1975 (Cambridge:CambridgeUniPress,1977), 255-72.
versity
3. This analysisof the two varietiesof Ottomanism
is derivedfromC. ErnestDawn,
FromOttomanism
toArabism:Essayson the
(Chicago: UniofArabNationalism
Origins
of IllinoisPress,1973), 129-47.
versity
24.
4. Porath,Emergence,
5. RashidKhalidi,"The Role of the Pressin

6.

7.
8.

9.
10.

EarlyArab Reactionto Zionism,"Peuples

Mediterraneens,
no. 20 (July-September
1982) 105-23; KhayriyyahQasimiyyah,
"Najib Nassar fi Jaridatihi al-Karmil
(1901-1914), Ahad Ruwwad Munahadat
Shu'unFilastiniyyah,
no.
al-Sahyuniyyah,"
23 (July1973), 101-24.
Fordetailssee Muhammad'IzzatDarwazah,
"Tis'una'Amanf-il-Hayah,"
vol. 2 (manuscriptin author'spossession).The interested readercan referto the published
versionof thismanuscript
whichrecently
appeared under the title Mi'at 'Am
Mudhakkirat
vol. 2
Filastiniyyah,
wa-Tasjilat,
(Damascus:Samed Press,1986), 11 ff.See
also Bayan al-Hut,al-Qiyadatw-al-Mu'assasat al-Siyasiyyah
fi Filastin 1917-1948
(Beirut: Institutefor Palestine Studies,
1981), 116-19; Philip S. Khoury,Urban
Notablesand ArabNationalism:
The Politics
ofDamascus1860-1920(Cambridge:Cambridge UniversityPress, 1983), 75-92;
Lesch, Arab Politicsin Palestine,79-90;
Porath, Emergence,70-123; Khayriyyah
Qasimiyyah,AI-Hukumahal-'Arabiyyah
fi
Dimashqbayna1918-1920 (Cairo: Dar alMa'arif,1971).
toArabism,153.
Dawn, FromOttomanism
See the names in Muhammad 'Izzat
Darwazah,Nash'atal-Harakah
al-'Arabiyyah
al-Hadithah (Sayda: al-Maktabah al'Asriyyah,
aln.d.), 430-32; AI-Mu'tamar
'Arabial-Awwal(Cairo: al-Lajnahal-'Ulya
li-Hizbal-Lamarkaziyyah,
1913), 150-210.
toArabism,153.
Dawn, FromOttomanism
AmongthesewereSalim al-Ahmad'Abd
al-Hadi, 'Ali al-Nashashibi,Sayf al-Din
al-Khatib,and Muhammadal-Shanti.

THE RISEOF PALESTINIAN

NATIONALISM 93
11. Fordetailson thesocial lifeofNablus,see
Muhammad 'Izzat Darwazah, "Tis'una
in
vol. 1 (manuscript
'Aman f-il-Hayah,"
author'spossession);Ihsanal-Nimr,Tarikh
Jabal Nablus w-al-Balqa',vols. 1 and 2
'Ummal al(Nablus: Matba'at Jam'iyyat
1975); RafiqalMatabi' al-Ta'awuniyyah,
Tamimi and MuhammadBahjat, Wilayat
al-Matn:Dar Lahad
Beirut,vol. 1 (Jdaydat
Khatir,1979), 99-118.
who occupiedkey
12. Amongthe Palestinians
in Syria
positionsin Faysal'sgovernment
were Sa'id al-Husayni,foreignminister;
'Awni 'Abd al-Hadi,Faysal'sprivatesecretary;Muhammad'Ali al-Tamimi,chiefof
the Damascus gendarmerie;Amin alTamimi, adviserto Amir Zayd, Faysal's
brother,and head of the Director'sCounof
cil; AhmadHilmi'Abd al-Baqi,director
ofthe
theTreasury;
Mu'inal-Madi,director
Departmentof Intelligence;and several
other Palestinians,includingMuhammad
roles
'IzzatDarwazah,whoplayedimportant
in a numberofpoliticalorganizations,
most
notably Jam'iyyatal-'Arabiyyahal-Fatat
(The YoungArab Society).The namesof
are
the Palestinians
in Faysal'sgovernment
takenfromPorath,Emergence,
87-88; and
al-Hut,al-Qiyadat,116-19.
13. Khoury,UrbanNotables,85.
14. Darwazah,"Tis'una'Aman,"vol. 2, 140.
15. Elie Kedourie,Englandand theMiddleEast:
TheVitalYears1914-1921(London:Bowes
& Bowes,1956), 160.
Khalid al16. Khalid al-'Azm, Mudhakkirat
'Azm,vol. 1 (Beirut:al-Daral-Muttahidah
li-l-Nashr,1973), 94-95.
"Al-Mudhakkirat"
17. HusaynFakhrial-Khalidi,
in author's
65-66.
possession),
(manuscript
18. Zionist intelligencereport,31 January
1920, Central Zionist Archives,Record
GroupL/3,File 278.
19. See, forinstance,Porath,Emergence,
304.
20. See Rashid Khalidi, "The Role of the
Press,"108-9; NevilleJ. Mandel,The Arabs and Zionism Before World War I
of CaliforniaPress,
(Berkeley:University
1976), 226-27.
21. Ibid.,226.
22. For details,see Khoury,UrbanNotables,
78-86.
23. See AlbertHourani,The Emergence
of the

24.

25.

26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.

ModernMiddleEast(Berkeley:
University
of
CaliforniaPress,1981), 36-67.
Fordetails,see M. Abir,"Local Leadership
and Early Reforms in Palestine,
1800-1934,"in Moshe Ma'oz, ed., Studies
on Palestine
DuringtheOttomanPeriod(Jerusalem:The MagnesPress,1975), 249-83;
GabrielBaer, "Village and City in Egypt
andSyria:1500-1914,"in A. L. Udovitch,
ed., The IslamicMiddleEast, 700-1900:
Studies in Economicand Social History
(Princeton: The Darwin Press, 1981),
632-39; Haim Gerber,OttomanRule in
Jerusalem, 1800-1914 (Berlin: Klaus
SchwarzVerlag,1985); A. N. Poliak,Feudalismin Egypt,Syria,Palestine,and the
Lebanon,1250-1900 (London: The Royal
Asiatic Society, 1939); Ya'qov Shimoni,
TheArabsofPalestine
(New Haven: Human
RelationsArea Files, 1956).
Gerber,OttomanRuleinJerusalem,
96-98;
P. M. Holt, Egyptand theFertileCrescent,
1516-1922:A Political
History,
4th edition
(Ithaca and London: Cornell University
Press, 1985), 243; Zeine N. Zeine, The
witha BackEmergence
ofArabNationalism,
in the
ground
StudyofArab-Turkish
Relations
Near East (Delmar, New York: Caravan
Books,1973), 26.
6.
Porath,Emergence,
Baer, "Village and City in Egypt and
Syria,"638.
Ibid.
in Egypt,Syria,Palestine,
Poliak,Feudalism
38-39.
in Palestine,
26.
Lesch,ArabPolitics
111.
Gerber,OttomanRuleinJerusalem,
HusaynFakhrial-Khalidi,"AI-Mudhakkirat,"68, 126.
Jamalal-Husayni,"Mudhakkirat
JamalalHusayni"(manuscriptin author'spossession), 9.
Ibid.,12.
Ibid.,5.
in Palestine,17.
Lesch,ArabPolitics
This committeewas originallyelected by
theThirdPalestinianArabCongresswhich
was convenedin Haifa on 13 December
1920. It includedPalestinianrepresentativeswho wereresponsible
forimplementof the PalestinianArab
ingthe resolutions
Congresses,whichwereseven in number,

OF PALESTINESTUDIES
94 JOURNAL

38.
39.
40.

41.

the nationalstruggle
and forcoordinating
in the 1920sand early1930s.
Dawn, From Ottomanismto Arabism,
167-68.
vol. 2, 583.
Al-Mawsu'ahal-Filastiniyyah,
Ya'qub al-'Awdat,Min A'lam al-Fikrw-al'Ummal
AdabfiFilastin
('Amman:Jam'iyyat
1976), 318-20;
al-Matabi'al-Ta'wuniyyah,
252.
Porath,Emergence,
on politicallyBiographicalinformation
in theperiodundersuractivePalestinians
vey is scarce because of the verysmall
numberof biographicaldictionaries.The
information
providedhere is takenfrom:
al-'Awdat, Min A'lam al-Fikr; Ahmad
Khalil al-'Aqqad, Al-Shakhsiyyatalhatta 'Am 1945 (Jerusalem:
Filastiniyyah
Wikalat Abu 'Arafa, 1979); 'Awni 'Abd

al-Hadi, AwraqKhassah(Beirut:PLO Research Center, 1974); George Antonius,

The ArabAwakening:
The StoryoftheArab
NationalMovement
(New York:Capricorn,
1965); Darwazah,"Tis'una 'Aman,vol. 1;
al-Hut, al-Qiyadatw-al-Mu'assasat;AlMawsu'ah al-Filastiniyyah, 4 vols.
(Damascus: Hay'at al-Mawsu'ah alFilastiniyyah,1984); 'Arif al-'Arif,AlNakbah,NakbatBaytal-Maqdisw-al-Firdaws
al-Mafqud1947-1952, vol. 1 (Sidon: AlMaktabahal-'Asriyyah,
1956); Khayral-Din
Al-A'alamQamusTarajimli-Ashhar
al-Zirkili,
al-Rijal w-al-Nisa' min al-'Arab w-alMusta'ribin
vol. 8 (Cairo:
w-al-Mustashriqin,
Al-Matba'ahal-'Arabiyyah,
1927); Mustafa
Muradal-Dabbagh,BiladunaFilastin,
vols. 4
and 7 (Beirut:Dar al-Tali'a,1965).