19/05/2021 by Shyrine Ziadeh “When I embroider, I feel close to my homeland.” Feryal Abbasi-Ghnaim, a Palestinian embroiderer Palestinians have a rich and fascinating history in folk arts. Silk thread and embroidery, together with an expanding repertoire of symbols, are known to have made their way from China to the Holy Land along the Silk...
12/05/2021 by Omar Mohammed For centuries, the Old Suqs played a crucial role in developing and preserving a socio-economic system that facilitated coexistence in Mosul. They not only served as the economic core of the city, but they also brought the different groups of Mosul society together in a complex but solid social structure The...
05/10/2020 by Servane Hardouin The murals represented various objects and landscapes seen by the pilgrim on his way to the sacred city; more precisely, they either evoked the pilgrimage directly, or they set its cultural and natural background An interesting feature of Egyptian culture is the hajj murals, colourful paintings decorating the walls of many...
29/07/2020 by Ala’a Baroun, Observer from Kuweit The new restrictions, social distancing, curfews and lockdowns imposed around the world in response to the pandemic highlighted how intangible heritage has a social, economic and psychological role in our lives. Ala’a Baroun We are living in a time where a pandemic has largely impacted our lives in...
26th June 2020 by Shyrine Ziadeh “It is our folklore, from my culture, my heritage. In the camp in Syria, while I used to dance Dabkeh I was a happy kid… Oh this music! It reminded me of the inner peace I had back then.” Said Israa a lady in her 20’s, during a break...
Le 09/06/2020 by Sarah Amawi What was Dabke? What was Dabke? Dabka (also spelled dabkeh, dabka, dubki, and with the plural, dabkaat) could be defined as : « a circling folk dance made up of intricate steps and stomps » (Rowe, 2011) [1]. « Once such origin may have developed from Canaanite fertility rites wherein communities joined in the energetic foot stomping dance to...
Le 04/12/2019 by Omar Babakhouya “Al Majalis Madaris” says the Arab proverb, meaning “the Majalis are schools”. The Majlis, singular of Majalis, literally means “space where we sit”, an assembly or a council. This traditional practice, widespread in the Arabian Peninsula, consists in gathering a group of people in a host’s Majlis. In that region,...
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