Lebanon is hosting more than one million Syrian refugees. For a country of its size, and a population of around four million, this influx of Syrians into Lebanon has exposed many of its already established ailments. A prevailing perception is that Syrians are establishing businesses and competing with the Lebanese, leading to violent reactions on the part of host communities. In this paper, we see to debunk the reductionist framing of 'the Syrian refugee' as a burden, and showcase the economic contribution that some Syrian entrepreneurs have been making to urban neighborhoods. While entrepreneurs certainly represent a minority of the refugees in Lebanon, we argue that, rather than being competition, Syrian entrepreneurs are complementary to Lebanese businesses in urban areas, and that Syrian businesses are enriching spatial practices in the city. As such, we claim their experiences are significant to document as they can inform useful policy interventions that can render Syrian self-employment opportunity for local economic development in cities and towns.

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A hawza is the establishment responsible for the training of Shia Islam’s imams, preachers, professors, and researchers. For hundreds of years, its educational model has involved the teaching of Fikh,Usul, philosophy, Quranic studies and Arabic language. Over the past few decades, the social sciences—the systematic study of man and society which had emerged in the West—have been slowly making their way into these institutions, alongside a number of other changes. This article investigates, qualitatively, the religious training of Shia men of religion in Lebanon in order to explore the changes taking place within this institution. Based on a triangulation of participant observation, interviews with professors, students, and stakeholders, as well as content analysis of certain course material, it claims a hawza in metamorphosis. While structural and material alterations have straightforwardly made their way into the institution, content and curricular ones have faced more difficulty. These changes reveal plenty about both Islamic education and Shia Islam in Lebanon’s public sphere. Additionally, the article raises questions and insights regarding decolonial theory, Lebanon’s future, and the geopolitics of the Arab world.

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