Palestinian Poet-Singers: Celebration Under Israel’s Military Rule 1948–1966

Abstract

Research about Palestinians in Israel during the period of military rule from 1948 to 1966 describes them as acquiescent and primarily focuses on the mechanisms of control imposed by Israel. This article examines the role played by improvised sung poetry in Palestinian weddings and social gatherings during this period, and it assesses the contribution that this situated art form made to asserting this community’s agency. Ḥaddā’ (male) and Badāaʿa (female) poet-singers are considered as agents of cultural resilience, songs as tools and weddings as sites of resilience and resistance for Palestinians who lived under Israeli military rule. Folk poetry performed by Ḥaddā’ and Badāaʿa is identified as a form of cultural resilience and resistance rooted in Palestinians’ cultural heritage. The data signal the persistence of resilience, dignity and rootedness in the land and identity, as well as demonstrating the risks of such resilience and of resistance actions.

Music, Resilience and ‘Soundscaping’: Some Reflections on the War in Ukraine

“…Darweish and Robertson, for their part, have discussed music, and specifically poetry-singing, as a cultural and artistic response by Palestinians to Israel’s imposed military rule from 1948 to 1966. Underlining that music, as a social activity, ‘has the capacity to unite people and to create and/or strengthen social cohesion’ (Darweish and Robertson, 2021: 32), they argue that poetry-singing – an important element of Palestinian heritage – became a form of resistance that ‘contributed to raising awareness, enforcing national identity, and building resilience’ (Darweish and Robertson, 2021: 39).…”

“…In this way, music-making can be viewed as a creative expression of resilience and, relatedly, resistance. Noting that resilience and resistance are often seen as mutually exclusive, Bourbeau and Ryan (2018: 222) submit that the two concepts are ‘engaged in mutual assistance’ (see also Cai, 2022; Darweish and Robertson, 2021; Ryan, 2015; Sou, 2022). As an illustration of this ‘mutual assistance’, this article maintains that processes of music-making and ‘musicking’ effectively challenge the acoustic shocks and stressors of war, as an expression of resistance.…”