Nur Masalha
Biographic Data
| ID | 176880 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Nur Masalha |
| GIVEN NAMES | Nur |
| FAMILY NAME | Masalha |
| SIGNATURE | MASALHA N |
| AFFILIATIONS | Director of the Centre for Religion and History and Holy Land Research Project School of Arts and Humanities St. Mary's University Waldegrave Road Strawberry Hill Twickenham TW1 4SX, UK |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 38 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 67 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 34 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 4 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1991 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Decolonizing the Study of Palestine: Indigenous Perspectives and Settler Colonialism after Elia Zureik
Writing about Palestine and the Palestinians continues to be controversial. Until the late 1980s, the question of Palestine was approached through Western social theories that had appeared after World War 2. This endowed European settlers and colonists the mission of guiding the “backward” natives of Palestine to modernity. However, since the work of Palestinian scholar Elia Zureik, the study of Israel, the Arab countries and the “ethnic relation…
Palestine Across Millennia: A History of Literacy, Learning and Educational Revolutions
Palestine, of all countries on earth, is one of the most densely saturated places of cultural and religious significance. Situated in the middle of the Fertile Crescent– the ‘cradle of civilisations’ – and ancient trade routes, Palestine and the Palestinians were closely associated with the early alphabetical writing and many of the intellectual revolutions of the past four millennia. Yet Palestine’s remarkable history of scholarship and educatio…
Palestine: A Four Thousand Year History
This rich and magisterial work traces Palestine's millennia-old heritage, uncovering cultures and societies of astounding depth and complexity that stretch back to the very beginnings of recorded history. Starting with the earliest references in Egyptian and Assyrian texts, Nur Masalha explores how Palestine and its Palestinian identity have evolved over thousands of years, from the Bronze Age to the present day. Drawing on a rich body of sources…
An Oral History of the Palestinian Nakba
In 2018, Palestinians mark the 70th anniversary of the Nakba, when over 750,000 people were uprooted and forced to flee their homes in the early days of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Even today, the bitterness and trauma of the Nakba remains raw, and it has become the pivotal event both in the shaping of Palestinian identity and in galvanising the resistance to occupation
Palestine: A Four Thousand Year History
In 2009 Palestinians commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Nakba - the most traumatic catastrophe that ever befell them. The book explores ways of remembering and commemorating the Nakba, dealing with the issue within the context of Palestinian oral history, 'social history from below', narratives of memory and the formation of collective identity. Masalha argues that to write more truthfully about the Nakba is not just to practice a profession…
The Concept of Palestine: The Conception Of Palestine from the Late Bronze Age to the Modern Period
The Concept of Palestine is deeply rooted in the collective consciousness of the indigenous people of Palestine and the multicultural ancient past. The name Palestine is the most commonly used from the Late Bronze Age (from 1300 BCE) onwards. The name Palestine is evident in countless histories, inscriptions, maps and coins from antiquity, medieval and modern Palestine. From the Late Bronze Age onwards the names used for the region, such as Djahi…
Introducing the Journal's New Name
Settler-Colonialism, Memoricide and Indigenous Toponymic Memory: The Appropriation of Palestinian Place Names by the Israeli State
Cartography, place-naming and state-sponsored explorations were central to the modern European conquest of the earth, empire building and settler-colonisation projects. Scholars often assume that place names provide clues to the historical and cultural heritage of places and regions. This article uses social memory theory to analyse the cultural politics of place-naming in Israel. Drawing on Maurice Halbwachs' study of the construction of social …
The Zionist Bible: Biblical Precedent, Colonialism and the Erasure of Memory
Throughout the history of European imperialism the grand narratives of the Bible have been used to justify settler-colonialism. "The Zionist Bible" explores the ways in which modern political Zionism and Israeli militarism have used the Bible - notably the Book of Joshua and its description of the entry of the Israelites into the Promised Land - as an agent of oppression and to support settler-colonialism in Palestine. The rise of messianic Zioni…
Theologies of Liberation in Palestine-Israel: Indigenous, Contextual, and Postcolonial Perspectives
Theologies of Liberation in Palestine-Israel: Indigenous, Contextual, and Postcolonial Perspectives
This collection concerns the development of contextualised theologies of liberation in Palestine and as part of the indigenous Palestinian people's struggle for justice and liberation. The work is innovative because of its inclusion of indigenous perspective within its remit and the introduction of new concepts such civil liberation theology. The collection offers other ways to look at biblical discourses and their impact on the ongoing conflict,…
Liberating Methodologies and Nakba Studies: Palestinian History and Memory from below as Sites of Lifelong Learning
Historians too often construct frameworks and methodologies which obfuscate social, economic and political oppression. This article explores new historical methodologies that can represent oppressed and marginalised groups in Palestine. In particular the article focuses on the role of indigenous history and memory in critical learning and shaping individual and collective identity in Palestine. It further argues that Palestinian memories ‘from be…
The Zionist Bible: Biblical Precedent, Colonialism and the Erasure of Memory
Professor Nur Masalha (Historian and Professor of Religion and Politics and Director of the Centre for Religion and History and Holy Land Research Project at St. Mary's) has just published this new book. The Zionist Bible focuses on the Bible, nationalism. collective memory and the politics of modern archaeology. It explores the ways in which modern political Zionism used the Bible to justify settler-colonialism in Palestine and the renaming of s…
Naji Al-Ali, Edward Said and Civil Liberation Theology in Palestine: Contextual, Indigenous and Decolonising Methodologies
This article coins a new expression: ‘civil liberation theology’ in Palestine. Astonishingly while feminist, black and post-colonial theologies of liberation have flourished in the West, there is little discussion of indigenous and decolonising perspectives or civil and secular-humanist reflections on liberation theology. Inspired by the works of Palestinian visual artist Naji Al-Ali and public intellectual Edward Said, the article brings into th…
New History, Post-Zionism and Neo-Colonialism: A Critique of the Israeli ‘New Historians’
Ever since the 1948 Palestinian Nakba a bitter controversy has raged over its causes and circumstances. While the Palestinian refugees have maintained that they were driven into flight, Israeli historians claimed that the refugees either left of their own accord, or were ordered to do so by their own leaders. This essay explores the emergence of an Israeli revisionist historiography in the late 1980s which challenged the official Zionist narrativ…
Reading the Bible with the Eyes of the Canaanites: Neo-Zionism, Political Theology and the Land Traditions of the Bible (1967 to Gaza 2009)
In modern times, a whole range of colonial enterprises have used the Bible. The book of Joshua and other biblical texts evoking the exploits of ancient Israelites have been deployed in support of secular Zionism and settler colonisation in Palestine. The mega narratives of the Bible, however, appeared to mandate the ethnic cleansing and even genocide of the indigenous population of Canaan. This article argues that, with the rise of messianic Zion…
The Bible and Zionism: Invented traditions, archaeology and post-colonialism in Israel-Palestine
Does the Bible justify Zionism? Since the foundation of the Israeli state in 1948, Torah and tank have become increasingly inseparable, resulting in the forced expulsion and subjugation of millions of indigenous Palestinians. Nur Masalha's groundbreaking new book traces Zionism's evolution from a secular settler movement in the late 19th century, to the messianic faith it has become today. He shows how the biblical language of 'chosen people' and…
Workshop on ‘The Politics of Elections and the Struggle for Democracy in the Middle East: Perspectives from Within and Below’
A Comparative Study of Jewish, Christian and Islamic Fundamentalist Perspectives on Jerusalem: Implications for Inter-Faith Relations
Catastrophe Remembered: Palestine, Israel and the Internal Refugees
The 1948 Palestine War is known to Israelis as 'the War of Independence'. But for Palestinians, the war is forever the Nakba, the 'Catastrophe'. The war led to the creation of the State of Israel and the destruction of much of Palestinian society by the Zionist forces. For all Palestinians, the Nakba has become central to history, memory and identity. This book focuses on Palestinian internal refugees in Israel and internally displaced Palestinia…
Jewish Fundamentalism and the ‘Sacred Geography’ of Jerusalem in Comparative Perspective (1967–2004): Implications for Inter-Faith Relations
Since the occupation of East Jerusalem and the West Bank by Israel in 1967 radical Judaism has developed into a major force, with a considerable influence on the attitudes and votes of many Israelis. The new messianic fervour centres on the building of the Temple on the site of the Muslim shrines in Jerusalem. This article explores the rise of a variety of Jewish fundamentalism in Israel and its implications for community, nationalist and interfa…
From Propaganda to Scholarship: Dr Joseph Schechtman and the Origins of Israeli Polemics on the Palestinian Refugees
In 1948 an official ‘Transfer Committee’ was appointed by the Israeli Cabinet to plan the Palestinian refugees' resettlement in the Arab states. Apart from doing everything possible to reduce the Arab population in Israel, the Transfer Committee sought to amplify and consolidate the demographic transformation of Palestine by: preventing the Palestinian refugees from returning to their homes; the destruction of Arab villages; settlement of Jews in…
Zittrain Eisenberg et al: Traditions and Transitions in Israel Studies
Additional informationNotes on contributorsNur MasalhaNur Masalha is senior lecturer and director of Holy Land studies, St. Mary's College, University of Surrey, and research associate, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. His most recent book is The Politics of Denial: Israel and the Palestinian Refugee Problem (Pluto Press, 2003)
Ben-Yehuda and Sandler: The Arab-Israeli Conflict Transformed: Fifty Years of Interstate and Ethnic Crises
The Politics of Denial: Israel and the Palestinian Refugee Problem
The 1948 war ended in the expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their villages and homes. Israeli settlers moved in to occupy their land and the Palestinian refugees found themselves in refugee camps, or in neighbouring Arab countries. Today there are nearly four million Palestinian refugees -- and they want the to go home. Their problem is the greatest and most enduring refugee problem in the world. Since 1948 Israeli refugee p…
Settler-Colonialism, Memoricide and Indigenous Toponymic Memory: The Appropriation of Palestinian Place Names by the Israeli State
Cartography, place-naming and state-sponsored explorations were central to the modern European conquest of the earth, empire building and settler-colonisation projects. Scholars often assume that place names provide clues to the historical and cultural heritage of places and regions. This article uses social memory theory to analyse the cultural politics of place-naming in Israel. Drawing on Maurice Halbwachs' study of the construction of social …
Expulsion of the Palestinians: The Concept of "Transfer" in Zionist Political Thought, 1882-1948
Imperial Israel and the Palestinians: The Politics of Expansion
A Critique of Benny Morris
(1991). A Critique of Benny Morris. Journal of Palestine Studies: Vol. 21, No. 1, pp. 90-97
A Critique of Benny Morris
The 1956–57 occupation of the Gaza strip: Israeli proposals to resettle the Palestinian refugees
(1996). The 1956–57 occupation of the Gaza strip: Israeli proposals to resettle the Palestinian refugees. British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies: Vol. 23, No. 1, pp. 55-68
Faisal's Pan‐Arabism, 1921–33
From the Sharifian revolt of 1916 onwards Faisal's personal and dynastic ambitions were inextricably interwoven with the evolution and misfortunes of the pan-Arab movement in the Fertile Crescent. The long-term Hashemite ambition had been to bring Hejaz, Syria, Palestine and Iraq, territorial fragments, resulting from the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire under the rule of their house in some form of federated state. But this goal was soon to be …
"And after" Revisited: 1948 And after: Israel and the Palestinians. . Benny Morris
"And after" Revisited
A Critique of Benny Morris
A Critique of Benny Morris
(1991). A Critique of Benny Morris. Journal of Palestine Studies: Vol. 21, No. 1, pp. 90-97
Faisal's Pan‐Arabism, 1921–33
From the Sharifian revolt of 1916 onwards Faisal's personal and dynastic ambitions were inextricably interwoven with the evolution and misfortunes of the pan-Arab movement in the Fertile Crescent. The long-term Hashemite ambition had been to bring Hejaz, Syria, Palestine and Iraq, territorial fragments, resulting from the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire under the rule of their house in some form of federated state. But this goal was soon to be …
Expulsion of the Palestinians: The Concept of "Transfer" in Zionist Political Thought, 1882-1948
"And after" Revisited: 1948 And after: Israel and the Palestinians. . Benny Morris
"And after" Revisited
The 1956–57 occupation of the Gaza strip: Israeli proposals to resettle the Palestinian refugees
(1996). The 1956–57 occupation of the Gaza strip: Israeli proposals to resettle the Palestinian refugees. British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies: Vol. 23, No. 1, pp. 55-68
A: Reviews general
A HISTORY OF PALESTINE 634–1099. By Moshe Gil. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1992. 968 pp. ARABIC HISTORICAL THOUGHT IN THE CLASSICAL PERIOD. By Tarif Khalidi. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1994, xiii+250 pp. £35.00 (hb). THE HISTORY OF THE SAFFARIDS OF SISTAN AND THE MALIKS OF NIMRUZ (247/861 to 949/1542–3). By C. E. Bosworth. Costa Mesa, Mazda Publishers, 1994. 477 pp. $49.00. BADR AL‐DIN LU'LU’: ATABEG OF MOSUL, 1211–1259. By…
B: Reviews: review articles
THE OTTOMAN GULF: THE CREATION OF KUWAIT, SAUDI ARABIA AND QATAR. By Frederick F. Anscombe. New York, Columbia University Press, 1997. 270 pp., maps, $21.00/£14.00 (pb), $55.00/£38.00 (hb). THE BLOOD‐RED ARAB FLAG: AN INVESTIGATION INTO QASIMI PIRACY, 1797–1820. By Charles E. Davies. Exeter, University of Exeter Press, 1997. 453 pp., illustrations, maps, £40.00. THE POLITICS OF REGIONAL TRADE IN IRAQ, ARABIA AND THE GULF, 1745–1900. By Hala Fatta…
Imperial Israel and the Palestinians: The Politics of Expansion
In Imperial Israel and the Palestinians , Nur Masalha provides a history of Israel's expansionist policies, focusing on the period from the June War of 1967 to the present day. He demonstrates that imperialist tendencies in Israel run the political gamut, from Left to Right. Masalha argues that the heart of the conflict between Zionist immigrants/settlers and the native Palestinians has always been about land, territory, demography and water. He …
Imperial Israel and the Palestinians: The Politics of Expansion
Introducing the Journal
Reinventing Maimonides: From Universalist Philosopher to Religious Fundamentalist (1967–2002)
This study focuses primarily on two strands of Jewish fundamentalism in Israel: the Zionist nationalist ‘messianic’ camp and the ultra-orthodox rabbis and non-Zionist religious parties. It explores the doctrinal differences between these two concerning the ‘messianic doctrine’, their attitudes towards Palestinian Christians, and their impact on Israeli foreign and domestic policies. The two currents invoke the interpretation of the Jewish Law of …
The Politics of Denial: Israel and the Palestinian Refugee Problem
The 1948 war ended in the expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their villages and homes. Israeli settlers moved in to occupy their land and the Palestinian refugees found themselves in refugee camps, or in neighbouring Arab countries. Today there are nearly four million Palestinian refugees -- and they want the to go home. Their problem is the greatest and most enduring refugee problem in the world. Since 1948 Israeli refugee p…
Jewish Fundamentalism and the ‘Sacred Geography’ of Jerusalem in Comparative Perspective (1967–2004): Implications for Inter-Faith Relations
Since the occupation of East Jerusalem and the West Bank by Israel in 1967 radical Judaism has developed into a major force, with a considerable influence on the attitudes and votes of many Israelis. The new messianic fervour centres on the building of the Temple on the site of the Muslim shrines in Jerusalem. This article explores the rise of a variety of Jewish fundamentalism in Israel and its implications for community, nationalist and interfa…
From Propaganda to Scholarship: Dr Joseph Schechtman and the Origins of Israeli Polemics on the Palestinian Refugees
In 1948 an official ‘Transfer Committee’ was appointed by the Israeli Cabinet to plan the Palestinian refugees' resettlement in the Arab states. Apart from doing everything possible to reduce the Arab population in Israel, the Transfer Committee sought to amplify and consolidate the demographic transformation of Palestine by: preventing the Palestinian refugees from returning to their homes; the destruction of Arab villages; settlement of Jews in…
Zittrain Eisenberg et al: Traditions and Transitions in Israel Studies
Additional informationNotes on contributorsNur MasalhaNur Masalha is senior lecturer and director of Holy Land studies, St. Mary's College, University of Surrey, and research associate, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. His most recent book is The Politics of Denial: Israel and the Palestinian Refugee Problem (Pluto Press, 2003)
Ben-Yehuda and Sandler: The Arab-Israeli Conflict Transformed: Fifty Years of Interstate and Ethnic Crises
Catastrophe Remembered: Palestine, Israel and the Internal Refugees
The 1948 Palestine War is known to Israelis as 'the War of Independence'. But for Palestinians, the war is forever the Nakba, the 'Catastrophe'. The war led to the creation of the State of Israel and the destruction of much of Palestinian society by the Zionist forces. For all Palestinians, the Nakba has become central to history, memory and identity. This book focuses on Palestinian internal refugees in Israel and internally displaced Palestinia…
A Comparative Study of Jewish, Christian and Islamic Fundamentalist Perspectives on Jerusalem: Implications for Inter-Faith Relations
The Bible and Zionism: Invented traditions, archaeology and post-colonialism in Israel-Palestine
Does the Bible justify Zionism? Since the foundation of the Israeli state in 1948, Torah and tank have become increasingly inseparable, resulting in the forced expulsion and subjugation of millions of indigenous Palestinians. Nur Masalha's groundbreaking new book traces Zionism's evolution from a secular settler movement in the late 19th century, to the messianic faith it has become today. He shows how the biblical language of 'chosen people' and…
Workshop on ‘The Politics of Elections and the Struggle for Democracy in the Middle East: Perspectives from Within and Below’
Reading the Bible with the Eyes of the Canaanites: Neo-Zionism, Political Theology and the Land Traditions of the Bible (1967 to Gaza 2009)
In modern times, a whole range of colonial enterprises have used the Bible. The book of Joshua and other biblical texts evoking the exploits of ancient Israelites have been deployed in support of secular Zionism and settler colonisation in Palestine. The mega narratives of the Bible, however, appeared to mandate the ethnic cleansing and even genocide of the indigenous population of Canaan. This article argues that, with the rise of messianic Zion…
New History, Post-Zionism and Neo-Colonialism: A Critique of the Israeli ‘New Historians’
Ever since the 1948 Palestinian Nakba a bitter controversy has raged over its causes and circumstances. While the Palestinian refugees have maintained that they were driven into flight, Israeli historians claimed that the refugees either left of their own accord, or were ordered to do so by their own leaders. This essay explores the emergence of an Israeli revisionist historiography in the late 1980s which challenged the official Zionist narrativ…
Naji Al-Ali, Edward Said and Civil Liberation Theology in Palestine: Contextual, Indigenous and Decolonising Methodologies
This article coins a new expression: ‘civil liberation theology’ in Palestine. Astonishingly while feminist, black and post-colonial theologies of liberation have flourished in the West, there is little discussion of indigenous and decolonising perspectives or civil and secular-humanist reflections on liberation theology. Inspired by the works of Palestinian visual artist Naji Al-Ali and public intellectual Edward Said, the article brings into th…
History (32 works) · Political science (32 works) · Jewish and Middle Eastern Studies (30 works) · Law (27 works) · Ancient history (22 works) · Politics (17 works) · Sociology (15 works) · Middle East and Rwanda Conflicts (13 works) · Philosophy (12 works) · Archaeology (11 works)