It is important to notice the role of the
Nabqa in Palestinian culture and traditions as it has gathered groups from
different regions in the same places. Each group having originally their own
traditions, they try to keep them alive. So that nowadays, when you speak about
Nablus culture, you must distinguish between the different groups of its
inhabitants (from Haifa, from Yafa, from villages, from Nablus, …) and take into
consideration their relative mix.
Nablus traditional clothes:
Since the introduction of Islam in the region, the traditional costume for men
in Palestine has been very simple in design and its style has become identical
to that worn by men throughout the Arab world.
Men in Nablus are traditionally dressed with a shirt (thob)
on which they wear waistcoat (sidriyeh) with long sleeve jacket (damer), or a
very long coat called qumbaz. Above this they put an overcoat (abayeh) made of
coarse hand woven whool protecting against rain and cold. Their hat was the red
cylindrical tarbosh until the Arab national revolution when they started to wear
the symbolic Hatta veal like the men from the villages.
Old
fashion man Tarbosh Hatta
Women in the past used to wear traditionally embroidered dresses
that are still in use in for special occasions and dabka performances. In the
middle of last century they started to use long black dresses called Mlajah,
with simple veals on their head.
Embrodery:
Once a
traditional craft practiced by village women, Palestinian embroidery has become
an important symbol of Palestinian culture. Embroidered pieces can be found in
the homes of most Palestinian families in the West Bank, Gaza and beyond -
adorning homes in Bethlehem, cement block houses in Gaza, villas in the Gulf and
suburban split-levels in the United States.
Embroidery patterns are derived from sources as diverse as ancient mythology and
British colonization, and date back as far the Canaanites who lived in the
region more than 3,000 years ago. « In the past, girls who
didn't know how to embroider were considered like girls who don't know how to
read today! ».
Until the end of the British Mandate in
1948, the garment was one of the features that indicated regional identity. The
dress of the Nablus region was much simpler than the others. Some researchers
attribute this to the fact that women in the Nablus region had less time to
embroider because they were too involved in agricultural work. Early examples of
the Nablus dress show that embroidery was done on locally woven white linen,
with green and red silk stripes that signified hell and heaven. It is very rare
to find any embroidery on the wing-like sleeves, the side panel, or the back
panels of the Nablus dress.
embroidering Qabbeh,
1920's
More about Palestinian embroidery:
http://www.usaid.gov/wbg/asalah.htm
http://www.palestinecostumearchive.org/regional.htm
Traditional dance:
Dabka is a traditional middle-east dance but of course has its regional
specification. It may have origins from the Turks and the Gypsies (who emigrated
from northern India). Dabka is a dance of community, often performed at weddings
and other joyous occasions. So that it has many different forms even within the
same region. It can be danced by men, women, or
both, with different steps and different rhythms.
However, it is also a dance of solidarity
and a way of expressing
nationalism
and the age-old presence of art and culture in a positive way. The Dabka leader
is supposed to be like a tree, with arms in the air, a proud and upright trunk,
and feet that stomp the ground in rhythm, emphasizing their connection to their
land. Dabka means "stomping of the feet," and stomping, as well as jumping and
kicking, are moves that characterize the dabka in a unique manner. The leader is
allowed to improvise on the type of dabka being danced, and he or she would also
be twirling a handkerchief or string of beads known as a masbha (similar to a
rosary), while the rest of the dancers keep the rhythm. The dancers also use
vocalizations to show energy and to punctuate the rhythm. Many learn dabka as
children, while others perform it as part of professional dance troupes.
It his display with songs from the popular heritage such as
« Aldelaouna »
Dabka dancers
Famous people from Nablus:
·
Sahar Khalifa,
writer
·
Hatem Bazian,
academic
·
Fadwa Toukan,
poet
·
Ibrahim Toukan,
poet
·
Ahmed Sheikh,
journalist, current editor-in-chief of
Al Jazeera
·
List of mayors of Nablus
Nablusi cuisine:
It is said that women are the best keepers of traditions as they transmit it to
their daughters in the kitchen secrecy.
Food is always a very vast subject, but we can
here name several famous Nablusi courses such as
Maqlubeh
which is an upside-down rice, vegetable and chicken course, Al Qedreh is made of
rice, meat and peppers.
Among the sweets we must quote the famous
Knafeh made with paste
and the as-famous white
nablusi cheese. The
Qatayef
is a thick small pancake fold in two, filled with cheese and dipped into syrup.
It is specially served for Ramadan fasting-break.
Knafeh Qatayef
Pastry shops still fill the streets of Nablus as well as spices makers shops,
coffee makers shop and seeds roasters shop, so that the visitor’s nose will not
rest.
After eating it is very common to smoke a
flavoured Nargile water pipe in any of the coffee places.
Nargile
More Palestinian recipes:
http://www.palestine-restaurants.com/recipes.asp
Soap Factories and Turkish Baths:
Two essential sites in former Nablus social life were the soap
factories and the baths. Who controlled or owned them would be powerful as
banking took place in the soap factories. They were also very important places
for social gatherings, exchanges, discussions.
The birth of the Nablus soap industry can be traced back hundreds
of years to the tenth century. Nablus soap from olive oil has been world
renowned since the 16th century when it was the soap of choice for Queen
Elizabeth I. At the outset of the 19th century Nablus was a home for more than
30 soap factories, most of them located in the old city. Soap industry was still
a main employer until the second intifada when the IOF began systematically
destroying it. The largest soap factory in Nablus was obliterated during the
April 2002 invasion by a bomb dropped from an F16.Now only two or three are
still functioning.
The soap factories usually produce several kinds of Nablusi soap:
white soap, green soap and sweet-scented soap.
Nablusi soap
The baths or hammams were
built during ottoman occupation. Nablus is among the rare places where you can
find them in Palestine. We can still find 10 bath houses inside the old city,
but only two are still active. One of them is more than 400 years old, but as
strong symbols of Nablus social life they were also repeatedly targets of IOF.
Still they have been restored again and can be wonderful places for any event or
meeting in addition to bath.
Turkish
baths
Nablusi and Palestinian Proverbs :
One bird in the hand is better than ten in the tree
Who knock the door has heard the answer
Don't cut the tree that shades you
If you see a lion's teeth, don't take it for a smile
One hand does not clap
Send your son to the marketplace and see with whom he associates.
Article about culture in Nablus:
http://www.thisweekinpalestine.com/details.php?id=2075&ed=138&edid=138
