Who am I? Revisiting the Identity Crisis in the Middle East
Centre for West Asian Studies , Jawaharlal Nehru University , India
Abstract
The Middle East and North Africa region is predominantly Arab and Islamic. This Arab-Islamic dominant identity also clashes with ethnic, religious, linguistic, national, and other diversities. The imperial-colonial legacy, religious and dynastic politics, and territorial ambitions dominate identity politics. The statelessness of the Kurds and Palestinians, as well as several refugee populations, complicates the identity debates in MENA. In recent years, some Arab countries have sought to mitigate identity-related tensions and are discovering, recognising, and addressing the challenges of their multiple identities.
Highlights
Introduction: The following article is a significantly updated version of the originally published article under the same main title inMERIA Journal, vol. 10 no. 1,...
Diverse Middle East: Recognising the emergence of new regional identities in the post-World War II Middle East, eminent sociologist Albert Hourani described minorities as ...
Imperial-Colonial Legacy: In modern times, the Middle East was principally affected by two colonial forces: European colonialism, comprising Britain, France, and Italy, and the...
Religious Identity: In the words of Bernard Lewis, “The modern, secularised Westerner has great difficulty in understanding a culture in which not nationality, not citize...
Dynastic Identities: Monarchical rule remains the dominant form of governance in the MENA region. Out of 20 states, as many as eight are monarchies: six GCC countries, Jor...
Territorial Aspirations : Some MENA countries have sought to circumvent the identity question by emulating the territorial expansion strategy of the erstwhile imperial powers a...
Transnational Identity: If the expansionist state aspirations were not always successful, some sought the transnational route to overcome the identity crisis. The challenges ...
Stateless Nations: The phenomenon of statelessness further challenges the multiplicity of MENA identities. The plight of Kurds and Palestinians, the two prominent groups...
Progress in Identity Debate: In the early part of the twenty-first century, the MENA has been showing signs of change and shifts in understanding the identity dilemma. The fa...