The Vatican, Palestinian Christians, Israel, and Jerusalem: Religion, Politics, Diplomacy, and Holy Places, 1945–1950

2000 ◽  
Vol 36 ◽  
pp. 358-372 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony O’Mahony
Keyword(s):  
Social Transformation ◽  
Muslim Community ◽  
Christian Community ◽  
History Match ◽  
Western Sector ◽  
Old City ◽  
Holy Places ◽  
The City ◽  
Christian Population ◽  
Israeli Occupation

The years 1945–9 were a time of profound political and social transformation for Palestine. Few other periods in its history match these changes, which left no community unaffected. The overwhelming Palestinian-Arab Christian and Muslim community was reduced from a majority to a minority, subject to the rule of a staunchly nationalistic Jewish and Zionist state. The events of 1948–9 were particularly devastating. A large number of Palestinians became refugees, including approximately fifty to seventy per cent of the Palestinian Christian population. Nearly half of the Christian community of Jerusalem had lived and had their businesses in the more modern and developed western sector of the city until Israeli occupation; their property was sequestered after they fled or were compelled to leave. Most of them were forced to seek refuge in the Old City, in monasteries and other Church buildings. Many others were forced to flee elsewhere, some leaving the former Mandate territory altogether.

Invisible Traces of Islam in the Urban Space of Rustavi: Interpreting the Religious Diversity in Post-Soviet Georgia

2021 ◽  
Vol X (2) ◽  
pp. 54-70
Author(s):  
Tea Kamushadze ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Urban Space ◽  
Religious Diversity ◽  
The Self ◽  
Muslim Community ◽  
Religious Groups ◽  
City Space ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Historical Past ◽  
The City ◽  
Christian Population

The article discusses the revelation of the religiosity of the Azerbaijani community in the postSocialist city of Rustavi and their visibility in the urban space. The subject of research is how their religiosity is expressed in the city space. The article pinpoints the attempt by the Muslim community to build a mosque in the city. This unsuccessful try is forgotten by both members of the community- the Azerbaijani and the Christian population. Everyone has forgotten about it, and the topic has become a subject of taboo. In the article, the search for the invisible traces of Islam in the urban space of the city can be linked to two pasts of the city; one is the experience of the Soviet multi-ethnicity and the more distant, historical past of the city interpreted by the Communists. It is also influenced by the peculiarities of the region, the ethno-confessional composition, and the state's attempt to control religious groups and their activities, which has a corresponding impact on the self-perception and self-representation of the Azerbaijani community in the city. Findings presenting in the article based on the ethnographical research done in Rustavi 2019-2020.

Palestinian Refugees between the City and the Camp

2020 ◽  
Vol 52 (4) ◽  
pp. 607-621
Author(s):  
Faedah M. Totah
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
Daily Life ◽  
National Belonging ◽  
Palestinian Refugees ◽  
Social Distinction ◽  
Urban Refugees ◽  
Old City ◽  
Refugee Experience ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The City

AbstractThe camp and the city are both important for understanding the relationship between space and identity in the refugee experience of exile. In the Palestinian example, the camp has emerged as a potent symbol in the narrative of exile although only a third of refugees registered with UNRWA live in camps. Moreover, the city and urban refugees remain missing in most of the scholarship on the Palestinian experience with space, exile, and identity. Furthermore, there is little attention to how refugees understand the concept of the city and camp in their daily life. This article examines how Palestinian urban refugees in the Old City of Damascus conceptualized the relationship between the camp and the city. It illustrates how the concept of the camp remained necessary for the construction of their collective national identity while in Syria. However, the city was essential in the articulation of individual desires and establishing social distinction from other refugees. Thus, during a protracted exile it is in the interstice between the city and the camp, where most urban refugees in the Old City situated themselves, that informed their national belonging and personal aspirations.

Educational and economic dimensions in the Israeli project against occupied Jerusalem

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 338-353
Author(s):  
Nadia Sa’d Al-Deen
Keyword(s):  
Political Leadership ◽  
Main Theme ◽  
Palestinian Authority ◽  
Youth Movement ◽  
Systematic Scheme ◽  
Current Events ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City ◽  
Israeli Occupation

Emboldened by American partiality for the Israeli occupation and the feeble Arab-Islamic support for the Palestinian cause, Israel has been taking advantage, over the last five years, of the current events and changing conditions prevailing in the regional Arab system. The Israeli occupation authority employs the two contingent devices of education and the economy in occupied Jerusalem as a base for counter-action in its desperate effort to hit the collective political consciousness that demands terminating occupation, liberation and self-determination. The occupation authority in occupied Jerusalem has employed a systematic scheme to isolate the city from the rest of the West Bank territories. Their aim is to destroy its trade movement in order to tighten the loop of hegemony around the vital economic and social sectors, and to deprive the Palestinian Authority from returns of tourism. Life for the residents of the city has become complicated in every possible way, prompting them to abandon their city. All this would be a part of a ‘voluntary immigration’ policy as a prelude to Judaizing the city, evacuating its residents, replacing them with settlers and, ultimately, dropping the city off the partition claims. The measures adopted by the occupation authorities take advantage of the educational and economic dimensions and employ them as leverage for penetrating the articulating points of the resisting Jerusalemite society. This goal is being achieved by shaking the foundations of the educational system and by obstructing endeavours seeking to improve and propagate it. The occupation authority continued to perpetrate its scheme of ‘displacement/settlement’ when it recently expelled 100,000 Jerusalemites from their city. In light of the aforesaid, this research examines, as its main theme, the impact of putting the educational and economic dimensions to use in the Israeli project against occupied Jerusalem, on the fate of the city, and on the equation of the Arab–Israeli conflict. The paper also argues that it would be natural that a popular youth movement emerging in the face of Israel’s intransigence will nominate its own political leadership, dissociated from the political leadership of the Palestinian factions, so that insurrection can continue.

scholarly journals THE FUNCTIONS AND SYMBOLISM OF CHINESE MINARETS: A CASE STUDY OF THE HUAISHENG GUANGTA

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 68-76
Author(s):  
Hamada Muhammed Hagras
Keyword(s):  
Chinese Society ◽  
Muslim Community ◽  
Religious Minority ◽  
Architectural Form ◽  
Historical Texts ◽  
Religious Symbolism ◽  
The One ◽  
And Function ◽  
The City

The Huisheng mosque in Guangzhou is one of China's oldest mosques; its initial construction dates back to 627. The minaret of the mosque is one of the surviving earliest examples of Islamic architecture in China. The Chinese minarets were built with a form of a wooden low-rise Chinese pavilion. In the case of Guangta, it was built by brick directly on the street with such a great height. The unique architectural form of Guangta raises many questions about its location, architecture, and function. The study traces the historical texts of the minaret to clarify its historical functions. It attempts to understand the minaret's meanings, the hidden symbolism, and its historical roles to serve the Muslim community as a religious minority in the city, on the one hand, as well as its cultural contributions on the other hand. There are several methods to achieve its objectives: the historical, the descriptive, and the comparative analytical approach. These approaches proved that the minaret played many roles associated with its form and architecture. In addition to its religious functions, it is entrusted to inform Muslims at prayer times. The minaret was also used as a control tower if the Muslim community in the city was exposed to external or internal threats and served as a lighthouse to facilitate Muslim maritime trade. Further, it carried a religious symbolism as it was a symbol of Islam itself within the local Chinese society that was not ruled by Muslims. 

scholarly journals The occurrence of fungi in the air of the monumental buildings in the city of Kraków

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 121-126
Author(s):  
Ewa Mędela-Kuder
Keyword(s):  
Old City ◽  
The City

Mycological examinations have been carried out in several rooms of the seven monumental architectural complexes situated in the old city of Kraków. The results of examinations have shown considerable pollution in the investigated rooms. Species, such as: <i>Penicillium, Aspergillus</i> and <i>Aureobasidium</i>, have been represented in the most numerous way. In general about thirty species of fungi have been isolated from the air and from the building dividing walls.

scholarly journals A Study on Urban Furniture: Nicosia Old City

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Mine Kuset Bolkaner ◽  
Selda İnançoğlu ◽  
Buket Asilsoy
Keyword(s):  
Urban Space ◽  
Urban Life ◽  
The South ◽  
Urban Identity ◽  
South Side ◽  
The North ◽  
North Side ◽  
Old City ◽  
Street Furniture ◽  
The City

Urban furniture can be defined as aesthetics and comfort elements that reflect the identity of a city and enable the urban space to become livable. Urban furniture is an important element of the city in order to improve the quality of urban life, to create a comfortable and reliable environment and to meet the needs of the users in the best way. For designing these elements, the social, economic, cultural and architectural structure of the city should be considered and evaluated. It is important to adapt the urban furniture to the urban texture and to the cultural structure achieving an urban identity, in order to ensure the survival and sustainability of the historical environments. In this study, a study was carried out in the context of urban furniture in Nicosia Walled City, which has many architectural cultures with its historical texture. In this context, firstly the concept of urban identity and urban furniture was explained and then, information about urban furniture was given in historical circles with urban furniture samples from different countries. As a field study, a main axis was determined and the streets and squares on this axis were discussed. These areas have been explored starting from Kyrenia Gate in North Nicosia; İnönü Square, Girne Street, Atatürk Square, Arasta Square, Lokmacı Barricade and on the south side Ledra Street and Eleftherias Square. In this context, the existing furniture in the North and South were determined and evaluated in terms of urban identity accordingly. As a result, it can be suggested that the existing street furniture equipments, especially on the north side, do not have any characteristic to emphasize the urban identity. According to the findings, it was determined that the urban furniture in the streets and squares on the north side is generally older and neglected, and does not provide a unity with the environment, whereas on the south side, these elements on the street and square are relatively new, functional and environmentally compatible.Key words: urban furniture, historical environment, urban identity, Nicosia Old City

City as a Text: Narratives, Toponymy and Language Competences of the Modern Jerusalem

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 58-63
Author(s):  
Lusine Gushchyan ◽  
◽  
Valentina Fedchenko ◽  
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
National State ◽  
The Past ◽  
Old City ◽  
Historical Phenomenon ◽  
The City

This paper analyses the processes when the ancient multilingual and multicultural city becomes a modern capital of the national state on the example of the cultural‑historical phenomenon of Jerusalem during the decline of a centuries‑old era. Now, due to political and cultural circumstances, the image of the city shifts into a different, tourist business sphere, which, in the current era of postmodernism, accumulates symbolic paradigms. Until recently, Jerusalem remained the last Middle Mediterranean municipal commune in the antique‑medieval sense of the word by virtue of its sacral and supranational status. Over the period from the second half of the 20th century and until 2017, there can be distinguished a process of subordination to the national state, as the owner of the territories and rights in the old city, which is demonstrated by changes in the languages used and in the subjects of the narratives displayed. Being a fragment of empires included in the Balkan‑Levantine area, Jerusalem, in the second half of the 20th century, forms a new local text, gradually losing the topics, inherited from the past.

Cities and Extension Plans in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies

2018 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Carlone
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Urban Development ◽  
The State ◽  
Military Architecture ◽  
Public Ownership ◽  
Administrative District ◽  
Holy Places ◽  
The City

In Italy in the nineteenth century the bourgeoisie decreed the end of the old model of urban development which had been limited by the rules of military architecture. In the years of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, the Bourbons established the Consigli Edilizi. Between 1859 and 1860 Francis II established 19 Consigli Edilizi; 13 were in municipalities of an administrative district. With the decree of foundation of the suburb of Bari, Gioacchino Murat donated the state land to the city and ordered that private persons and holy places were obliged to register for assessment or to sell to the municipality any land lying within the perimeter of the suburb unless they wanted to build on it. The new regime of public ownership of the land ratified by the Murattiano decree was confirmed by the “Statutes for the regular formation of the suburb of Bari” approved on 1st December 1814. The last step for assignment of land takes place before a notary. This is the signing of the assessment contract which involves the mayor, the building commission called Deputazione del borgo and the applicant. This chapters details these steps.

Sardis

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clyde E. Fant ◽  
Mitchell G. Reddish
Keyword(s):  
Biblical Studies ◽  
Roman Period ◽  
Asia Minor ◽  
Christian Community ◽  
Ancient City ◽  
Ancient Times ◽  
Gediz River ◽  
The City ◽  
The Temple ◽  
Western Half

A city with a strong and vibrant Jewish community during the Roman period, as well as a center for the worship of Artemis and home to a significant Christian community, Sardis is an intriguing place to visit for anyone interested in biblical studies or ancient religious history. The partially restored 3rd-century-C.E. synagogue in the city is the largest known synagogue outside Palestine from ancient times. Ancient shops, a bath-gymnasium complex, and the Temple of Artemis provide glimpses of the life of this ancient city. Once the capital of the ancient Lydian Kingdom, Sardis (Sart) lies approximately 60 miles east of Izmir along the modern highway (E96/300) connecting Izmir to Ankara in the Hermus River valley (today called the Gediz River). Portions of the ruins of Sardis are situated adjacent to the highway and are easily accessible. The ancient city was built along the Pactolus River, a tributary of the Hermus, and at the foothills of the Tmolus Mountains. The city’s acropolis was strategically located atop a spur of the Tmolus Mountains. The Tmolus Mountains (or Mt. Tmolus) were, according to some ancient traditions, the birthplace of the gods Dionysus and Zeus. Sardis first came to prominence during the 1st millennium B.C.E. when it served as the center of the powerful Lydian kingdom, which encompassed most of the western half of Asia Minor. The Lydians supposedly were the first to develop a technique to dye wool and also to invent dice games, knucklebones, and other games. (Interestingly, archaeologists found a terra-cotta die in the ruins at Sardis.) Legend says that Midas, the mythical Phrygian king, was able to rid himself of his golden touch by bathing in the Pactolus River. As a result, the sands of the river turned to gold. Though legendary, this account points nonetheless to the enormous wealth enjoyed by the Lydian kingdom. The earliest Lydian rulers belonged to the Heraclid dynasty, which according to Herodotus (5th-century-B.C.E. Greek historian) lasted 505 years. They were succeeded by the Mermnad dynasty, of which the first king was Gyges (r. ca. 680–ca. 652 B.C.E.).

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