Palestinian keffiyeh

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A woman wearing the Palestinian fishnet-style keffiyeh in Paris, France, 2010

The Palestinian keffiyeh (Arabic: كوفية, romanized: kūfiyya) is a distinctly patterned black-and-white keffiyeh. Since the beginning of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, it has become a prominent symbol of Palestinian nationalism, dating back to the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine. Outside of the Middle East and North Africa, the keffiyeh first gained popularity among pro-Palestinian activists; it is widely considered to be an icon of solidarity with the Palestinians in their fight against Israel.

History

Palestinian political leader Yasser Arafat in his iconic fishnet-style black-and-white keffiyeh, 1974

Ottoman and British period

Traditionally worn by Palestinian farmers, during the Ottoman period the keffiyeh signalled that the wearer was rural, in contrast to the tarboosh worn by the urban classes.[1] Early Jewish migrants to Mandatory Palestine adopted the keffiyeh because they saw it as part of the authentic local lifestyle.[2]

1936–1939 revolt by Palestine's Arab populace

The black and white keffiyeh worn by Palestinian men of any rank, became a symbol of Palestinian nationalism during the Arab Revolt of the 1930s.[3][4] This reached a peak in 1938, when the leadership of the revolt ordered that the urban classes replace their traditional tarbush hats with the keffiyeh. The move was intended to create unity, as well as allow the rebels to blend in when they entered the cities.[5]

Israeli–Palestinian conflict

Its prominence increased during the 1960s with the beginning of the Palestinian resistance movement and its adoption by Palestinian politician Yasser Arafat.[3]

The colors of the stitching in a keffiyeh are also vaguely associated with Palestinians' political sympathies. Traditional black and white keffiyehs became associated with Fatah. Later, red and white keffiyehs were adopted by Palestinian Marxists, such as the PFLP.[6]

Popularity with pro-Palestinian activists

The wearing of the keffiyeh often comes with criticism from various political factions in the ongoing Israeli–Palestinian conflict. The slang "keffiyeh kinderlach" refers to young left-wing American Jews, particularly college students, who sport a keffiyeh around the neck as a political/fashion statement. This term may have first appeared in print in an article by Bradley Burston in which he writes of "the suburban-exile kaffiyeh kinderlach of Berkeley, more Palestinian by far than the Palestinians" in their criticism of Israel. European activists have also worn the keffiyeh.[7][8]


In 2006, the prime minister of Spain, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero gave a speech in which he criticized Israel harshly, then accepted a keffiyeh from members of the audience and had his photo taken wearing it.[9]

The keffiyeh print has been many times used in fashion by brands such as Topshop, ASOS, Cecilie Copenhagen, Boohoo or the Israeli brand Dodo Bar Or, bringing controversy and debates about cultural appropriation.[10]

In 2007, the American clothing store chain Urban Outfitters stopped selling keffiyehs after a user on the Jewish blog "Jewschool" criticized the retailer for labelling the item as an “anti-war woven scarf”.[3] The action led to the retailer withdrawing the product.[3]

Music

Now these dogs are starting to wear it as a trend
No matter how they design it, no matter how they change its colour
The keffiyeh is Arab, and it will stay Arab
The scarf, they want it
Our intellect, they want it
Our dignity, they want it
Everything that's ours, they want it
We won't be silent, we won't allow it
It suits them to steal something that ain't theirs and claim that it is.

Shadia Mansour, "al-Kūfīyah 'Arabīyah"

British-Palestinian hip-hop rapper Shadia Mansour denounced cultural appropriation of the keffiyeh, defending it as a symbol of Palestinian solidarity, in her first single, "al-Kūfīyah 'Arabīyah" ("The keffiyeh is Arab"). She performs wearing a traditional Palestinian thawb and proclaims in her song: "This is how we wear the keffiyeh/The Arab keffiyeh" and "I'm like the keffiyeh/However you rock me/Wherever you leave me/I stay true to my origins/Palestinian." On-stage in New York, she introduced the song by saying, "You can take my falafel and hummus, but don't fucking touch my keffiyeh."[11]

Criminalisation

During the Israel–Hamas war protests, it has been reported that activists in France and Germany were cautioned, fined or detained because they were wearing the keffiyeh. Germany's Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper called the keffiyeh the "problem cloth" and suggested German pro-Palestinian protesters wear a Nazi uniform instead.[12][13] In November 2023, 3 Palestinian students were shot because they were wearing the keffiyeh.[14]

Ted Arnott, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, banned the wearing of the keffiyah in the assembly due to viewing it as an "overt political statement".[15] Four activists from the York Centre 4 Palestine, that unfurled keffiyehs inside Ontario's legislature in late April, were kicked out and banned from Queen's Park. Sarah Jama, an independent assemply member, donned the keffiyeh and was ordered out of the chamber by the Speaker. She refused to leave and remained in the chamber. Arnott later said he was not prepared to use physical force to remove Jama. Jama has said the ban is racist and has vowed to continue wearing the keffiyeh inside the chamber.[16]

Symbolism

The patterns on the Palestinian keffiyeh symbolize various themes:

Production

A loom at work making a Palestinian keffiyeh at the Hirbawi factory in Hebron, 2015

Today, this symbol of Palestinian identity is now largely imported from China. With the scarf's growing popularity in the 2000s, Chinese manufacturers entered the market, driving Palestinians out of the business.[19] For five decades, Yasser Hirbawi had been the only Palestinian manufacturer of keffiyehs, making them across 16 looms at the Hirbawi Textile Factory in Hebron. In 1990, all 16 of the looms were functioning, making around 750 keffiyehs per day. By 2010, only 2 looms were used, making a mere 300 keffiyehs per week. Unlike the Chinese-manufactured ones, Hirbawi uses 100% cotton. Hirbawi's son Izzat stated the importance of creating the Palestinian symbol in Palestine: "the keffiyeh is a tradition of Palestine and it should be made in Palestine. We should be the ones making it."[20] After the 2023 Gaza war demand has increased 200%, that couldn't be met because Hirbawi has a monthly production of 5,000.[12]

See also

References

  1. ^ William Roseberry; Jay O'Brien (8 January 2021). Golden Ages, Dark Ages: Imagining the Past in Anthropology and History. Univ of California Press. pp. 170–. ISBN 978-0-520-32744-3. While the kufiya signified social inferiority (and rural backwardness), the tarbush signaled superiority (and urbane sophistication).
  2. ^ Langer, Armin (5 December 2023). "How the keffiyeh – a practical garment used for protection against the desert sun – became a symbol of Palestinian identity". University of Florida. Archived from the original on 3 April 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d Kim, Kibum (2 November 2007). "Where Some See Fashion, Others See Politics". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021.
  4. ^ Torstrick, Rebecca (2004). Culture and Customs of Israel. Greenwood. p. 117. ISBN 978-0-313-32091-0.
  5. ^ Ted Swedenburg (8 January 2021). "Popular Memory and the Palestinian National Past". In William Roseberry and Jay O'Brien (ed.). Golden Ages, Dark Ages: Imagining the Past in Anthropology and History. Univ of California Press. pp. 170–. ISBN 978-0-520-32744-3. In August 1938, at the height of the insurgency, the rebel leadership commanded all townsmen to discard the tarbush and don the kufiya. The order was issued to help the rebels blend in when they entered the cities, but it was also a move in the wider social struggle... Official colonial sources, which noted that the fashion spread with "lightning rapidity," saw this more as the result of a conspiracy than as a manifestation of the spirit of unity (Palestine Post, 2 September 1938). Once the rebellion ended, the effendis of the town reassumed the tarnish, owing in part to British pressure (Morton 1957:98-100).
  6. ^ Binur, Yoram (1990). My Enemy, My Self. Penguin. p. xv.
  7. ^ Tipton, Frank B. (2003). A History of Modern Germany Since 1815. Continuum International Publishing Group. p. 598. ISBN 0-8264-4910-7.
  8. ^ Mudde, Cas (2005). Racist Extremism in Central and Eastern Europe. Routledge. p. 34. ISBN 0-415-35594-X.
  9. ^ "Spanish minister objects - Says criticism of Israel is not anti-Semitic". The New York Times. 20 July 2006.
  10. ^ Bramley, Ellie Violet (9 August 2019). "The keffiyeh: symbol of Palestinian struggle falls victim to fashion". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 24 May 2021.
  11. ^ Andersen, Janne Louise (4 September 2011). "The Passion, Politics and Power of Shadia Mansour". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 1 February 2014. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
  12. ^ a b Alkousaa, Riham; Foroudi, Layli (15 December 2023). "Palestinian keffiyeh scarves - a controversial symbol of solidarity". Reuters.
  13. ^ "Germany: Police admit people detained under 'protest ban' just looked Palestinian". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 2 May 2024.
  14. ^ Sainato, Michael (26 November 2023). "Three Palestinian students shot and wounded in Vermont, police say". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2 May 2024.
  15. ^ Draaisma, Muriel (17 April 2024). "Ontario Legislature keffiyeh ban remains in place". CBC.
  16. ^ Casey, Liam (1 May 2024). "Keffiyeh-waving protesters banned from Ontario legislature". CBC.
  17. ^ Ajlouni, Eman (25 October 2023). "The Palestinian Keffiyeh and The Jordanian Shemagh". Arab America.
  18. ^ "The Significance of the Keffiyeh". KUVRD. 12 May 2021.
  19. ^ Sonja Sharp (22 June 2009). "Your Intifada: Now Made in China!". Mother Jones.
  20. ^ "The Last Keffiyeh Factory In Palestine". Palestine Monitor. 24 June 2010. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011.
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