Table of Contents

Introduction; Genealogy of the Modern Terminology; Al-Umma & Nationalism; The Lebanese Christians Searching for Their Nation; The Shiite 'Asabiyya in the Era of Arabism; From Nusayriyya to Alawiyya; Druze Intellectuals & Nationalism; Index.

About the Author

Kais M Firro is Professor of Middle Eastern History at the University of Haifa.

Reviews

"Firro's book might be read in such a way as to render this complaint incidental. What Firro has done - and done so well - is demonstrate variety and complexity in nationalist sentiment in the Arab Middle East and the insufficiency of the phrase, 'Arab nationalism' in characterizing that sentiment." --Nations and Nationalism

"Firro investigates the emergence and development of Arab nationalism with a focus on its cultural aspects as manifested in language and ideology. He begins by tracing the usage of key terms such as umma (community), qawn (group), sha'b (group of people), and 'arab (Arabs) in classical texts from the rise of Islam until the era of 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Khaldun (1332-1406). He then explores the emergence of new terms based on the classical texts with new meanings in the era of Arabism from the end of the 19the century until 1940. Finally, he presents case studies on four religious communities in Syria and Lebanon: the Maronite-Christians, Shi'is, 'Alawis, and Druze." --Reference & Research Book News