2017

May 10, 2017

Complicating the Lebanese Peddler Myth

This article is co-authored by Dr. Akram Khater, Director of the Khayrallah Center for Lebanese Diaspora Studies and Khayrallah Distinguished Professor of Lebanese Diaspora Studies, and Professor of History at NC State, and Zoe Avery who is studying Art History, French, and Chemistry at NC State. She also works on extracting and analyzing relevant census data…

Apr 26, 2017

Southwestern Syrians: Los Arabes of New Mexico: Compadres from a Distant Land

This article is written by Dr. Jay Price, Director, Public History Program at Wichita State University. His publications include Gateways to the Southwest: The Story of Arizona State Parks, Wichita, 1860-1930, Wichita’s Legacy of Flight, and El Dorado!: Legacy of an Oil Boom. Price’s work was featured twice on the Center’s blog in an article…

Apr 13, 2017

Diasporic Cartographies: Poetry by Nathalie Handal, Part III

This post is written by Dr. Elizabeth Saylor, Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Khayrallah Center for Lebanese Diaspora Studies. Nathalie Handal composed the poem “Declaration of Independence” expressly for Mashriq & Mahjar: Journal of Middle East and North African Migration Studies. The poem was originally published as part of a longer piece on Nathalie Handal, co-authored…

Mar 29, 2017

Diasporic Cartographies: Poetry by Nathalie Handal, Part II

This post is written by Dr. Elizabeth Saylor, Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Khayrallah Center for Lebanese Diaspora Studies. Nathalie Handal composed the poem “Letter from the Levant” expressly for Mashriq & Mahjar: Journal of Middle East and North African Migration Studies. The poem was originally published as part of a longer piece co-authored by Dr.…

Mar 15, 2017

Diasporic Cartographies: An Interview with Nathalie Handal

This post is written by Dr. Elizabeth Saylor, Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Khayrallah Center for Lebanese Diaspora Studies. This piece has been adapted from a longer interview with poet Nathalie Handal, co-authored with Dr. Lily Balloffet. To read the full interview, please see Vol. 4 No. 1 of Mashriq & Mahjar: Journal of Middle East…

Feb 22, 2017

Interview with Dr. Lena Merhej: Beirut-based illustrator and activist

This interview was conducted by Renée Michelle Ragin, a PhD student in Literature at Duke University where her research focuses on the negotiation of national identity in post-conflict Middle Eastern and Latin American states. Her previous articles focus on refugees and oral history and war, memory, and archiving. Lena Merhej is the co-founder of Samandal, a…

Feb 1, 2017

Transplanted Family Trees – In search of Yazbek: What makes us who we are?

This article is the third and final installment written by Cecile Yazbek who was born into a Lebanese family in East London, South Africa. She is the author of four books all related to the Lebanese diaspora. Her other installments include Albinos in the Laager and The Chasm of Assimilation. All photos courtesy of author.…

Jan 4, 2017

The Desire for Progress in The Syrian World: Education

This article is authored by Dr. Akram Khater, Director of the Khayrallah Center for Lebanese Diaspora Studies and Khayrallah Distinguished Professor of Lebanese Diaspora Studies, and Professor of History at NC State, and Nicole Coscolluela, a second year MA student in Public History and completing the Digital Humanities Certificate at NC State. The Syrian World was…