Tag: palestine

Iraq National Anthem

~ joannerambling ~ Leave a comment

This week we are looking at Iraq’ national anthem it is titled Mawtini which in English mean My Homeland, it is a poem written by the Palestinian poet Ibrahim Tugan and is a popular patriotic song amongst the Arab people as well as being the official national anthem of Iraq.

It was adopted as the country’s anthem in 2004, the song formerly served as an unofficial anthem of Palestinians and other people of the Middle East during much of the 20th century. In 1996, Palestine formally adopted it as their official anthem. Even though it has since been superseded by something else, many Palestinians still identify strongly with it and consider it the unofficial national anthem of their country.

It has been described as a reflection of the shared experiences and struggles of Arab peoples, evoking strong emotions tied to national pride, hardship, and the aspiration for freedom. It is regarded as a symbol of resistance and a representation of the collective longing for liberation during periods of occupation and oppression. The anthem conveys emotions such as sorrow, anger, and hope, fostering a sense of renewal and solidarity among those who have endured similar adversities. Its lyrics express a deep love for the homeland, a commitment to its liberation, and a vision of a united and free nation. This message resonates widely across the Arab world, reflecting the shared struggles for independence, identity, and sovereignty.

The national anthem of Iraq between 2003 and 2004 was “Mawtini”, an instrumental composition composed by Iraqi Assyrian musician Louis Zanbaka. 

Also, the “Arḍu l-Furātayni”, also known as the “Land of The Two Rivers”, was the national anthem of Iraq from 1981 to 2003, during the Ba’athist regime of Saddam Hussein. 

My homeland, my homeland,
Glory and beauty, sublimity and splendour
Are in your hills, are in your hills.
Life and deliverance, pleasure and hope
Are in your air, are in your air.
Will I see you, will I see you?
Safely comforted and victoriously honoured.
Safely comforted and victoriously honoured.
Will I see you on your eminence?
Reaching to the stars, reaching to the stars
My homeland, my homeland.

My homeland, my homeland,
The youth will not tire
Their goal is your independence.
Or they die, or they die.
We will drink from death, and this will not be our enemies.
Like slaves, like slaves.
We do not want, we do not want
An eternal humiliation, or a miserable life.
An eternal humiliation, or a miserable life.
We do not want to, but we will take it back.
Our storied glory, our storied glory.
My homeland, my homeland.

My homeland, my homeland,
The sword and the pen, not talk nor the quarrel
Are our symbols, are our symbols.
Our glory and our covenant, and a faithful duty
Moves us, moves us.
Our glory, our glory,
It is an honourable cause and a waving flag.
It is an honourable cause and a waving flag.
O, behold you, on your eminence,
Victorious over your enemies, victorious over your enemies.
My homeland, my homeland!

Israel’s National Anthem

~ joannerambling ~ 1 Comment

This week’s Hodgepodge is here: https://jamfn.blogspot.com/2025/02/hodgepodge-because-its-thursday.html

This week we are looking at the national anthem of the country Israel.

The anthem is a song called Hatikvah (The Hope, it was written in 1878 by Naftali Herz Imber, a Jewish poet. The theme of the song reflects the 2,000-year-old desire of the Jewish people to return to the Land of Israel which is not the country but refers to the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. As in a biblical reference, to the Land of Canaan, or the Promised Land also known as the Holy Land.

When the State of Israel was established in 1948, “Hatikvah” was unofficially proclaimed the national anthem. It did not officially become the national anthem until November 2004, when an abbreviated and edited version was sanctioned by the Knesset in an amendment to the Flag and Coat-of-Arms Law (now renamed the Flag, Coat-of-Arms, and National Anthem Law).

In its modern rendering, the official text of the anthem incorporates only the first stanza and refrain of the original poem. The predominant theme in the remaining stanzas is the establishment of a sovereign and free nation in the Land of Israel, a hope largely seen as fulfilled with the founding of the State of Israel.

The lyrics are below.

Kol od ba’le’vav p’nima,Nefesh yehudi ho’miyah.

U’lefa-atei mizrach kadimah,

Ayin le’Tziyyon tzofiyah.

Od lo avda tikva-teinu,

Ha’tikvah bat sh’not al-payim

Lih-yot am chofshi b’ar-tzeinu

Eretz Tziyyon v’Yerushalayim.

Translation:

As long as within our hearts

The Jewish soul sings,

As long as forward to the East

To Zion, looks the eye –

Our hope is not yet lost,

It is two thousand years old,

To be a free people in our land

The land of Zion and Jerusalem.

Israel

~ joannerambling ~ 8 Comments

Ok after a bit of thought I am kicking of countries in the middle east with Israel.

Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the Southern Levant of the Middle East, and shares borders with Lebanon and Syria to the north, the West Bank and Jordan to the east, the Gaza Strip and Egypt to the southwest, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west.

The capital is Jerusalem, the population was 9.7 million in 2023. The official language is Hebrew.

It was called British Palestine in 1920 because that portion of the Ottoman Empire was given to the British to manage after World War I.

Both Jews and Arabs have claimed it as theirs alone. From a purely historical perspective, “Israel” predates “Palestine” by more than a millennium. But, with the Jewish people then dispersed from their homeland, “Palestine” became home to a substantial Arab population, again for more than a millennium

It is the homeland of the Jewish people, it is also the birthplace of Christianity, it also contains Islam’s third holiest site – the Dome of the Rock, and the Baha’i Gardens in Haifa.

Did you know voicemail technology was developed in Israel, or that there are more than 135 beaches.

An armed conflict between Israel and Hamas-led Palestinian militant groups has been taking place in the Gaza Strip and Israel since 7 October 2023.

This is the fifth war since 2008 in the Gaza–Israel conflict, and the most significant military engagement in the region since the Yom Kippur War in 1973.

If like me, you don’t what or who HAMAS is well here is the answer. The Islamic Resistance Movement, abbreviated Hamas, is a Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islamist political organisation with a military wing known as the Al-Qassam Brigades. It has governed the Israeli-occupied Gaza Strip since 2007. 

The Israeli flag is white with a blue Star of David in the middle and two horizontal blue stripes. The flag was adopted on October 28, 1948, five months after Israel declared independence. The meaning goes beyond its visual elements. The Star of David at its center is a symbol of Jewish unity and connection to faith. The blue stripes represent the rivers of Babylon, evoking the longing for the Jewish homeland as described in the Bible.

The new Israeli shekel is Israel’s official currency. The value of one new shekel is equal to one hundred agorot. Since the year 1986, the Israeli Shekel has served as the country’s primary unit of currency.

The official religion is Orthodox Judaism, as I am sure most people would know, however, Israel’s laws protect the freedom of religion for all people, or so they say, how true that is I do not know.

The country’s basic laws define it as a Jewish democratic state. 

Judaism has been influential in Israel since the country’s founding. It plays a major role in the country’s political and state institutions. 

Each city and area of government has a religious council that regulates Jewish practices. 

Israel has religious courts that regulate personal status matters. 

Naturally everyone knows how dangerous it is to visit this country right now.

The Middle East

~ joannerambling ~ 2 Comments

Ok I am moving away from Africa and venturing into the Middle East, this is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western European nations in the early 20th century as a replacement of the term Near East.

The Middle East is considered to include countries like Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and others, totalling around 17 countries. Although the exact number depends on the definition used. Some sources include the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, and parts of North Africa within the Middle East.

Egypt is traditionally considered to be part of the Middle East. It is a regional power in the Middle East, North Africa, and the Muslim world. I included it in the North African Countries.

However, when you consider that the official language of Egypt is Arabic. And the official religion of Egypt is Islam. As well as the fact that some say the majority of Egyptians today identify as Arabs linguistically, while others say that there is a growing minority reject this.

Roughly 60% of the population in the Middle East is under 25 years old. The term “Arab” generally refers to people who speak Arabic as their first language. The majority of Arabs are Muslims, but the majority of Muslims are not Arabs. The words Islam and Muslim are derived from the Arabic word salam, which means peace.

The Middle East is the birthplace of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. It is, therefore, a region of great diversity. While Arabs compose the majority of the Middle East’s population, the region is also home to Berbers, Kurds, Jews, Persians, Turks, and a vast array of other ethnic and religious minorities.

The Middle East is about 3.82 million square miles or 9.9 million square kilometres It makes up about 6.2% of the Earth’s land.

The largest country is Saudi Arabia, which is about 800,000 square miles or 2.1 million square kilometres and the smallest country is Bahrain, which is about 295 square miles or 765 square kilometres.

The Middle East is known for its vast deserts, including the Sahara Desert and the Arabian Peninsula’s “Empty Quarter.

The highest point is Mount Damavand in Iran, which is 18,406 feet or 5,610 meters tall and the lowest point is the Dead Sea, which is 1,388 feet or 423 meters below sea level.

Next week we will start looking at different counties.