Moise A. Khayrallah Center for Lebanese Diaspora Studies

Just a reminder we are still accepting participants interested in the LBGTQIA+ and Arab Diaspora Oral History Project! If you are interested, please fill out this quick survey or contact Lindsey Waldenberg ([email protected]) to learn more.

Another letter from our new Colombia letter collection! In this letter Michel Saykali writes to his brother Georges Saykali, 1968 August 19. He tells him how happy he is about the family news. He also expresses his sadness over the death of their relative, Michel Kaadi.

Learn more about this collection here:

https://ow.ly/zFvx50SX3wA

Another photo from our newly uploaded Colombia letter collection. This letter is from Michel Saykali to his brother Georges Saykali, 1965 May 24. In the letter Michel congratulates Georges him on the birth of their granddaughter Georgette.

Learn more about this collection here: https://ow.ly/E84a50SX1KA

Announcement🚨 : The Khayrallah Center now has it's blogposts more easily accessible to search for you all. Blog posts are originally published on the Khayrallah Center's blog. This collection is updated regularly as new blog posts are published. To access these go to our website homepage and then click Archive > Browse Collection > KCLDS Blog Post Archive.

Explore more here: https://ow.ly/GYW850SUS4i

Want to learn more about letters from Colombia the Khayrallah Center recently uploaded the website?

The collection consists of over four hundred Saykali family written letters, radiograms, and telegrams, mainly between Michel and Georges. From 1912 to 1969, they discuss various topics such as work and family affairs, economic and political events, as well as immigration and travel.

Click here to learn more: https://ow.ly/CGYI50SUT15

💡 The Khayrallah Center worked with Lindsey Payne, a PhD student in the NCSU College of Education, to develop a series of lesson plans that utilize the C3 Framework for secondary students. Download the lessons for free as part of the Exhibit: https://ow.ly/SlY250SFwNO

Want to learn more about some of the earlier Arab Newspaper Collections in the US. This photo is a newspaper clipping that discusses the visit of the Lebanese Minister of Public works to Bourj Hammoud. The second photo is an article that includes an archaeological discovery that took place in the Nubia region related to the Coptic language.

To explore more about this particular collection click here: https://ow.ly/yXlj50SOz0e
To access other digital periodicals through our database click here: https://arabicsearch.org/home

Want learn more about our Linda Jacobs collection?

This photograph from the collection is of five members of the Syrian Lebanese League holding a plaque of thanks for President Wilson in front of the White House. The photo is dated 1921

To learn more visit: https://ow.ly/RW2W50SNAwZ

Introducing the Bracewell and Rizk Family Collection: The Rizk family lived in Lebanon until the outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War. Houda and her older brothers moved to the United States on student visas for their safety, first staying with family in Boston and then Philadelphia. After their youngest son was struck by shrapnel, Soumaya and Nassif followed their older children, moving the whole family to the United States.

This collection contains photographs documenting Houda Rizk Bracewell’s childhood in Lebanon and the Bracewell family in the United States.

Explore more about this collection here: https://lebanesestudies.omeka.chass.ncsu.edu/collections/show/10

Today's archive collection we will be highlighting is The Syrian Spotlight of the South. It was a Syrian periodical based in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1935, The Syrian Spotlight was published internally by the Spotlight Publishing Company. Its editor was Louis E. Bosby and the associate editor was Margaret Macey. Macey’s parents, Isaac Macey and Catherine Chalhoub, immigrated from Lebanon to the United States, her father from Tripoli and her mother from Dhour Shweir.

The purpose of The Syrian Spotlight was to “better acquaint the Syrian people of the South amongst ourselves. Also to keep us abreast of the progress of Syrian people socially, politically and individually. In other words, we are merely amplifying the principles and purposes of the various clubs and federations.” The periodical had representatives across Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, Arizona, Florida, and Louisiana.

To learn more click the link here: https://lebanesestudies.omeka.chass.ncsu.edu/items/show/77734 #?c=0&m=0&s=0&cv=0

Mashriq & Mahjar: Journal of Middle East and North African Migration Studies is an online, open access, peer-reviewed journal devoted to sharing original research on migration from, to, and within the Middle East and North Africa. Mashriq & Mahjar is published, funded, and managed by the Moise A. Khayrallah Center.

Today we're highlighting "Leaving Homeland: The Evolving Concepualization of Migration in the Iranian Cinema of the 2010s" by Babak Tabarraee.

This article examines different Iranian films released inside Iran during the 2010s and addresses the latest wave of Iranians' emigrations since 2009. Tabarraee analyzes the ways these films represent Iranians and how it blurs the perceived boundaries of a global Iranian community and challenges the conventional understanding of "farangistan" (foreign lands) by reducing its sense of otherness compared to "Iranshahr" (the land of Iranians).

To learn/read more about this article click here: https://ow.ly/7AxA50SJlPF

Want to learn about Lebanese circuit performers? This collection contains materials related to Frank Lackteen, Marrie Bayrooty, the Morning Tribune of Detroit, Michigan, the Lebanese government’s 1955 “Summer of Emigrants” program, and other topics in Lebanese emigration.

To learn more about this collection visit here: https://ow.ly/nLuY50SLiAx

Named after Dr. Alixa Naff, a pioneer of Arab American history, the Alixa Naff Migration Studies Prize recognizes excellence in scholarly studies from any discipline focusing on any aspect of Middle East and North African migrations and diasporas. Two awards will be given. The first prize, in the amount of $1,000 is awarded to an established scholar. The second prize, in the amount of $1,000 is awarded to a graduate student.

To learn more about this award click the link here: https://ow.ly/jzKj50SfF9W

Jurab al Kurdy, جراب الكردي [The Kurd’s Pocket], also written as Jurab-ul-Kurdy, was an Arabic Boston newspaper produced in the early 1900s. It was produced by Antoine Anastas Zraick and released new issues thrice-weekly.

In 1903, Zraick attested that his paper served 1,500 Syrians in Boston and 20,000 Syrians overall (across the country and in Europe). He reportedly prepared his copies on his Arabic typewriter at his office at 35 (formerly 38) Edinboro Street and printed the paper in New York. At the time, Boston had “no suitable Arabic type.” Zraick shared in the Boston Sunday Post that he planned to have his own type cast so that he could move the printing to Boston.

The photo is of an article published on today's date 112 years ago!

To access the fully searchable digitized issues of the newspaper click here: https://arabicsearch.org/home

The collection featured today is theFather Nicola Yanney Timeline. This timeline of the life of Father Nicola Yanney was written and compiled by Father Christopher Morris of St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church in Kearney, Nebraska with the help of the Yanney family. Fr. Nicola Yanney was an important figure in the early Syrian Orthodox Church in America and the first to serve the Orthodox community in the Midwest.

This collection includes a narrative timeline written by Father Christopher Morris of Father Nicola Yanney's life beginning with his birth in 1873 and ending in 1921. The timeline includes photographs throughout and two appendices, one with other important dates and the second with missionary journey listings.

To learn more about this collection click the link here: https://ow.ly/t5t250SHwUs

One of the Khayrallah Center's projects (in collaboration with the RIhani Museum in Freike, Lebanon) included digitizing and remastering the audio of Ameen Rihani's speech that took place at Town Hall in New York City and broadcasted on WNYC radio on June 5, 1937. Ameen Rihani (1876-1940) is one of the earliest Lebanese American intellectuals who dedicated his life to linking and negotiating between Arab and American cultures. He wrote extensively leaving a corpus of 29 Arabic volumes and 26 English works. To access and hear these recordings click here: https://ow.ly/Cmqj50SGkIc

Today's archival feature will be about the Elizabeth Saylor Collection. The Elizabeth Saylor Collection of Books by Women Arabic Writers contains eight volumes of essays, speeches, and novels written by Salmā Sā’igh, Salwā Salāma, and Afīfa Karam.

Included are Al-Nasamāt, النسمات [Breezes], a collection of essays written by Salma Sa'igh and published in Beirut in 1923; Al-Kalimāt Al-Khālida, الكلمات الخالدة [Sincere Words], a collection of speeches and writings by Salwá Salāma Aṭlas published in Sao Paolo in 1923; Fāṭima al-Badawiyya [Fatima the Bedouin], Afifa Karam’s second novel, published in New York City in 1908; and Ghādat ‘Amshīt, غادة عمشيت[The Girl from ‘Amsh*t], Afifa Karam's last novel, published in New York City in 1910. The other four volumes are not online due to copyright.

To learn more about this collection visit: https://ow.ly/CkOl50SGiJ5

What is missing from the dominant historical narrative concerning the experiences of Arab American laborers?

The Arab American Labor Exhibit seeks to answer that question by telling the history of real people who immigrated to the US in the early 1900s and made a living for themselves and their families.

💡 The Khayrallah Center worked with Lindsey Payne, a PhD student in the NCSU College of Education, to develop a series of lesson plans that utilize the C3 Framework for secondary students. Download the lessons for free as part of the Exhibit: https://ow.ly/SlY250SFwNO

The Khayrallah Center Collaborative Playlist highlights a variety of songs and artists who represent various genres and generations of Arab identity in diaspora. 🎧

Listen, download, and contribute to the playlist by following us on Spotify: https://ow.ly/foy350SEC7E

The Southern Federation of Syrian Lebanese American clubs itself was established by the descendants of Syrian and Lebanese immigrants who began settling in Texas in the 1880s, and who built lives, businesses, and communities all across the state. In the process they brought new cultural threads to the rich landscape of Texas, while they themselves were changed in small and large ways.

The Khayrallah Center Exhibit on Syrian-Lebanese Immigrants in the Lone Star State tells their stories: https://ow.ly/A7p950SAGBx

Our archive preserves the photographs of families who immigrated to North Carolina in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It is our mission to make sure their stories are not left out of history. 📜

That includes Agnes Shapou, born in 1923 in New Bern, North Carolina to Micheal Shapou (1883-1969) and Genevieve Khoury (1894-1987). Both of her parents were born in Lebanon and moved to the United States where they had at least four children, 1 son and 3 daughters, together.

Visit our digital archive to learn more: https://ow.ly/Yg6c50SAFTg

📣 Call for Papers! The Mashriq & Mahjar Journal for Middle East and North African Migration Studies is hosting a workshop on Interactions and Interdependencies between Arab Diaspora Communities in Latin America and their Communities/Countries of Origin.

Latin American countries and especially the Arab diaspora communities in these countries are an important political, socioeconomic, and cultural resource for Arab communities in the Levant and the wider Middle East. In recent months, the world has been reminded of this by the numerous Latin American expressions of solidarity with Gaza. Similarly, during the past few years, Arab diaspora communities have rallied to support Syrian refugees and economically drained Lebanese communities. These acts of solidarity are not singular in nature, but are part and parcel of long-lasting and deep-rooted ties between Middle Eastern and Latin American communities.

If you are interested in being a part of the discussion, learn how you can apply: https://ow.ly/WH5r50SzSQI

Deadline for submission is August 1, 2024.

📣 This summer, we are releasing a new podcast that traces the legendary life of Robert (Bob) Haddad. Follow Voices of the Mahjar on Soundcloud to listen to our series on Crossing Borders, Tarikh, and the Khayrallah Center Documentaries!

https://ow.ly/Or8I50Sz7hP

Today we are highlighting Lebanese artist, creative, and activist Marwan Kaabour.

Marwan is a graphic designer, artist and writer. His interdisciplinary practice builds pathways between communication and publication design, curation, pedagogy and political activism. Alongside his independent projects, he works with non-profit institutions, companies and individuals in arts and culture sectors. In 2019, Marwan founded Takweer, an online platform and expanding archive of q***r narratives in Arab history and popular culture.

The Q***r Arab Glossary is the first published collection of q***r Arabic slang. This bold guide captures the lexicon of the q***r Arab community in all its differences, quirks and felicities. Featuring fascinating facts and anecdotes, it contains more than 300 terms, ranging from the humorous to the harrowing, serious to tongue-in-cheek, pejorative to endearing.

Fetauring contributions by Saqer Almarri, Nisrine Chaer, Sophie Chamas, Rana Issa, Adam HajYahia, Mejdulene Bernard Shomali, Hamed Sinno and Abdellah Taïa.

You can order the book here: https://ow.ly/fJYF50S8Kk6

Presenting the Wael and Lama Abou-Chakra Collection: this collection contains documents and photographs relating to Wael Abou-Chakra’s achievements in business and community service, photographs from Lama Abou-Chakra’s childhood in Lebanon, and images from Wael and Lama’s life together. The collection also includes a restricted oral history available for on-site research.

The first photo is an article about Wael Abou-Chakra published by the Lebanese Arabic-language newspaper Al Mustaqbal in 2008.

The second photo is of a photo of Wael and Lama Abou-Chakra, with their two children Nassim and Katia.

To learn more about this collection click here: https://ow.ly/WT8V50Sx2FB

Last week our summer interns toured the Turner House with tour guide, Cheryl Williams. The Historic Turner House Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to telling the stories of the black villagers of Historic Oberlin Village. These untold stories were left out of the history of North Carolina and they strive to continue to educate and preserve this history and the physical representations of that history.

To learn more about the work of the History Turner House Foundation visit their website here: https://historicturnerhouse.org/what-we-do/

Follow their Facebook for more information here: Historic Turner House & Tours

Yesterday, our summer interns visited NCSU's Special Collections facilities where they learned about manuscript and document conservation and preservation. In addition, they learned about the digitization of historical documents and the process of archiving objects that are sent to the university.

We also talked about the vital importance of preserving history, especially records that are often gets excluded from mainstream spaces. At the Khayrallah Center we are constantly sharing and amplifying marginalized voices. We highlight the individual lives of people, organizations and communities through their memories and artifacts they have preserved.

The photos below were from the Special Collection archive of the Arab Club that was active on NC State campus during the 70s. The other photo is a series of articles from the Al-Hoda newspaper (one of the first Arabic language newspapers in the United States).

To explore al-Hoda visit our newspaper database: arabicsearch.org

You can also explore our archive at: https://lebanesestudies.ncsu.edu/archive/

To learn more about Special Collections at NC State go to their website here: https://www.lib.ncsu.edu/scrc

Presenting the Oussani and Fuleihan Family Papers: The Oussani and Fuleihan Family Papers consists of materials related to the family and descendants of Joseph Oussani. The collection contains photographs of the Oussani and Fuleihan families dating from the 1880s to the early 2000s. The collection also contains letters, sheet music, newspaper clippings, maps, and other documents. In addition to photographs and documents, the collection includes jewelry and fabric sold in the Oussani stores at the turn of the twentieth century.

The first photo is an old Ottoman Turkish receipt paid by Joseph Oussani in 1893.

The second photo is a a drawing of a sailboat by Micky Fuleihan dated 1914

For more information about this collection click here: https://ow.ly/2l4T50St2HV

For Pride month we are celebrating Arab artists, writers, and activists by highlighting the profound work of Lebanese diaspora creatives who are using their platforms to uplift and contribute diverse voices and representation of Arab identity within the community. 🌈

Chaza Charafeddine is an artist and writer who studied special education at La Branche|Centre de formation en pédagogie curative et sociothérapie in Switzerland, and Eurhythmy dance at the Eurythmieschule - Hamburg in Germany. After exploring the fields of education and dance for 15 years, she turned to photography and writing. Her photographic works were shown in numerous galleries and artistic venues in Lebanon and abroad. In 2012 Dar Al-Saqi|Beirut has published her first novella Flashback and in 2015 her short-story collection Haqibatun Bilkade Tura.

Her work offers a new perspective on femininity, questioning the normative notions represented by history.

To learn more about her work visit her website here: https://chazacharafeddine.com