Showing posts with label Arab. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Arab. Show all posts

May 12 - World Belly Dance Day

(Second Saturday in May)
Posted on May 12, 2018



Belly dancing is...

...a dance style, an art form, a cultural exploration and expression, even a sport! It's entertainment - and World Bellydance Day founder Lydia Tzigane says it's family entertainment!

Celebrating all of that is what today is all about...but it's also a charity event. The folks who participate in WBDD - people spread out over five continents! - raise money for a variety of good causes.

Some people call belly dance "Arabic dance." This dance style has a long history in the Middle East, Egypt, and in southern Spain. Since it is so ancient (literally ancient, with Ancient Greek and Roman sources referring to it), it's hard to know exactly where the dance form had its start.

There are two kinds of belly dance. One is a social dance performed by ordinary people (men and boys as well as women and girls) in ordinary clothing. The other is performance dance, with one or a group of dancers - many times professional dancers - performing for an audience. Usually costumes - often very fancy and sparkly costumes! - are involved.

Some belly dancers are men!


The modern belly dance style and costume evolved in Cairo, Egypt, and has been enshrined in Egyptian movies. In Turkey, belly dancers are particularly energetic, even athletic, and generally use finger cymbals. Lebanese belly dance includes some kicks and floor work such as splits. 

What all of these versions have in common is the complicated movements of the torso (the belly), with swaying and undulation shimmying and isolations of torso muscles. 

An emphasis is also placed on hips, similar to many Pacific Islander dance styles.

Nowadays, the birthplace of belly dance may not be the best place to see belly dance, because dancers - especially female dancers - are not considered respectable. Most versions of the Islam religion frown upon a woman showing off her body.

Luckily for belly dancing in general, interest in it has spread over the world!


Check out this example of belly dance - performed by kids!




Here is a veil dance.





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June 10 – Army Day in Jordan

Posted on June 10, 2016

 This holiday commemorates the start of the Great Arab Revolt in the Ottoman Empire, in 1916. Here's a teeny-tiny crash course on that revolt:

The setting: The Ottoman Empire ruled a large swath of what we now consider Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Northern Africa for centuries. The Empire aligned itself with Germany in the early 20th Century, joining in World War I.


The timing: Starting in the 1820s, Arabs living in the Ottoman Empire began to feel that they should be independent of the ruling Turks. By June of 1916, Sherif Hussein bin Ali started a revolt, saying that he wanted to create a single unified Arab nation ranging from what is now Syria to what is now Yemen. He called Arab Muslims to a “sacred rebellion” – although other Muslims accused the Sherif of betraying the Muslim Caliphate that was trying to govern the lands.

The results: The Ottoman Empire ceased to be after World War I, and its various lands were partitioned off into independent and occupied lands – occupied by Britain, France, and Italy. Many Arab people consider Britain, especially, guilty of breaking promises and of partitioning Arabian lands in ways that didn't suit the populations that lived in them.
The Emirate of Transjordan was established and became a British protectorate.

Apparently the Royal Jordanian Army, which was formed in 1920, is believed to have had its origins in the Hashemite forces that participate in the Great Arab Revolt.

It seems to me that Jordan would be one of the worst of all Arab states, since it is small and landlocked and it lacks the rich oil reserves of other nearby nations. But it is rated as a country with “high human development” and an “upper middle income” economy; it is considered one of the safest Arab countries; it has been hospitable to refugees and peaceful with its own Christian minority and its Jewish neighbor, Israel. It is a major tourist destination in the region and has great medical care and therefore gets “medical tourists” who are seeking good care.

In other words, by many measures, Jordan is one of the best rather than one of the worst!! How do they do it?

Here are some of the reasons people go to Jordan:

  • Petra is a famous archeological site that features tombs and temples that have been carved into pink sandstone.



I love this “Tunnel of Light” in Petra!


  • As usual, rock plus water is beautiful!!



  • The Dead Sea is super salty – and that means that it is super easy to float there AND you can see weird salt formations.





For more about Jordan, check out this earlier post. 



Also on this date:












Author/ illustrator Maurice Sendak's birthday
















Anniversary of the invention of the “outlook envelope”
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December 16 – National Day in Bahrain

Posted on December 16, 2015

Bring on the parades! The concerts! The fireworks!

Today is the first of two days of celebrating Bahrain's independence from Britain.

Actually, Bahrain actually became independent in August of 1971, after a United Nations survey of the Bahraini people showed that a majority of them wanted to be independent. However, December 16 was chosen at some point by Bahraini rulers as a more suitable day to celebrate, because it coincided with coronation day of former emir Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa.

The good news is that Bahrain has a high-income economy and has invested in banking and tourism, so even when petroleum profits dwindle, it should remain strong.

The bad news is that, although Bahrain claims to be a constitutional monarchy, the parliament is not strong, the judicial branch is not independent of other branches, and the king is, essential, a dictator. This type of government is called an absolute monarchy.

What do you know about Bahrain?

Before you read on, ask yourself where Bahrain is located, what language Bahraini's speak, and if there is a state religion – and, if so, which religion it is.

While you think about those questions, scroll through these photos of gorgeous cityscapes and natural landscapes from the nation....


This tree (above and below) is called the Tree of Life.
It is the only speck of plant life visible in miles of sand...
the mystery of how it still lives in such a dry, dusty area
keeps it a popular tourist destination!


Bahrain is an island nation located in the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia. There is a causeway that connects the island to Saudi Arabia.

There are 83 smaller islands, aside from the largest island (which is called Bahrain).

Arabic is the official language. Because Bahrain used to be a British colony, English is widely used. Some other commonly heard languages in Bahrain include Persian (language of Iran) and Urdu (language of Pakistan).

The state religion of Bahrain is Islam, and about 70% of the population is Muslim.


Also on this date:





























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