''Kawkab America'' ( ar, كوكب أميركا, 'Star of America' or literal translation 'Planet of America') was an

Arabic-language Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

weekly (later daily) newspaper published in

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. ''Kawkab America'' was the first Arabic-language newspaper in

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; it was published by

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, and its readership was almost exclusively Christian.Suleiman, Michael W. '' rabs in America: Building a New Future'. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1999. pp. 4, 18 Typeset by hand, ''Kawkab America'' was published between 1892 and 1908. It became a daily in 1898. Politically, ''Kawkab America'' was highly supportive of Ottoman rule (at least during its early years). Initially, the launching of the newspaper had been scheduled for the birthday of the Ottoman Sultan. However, it was delayed as the Arabic printing press had not arrived on time. The first issue came out on April 15, 1892, carrying a major article of praise of the Sultan. However, according to an 1898 article in ''

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'', ''Kawkab America'' represented the Young Turks Party in the United States and condemned repression against

Armenians Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...

in the Ottoman Empire.
ANOTHER DAILY NEWSPAPER.; The First One Published in America in the Arabic Tongue Comes Out To-day.
' There are different claims about who was the founder of the newspaper. Some historians claim the newspaper was founded by the brothers Najeeb and Ibrahim Arbeely (who belonged to a prominent Syrian family), and that the founding editor was Najeeb Diab. Lilian George Shoucair claims that her father, Saed Shoucair, was the founding editor of ''Kawkab America'' and that the Arbeelys financed its publishing. She also stated that Saed Shoucair later bought the newspaper from the Arbeelys and that he had left it when he moved out of the city in 1907.Geißler, Rainer, and Horst Pöttker.
Media - Migration - Integration: European and North American Perspectives
'. Medienumbrüche, 33. Bielefeld: transcript, 2008. p. 199Miller, Sally M.
The ethnic press in the United States: a histor. analysis and handbook
'. New York u.a: Greenwood Pr, 1987. p. 6 ''Kawkab America'' was the transliteration used at the time of publishing. However, the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

used the more direct transliteration ''Kawkab Amirka''. Only the issues of the first four years have been preserved.

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kawkab America Arab-American culture in New York City Defunct newspapers published in New York City Arabic-language newspapers published in the United States Eastern Orthodoxy in New York (state) Newspapers established in 1892 Publications disestablished in 1908 Non-English-language newspapers published in New York (state) Daily newspapers published in New York City Syrian-American culture

See also

References

External links