''Speak, Bird, Speak Again: A book of Palestinian folk tales'' is a book first published in English in 1989 by

Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...

authors Ibrahim Muhawi and professor of sociology and anthropology at

Bir Zeit University Birzeit University () is a public university in the West Bank, Palestine, registered by the Palestinian Ministry of Social Affairs as a charitable organization. It is accredited by the Ministry of Higher Education and located in the outskirts o ...

. After the original English book of 1989, a French version, published by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

, followed in 1997, and an Arabic one in

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

in 2001. The book contains a collection of 45 Palestinian folk tales, including

Palestinian hikaye Hikaye, or Palestinian hikaye (), is a unique form of oral literature from Palestine that is performed by women, particularly those who are older. In 2005, it was listed as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNES ...

, drawn from a collection of two hundred tales narrated by women from different areas of the region of

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

(the

Galilee Galilee (; ; ; ) is a region located in northern Israel and southern Lebanon consisting of two parts: the Upper Galilee (, ; , ) and the Lower Galilee (, ; , ). ''Galilee'' encompasses the area north of the Mount Carmel-Mount Gilboa ridge and ...

, the

West Bank The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

, and Gaza). The stories collected were chosen on the basis of their popularity, their aesthetic and narrative qualities, and what they tell about popular Palestinian culture dating back many centuries. The authors spent 30 years collecting the material for the book. The English version of the book is studied as part of literature courses at both

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...

and

Chicago University The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

, and Kana'nah himself taught the study of the book in the masters programs at Bir Zeit University. Some of the folk tales from ''Speak, Bird, Speak Again'' have been used in other collections/books: *Margareth Read MacDonald, Alik Arzoumanian (ill), (2006): ''Tunjur! Tunjur! Tunjur! A Palestinian Folktale,'' , is based on the "Tunjur, Tunjur" story, first told by Fatme Abdel Qader, Arrabe, Galilee, for ''Speak, Bird, Speak Again.'' * Sonia Nimr (Introduction by Ghada Karmi), (2007): ''Ghaddar the Ghoul and other Palestinian Stories,'' , contains the story "Hasan and the Golden Feather", which is based on the story entitled "Bushel of Gold" (or "The Golden Pail") in ''Speak, Bird, Speak Again.''

Controversy

In 2007, the

Hamas The Islamic Resistance Movement, abbreviated Hamas (the Arabic acronym from ), is a Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islam, Sunni Islamism, Islamist political organisation with a military wing, the Qassam Brigades. It has Gaza Strip under Hama ...

-run

Palestinian Authority The Palestinian Authority (PA), officially known as the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), is the Fatah-controlled government body that exercises partial civil control over the Palestinian enclaves in the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, ...

(PA) banned the book and issued a directive to pull Professor Kanaana's book from school libraries and destroy it, however, the ban was later lifted. The book was misinterpreted, explained the author, "since it was not meant to be taught to children, as it is taught at the masters and doctorate level n literature studies" The Palestinian novelist Zakaria Mohammed warned that Hamas' decision to ban the book, which is a collection of 45 folk tales, was "only the beginning" and he urged intellectuals to take action. He said: "If we don't stand up to the Islamists now, they won't stop confiscating books, songs and folklore". The decision to ban the book was shortly thereafter reversed due to widespread outcry. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6445465.stm

References

External references

Full online version
Arabian mythology Culture of Palestine (region) Collections of fairy tales Hamas Censorship in Islam Islam-related controversies

Controversy

See also

References

External references