Cultural adornments: How clothes fashion identity and mask bigotry
By Khaled Diab The clothes we wear speak volumes about our individual and collective identities. However, the history of fashion
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ottoman empire
A recipe for mashing civilisations
By Khaled Diab The migratory history of foodstuffs and cuisines reveals that our dinner tables, like our societies, are both
Read moreHow not to make Europe great again
By Khaled Diab A new alliance of Italian, Polish and Hungarian far-right parties promises a renaissance that will make Europe
Read moreBernard Lewis and the non-existent clash of civilisations
Bernard Lewis was the orientalist scholar of choice for American neo-conservatives. His dangerous ‘clash of civilisations’ theory was not only wrong but caused enormous damage in the Middle East.
Read moreDreaming of a vanished Syria
“A lot of Syrians are indulging in a nostalgia that requires a lot of denial,” says Syrian-American author Alia Malek. “This is why I’m a student of history, not to live in a fantasy but to learn why and how we are where we are today.”
Read moreMillet in the Middle East: Disunity in diversity
The Middle Eastern practice of assigning a faith to every citizen and a separate court system for each religion promotes division and sectarianism.
Read moreBeyond the Arab winter
As the Middle East stumbles perilously close to its own “world war”, seeds of change are already sprouting hopes of a better century ahead.
Read moreThe Middle Eastern century that wasn’t
As the post-Ottoman order crumbles around us, would the Middle East would have been better or worse off had Turkey remained neutral during World War I?
Read moreTaxing questions about democracy in the Middle East
In the Middle East, there appears to be a link between autocracy and low taxes. Would higher taxation lead to greater representation or repression?
Read moreThe empire must not strike back
Nostalgia for empire in the Middle East misses two points: we’re not witnessing the “final end of imperialism” and imperialism did not bring order.
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