A photo dated before 1937 during the British Mandate shows Arabs demonstrating in the Old City of Jerusalem against Jewish immigration to Palestine (Getty)

There are many famous poetic and lyrical forms in the Palestinian heritage, and what is striking for those who follow the development of these forms is the transformation they witnessed with the development of the Palestinian cause before and after the Nakba, until they were adapted and expanded to become national poetic forms, through which poets express the various concerns of the Palestinian people, and deposit in them elements of identity. And the resistance, and they chronicle the influential and prominent events that preoccupied the Palestinian and influenced his path, in addition to preserving the components of the Palestinian personality, because one of the most important tasks of resistance literature is to contribute to eliminating the factors of despair and defeat, highlight the elements of unity, and point to the future that is centered on the inevitability of liberating the homeland. The departure of the occupier and the return of the refugees.

Ataba and Meghna

“Al-Ataba” and “Al-Migna” are perhaps the most famous poetic and lyrical forms in terms of their prevalence and frequent use in Palestine. They are: “the favorite song in Palestine, especially in its countryside, and it is the one you used to hear wherever you wandered around the countryside on the tongues of shepherds, farmers, and workers, and at night out.” And wedding occasions. They may be called the word “admonition” alone, or the word “meghna” alone, or both words together, or the word “ouf” alone”[1].

“The admonition and the Meghna are closely linked. Whenever the admonition is mentioned, the Meghna is mentioned, to the point that some have made it an origin from the origins of the admonition and a type of it, and some of them believe that the admonition is the origin. It is said that the admonition and the Meghna arose from the same origin, or perhaps the Meghna arose before the admonition... The meghna is necessary for the art of reproach and a prelude to it. It is sung before the reproach because it relies on a low tone of voice that prepares for the verse of reproach in a calm, low tone. After completing it, the poet comes with the verse of reproach, which requires strong voice. If the poet sings a verse from the meghna, he must follow it with a verse of reproach, and it is possible to Singing with reproach without the Meghna, but it is not possible to sing with the Meghna without the reproach, as if the reproach is the origin and basis, and the Meghna is a prelude to the reproach”[2].

In the Meghna systems, it adheres to the complete Bahr al-Rajaz, that is, with 6 tafāqāls, “which is like a reproach, relying on alliteration in the first three parts, and the fourth part is concluded with the nūn followed by the absolute alif na”[3]. The origin of this form of “meghna and ataba” is that it is masculine in nature, and is sung by men at “weddings and evening parties that precede the wedding day, as well as on the occasions of birth, circumcision, the return of a traveler, Hajj, and most weddings... even the ataba is sung by shepherds in the embrace of nature”[4].

As for "Al-Ataba", it comes to the abundant sea, and "it consists of 4 sections based on alliteration, sealed with the consonant 'ba' rhyme"[5] in the fourth part. It has many variations and developments, including changes and additions to the original or traditional form, by increasing the number of parts or by adhering to certain letters that resemble a system of obligating what is not obligatory.

This is an example of the Meghna coming as an opening and prelude to the national theme:

If, for example, a singer wants to sing about patriotism, he prefaces that with one passage from the Miyyānā, such as:

O tree in the house, your protector is a lion

Your branches are broken from so much envy

We planted the seeds and changed the harvest

Other than fatigue, we didn't get tired

Oh Meghana, Oh Meghana, Oh Meghana

This will serve as the general framework for the national feeling that is simmering in his heart and which he desires to express, so that the reproaches - after that - take their role in expressing national emotions.”[6]. We note that the poet did not adhere completely to the alliteration in the rhyme “lion, envy, harvest.” And what is most effective from the perspective of the Meghna and Ataba poets is that the poet was able to preserve alliteration and not just rhyme.

Popular poets have used the form of the meghna and the reproach in their innovative sung poems. Among the national reproaches, for example, is the saying of the popular poet Abdel Aziz Al-Ajjawi[7]:

“Be a support to the nation

And it's nice for our youth with the arms folded

And if Eid comes, we will only know Eid

Victory and our flags flutter in joy.”

As for the method of performance in this template, it “does not deviate from the following form: Two groups of men - sitting or standing - line up in front of each other, and a singer stands out from each group, and his group is like a ‘chorus’, and it is also accompanied by the ‘majwiz’ or the ‘shababa’, and the two instruments may come together in One session, which is usually limited to men and is rarely performed by women. Sometimes it takes the form of a challenge between singers, and in some areas of the Palestinian coast it is performed by men - in the summer, standing - while in the winter, it is performed sitting in a special hall known as the mudafa, and usually wearing Men wear their normal clothing, which consists of the hat, the aqal, the qambaz, and the balgha.”[8]

This is a national meghna by the poet Saeed Zaid Al-Kilani, “born in Jenin 1950”

[9]

:

With blood, O olive tree, my country is “longing for” and oh pulpit of Al-Aqsa, my heart is “longing for”

Oh, the bell of returning to my homeland, “Hannah Lou,” we sacrifice for you, oh the soil of our country

We follow it with an admonition by the poet himself, in which he used the words henna and nostalgia in a manner consistent with the demands of the admonition:

Olives of our country with blood “I bowed” and to the pulpit of Saladin “I bowed”

O my people, I yearn for the bells of return, only with blood to liberate the soil

“Homogeneous words: the first is from henna, the second is from nostalgia and longing, and the third is the sound of a bell.”

Among the national censures of Abu Sa’id al-Silawi “1951-2022”

[10]:

You sing about the homeland, oh people, “Bel Ahdo” and they were rejected by the Lord, “Belhaddo”

The martyr, Ibda Janato, “B Lahdou,” and in front of him, there is a light like the clouds

“Homogeneous words: the first is from al-hada’, meaning singing, the second is from al-ilhad, and the third is from al-lahad, meaning grave.”

Dalona template

Al-Daluna: “A melodic template linked to the dabke. It is performed in the dabke circle with the playing of the shababa or the yargul. It is performed in 4 verses, the first three of which combine in one rhyme, while the last adheres to the nūn and alif. This melodic template includes in its content ghazal as a main theme, and it is rarely spoken For other purposes. Some believe that the homeland of this melodic template is northern Palestine and southern Lebanon... and this melody is rare in southern Palestine”[11]. This is the original in it, as it is in other templates, but poets and singers volunteered the dalouna to national concerns and expressions, so they formulated with the rhythms of the dabke stanzas from the national dalouna, such as [12]:

Oh, the tears of my eyes wet my cheeks. A Jewish guard at Al-Aqsa

The heroes of the revolution must come back and raise our flag in the best possible way

O people of the West Bank and our invaders, resist despite even a small challenge. Do not compromise

Wait a minute, come back, you oppressor, and tell me where the Nazi and our client are

They spoiled us with the Red Tuesday incident of 1930

Perhaps the most famous patriotic poem to date is the poem “From Acre Prison, Talaat’s Funeral,” a poem whose author is not fully known. It was said that the well-known poet Noah Ibrahim composed it in his youth, and perhaps he feared the oppression of the British and did not attribute it to him. The incident of the execution of the three martyrs: Muhammad Jamjoum, Atta al-Zeer, and Fouad Hijazi, left a profound impact on the souls and was immortalized by this popular poem that became a popular song (the execution incident on June 17, 1930). The poem glorifies the three heroes who were sentenced to death and attacks the “British High Commissioner.” She calls for his death, and it is from the “dalauna” template common in Palestine[13], which is a template created for flirtation and love, but the Palestinian situation required that it be expanded to the homeland:

From your door, Akka, the funeral of Muhammad Jamjoom and Fouad Hegazy took place

“Another novel: From Akka Prison...”

High Representative, may God reward you, may your wives mourn for us

Visit the cemeteries on the holiday, walk to Akka, visit the glories

The people of Al-Shahami, Atta and my heart, do not fear death or death

etc..

It was sung by the Lovers Band, as well as by other bands and many singers, and it is still one of the most famous songs indicating sacrifice and the injustice of the occupiers.

Spoil us with the resistance

Popular poetry and singing focused on resistance in thought and action, especially in the period of the revolutionary tide and the rise of the resistance movement, and painted an ideal image of the guerrilla, since the path of struggle is the only path to liberating Palestine. These verses from Al-Daluna mention guns and weapons in the words of the Palestinian young man who committed to the resistance and left his work or job to work as a guerrilla that contributes to the liberation of his homeland. The verses also include attention to the girl committed to the resistance and that the guerrilla only accepts the female guerrilla who carries her machine gun next to her, which is an ideal image for the purpose of it. Calling girls to join the resistance. This means that the verses were created by a poet who carries the thought of the revolution and passes its messages through popular poetry. This is because women joining the revolution as fighters remained governed by the social situation that did not have room for freedom for such revolutionary luxury. Therefore, the numbers of girls remained small in history. revolution. This revolutionary Dalona says[14]:

On our pets and on our pets, ululate, O brown-coloured Kalshan

Come on, give me my machine gun. The revolution asked for me, and I was walking in the morning

A good job and a good livelihood. The liberation of the homeland is the most precious thing

By God, I will not let a non-compliant woman carry her machine gun in times of crisis

There is strength in it and my resolve is strong, hands in hand on Palestine

Footnotes and references:

[1]. Al-Barghouthi, Abdul Latif, The Palestinian Diwan of Reproach, 1st edition, Documentation and Research Center, Birzeit University, Palestine, 1986, p. 59.

[2]. Sabah, Hammam Abdel Rahim, The Palestinian Reproach, A Study in Form and Content, Master’s thesis supervised by Dr. Ihsan Al-Deek, An-Najah National University, Palestine, 2018, p. 24.

[3]. Sabah, ibid., p. 25.

[4]. Adila, Moatasem Khader, Popular Zajal in Palestine: Rooting and Study, within: Popular Cultures, Studies in Narration, Poetry, and Singing, reviewed and edited by Saleh Abu Osba and Muhammad Ubaidullah, Philadelphia University Press, Amman, 2012, pp. 172, 176.

[5]. Sabah, ibid., p. 36.

[6]. Youssef, Osama Fawzi, Colors of Palestinian Popular Songs, Al-Funoun Folklore, No. 5, February, 1975, Department of Culture and Arts, Amman, p. 130.

[7]. The popular poet Abdul Latif Al-Ajjawi, Popular Arts, No. 6, May, 1975, Department of Culture and Arts, Amman, p. 115. “The article is without a signature. It is likely that it was prepared by Nimr Sarhan, the magazine’s editorial secretary.”

[8]. Youssef, Osama Fawzi, Colors of Palestinian Popular Songs, Al-Funoun Folklore, No. 5, February, 1975, Department of Culture and Arts, Amman, p. 131.

[9]. Yaqouba, Najib Sabri, Knights of the Zajal and the Palestinian Hades, vol. 3, General Union of Palestinian Writers and Writers, Ramallah, 2022, p. 73.

[10]. Yaqubah, Knights of Zajal and Palestinian Hades, 3/113.

[11]. Al-Sahli, Muhammad Tawfiq, Encyclopedia of Palestinian Popular Terms and Expressions, 1st edition, Jenin Center for Strategic Studies, Amman, 2001, p. 201. “Article: Al-Dalauna.”

[12]. Ahmed Al-Kabariti, Al-Dalauna volunteered by the Palestinians for love, war and sex: https://ultrapal.ultrasawt.com

[13]. This novel was narrated by Abdul Latif Al-Barghouti, and it has multiple forms and narrations. It is an example of popular poetry that is subject to increase and modification as long as oral narration and chanting are the method of circulating and preserving it.

See: Al-Barghouti, Abdul Latif, Songs of Palestine in the First Half of the Twentieth Century, Bayader Magazine, Department of Culture - Palestine Liberation Organization, Tunisia, No. 6, 1991, pp. 93-94.

[14]. Abu Aliwi, Hassan, Palestinian Popular Poetry, in: The Palestinian Encyclopedia, 1st edition, The Palestinian Encyclopedia Foundation, Beirut, 1990. p. 75.

Source: Al Jazeera