This book highlights and examines the role of the textbook in legitimising established political and social orders. It analyses the way in which the 'other' is presented in school textbooks, focusing on a number of countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, and argues that the role of textbooks in developing and maintaining a national identity should be afforded greater critical attention. Textbooks can help form national identities by developing a society's collective memory; this might involve a historical narrative which may be self-contradictory or even fabricated to a certain extent, including myths, symbols and collective memories that divide "us" from "them", and ultimately resulting a dichotomy between the Self and the Other. As well as addressing a range of theoretical questions relating to the study of textbooks generally, the volume also covers a broad spectrum of Middle Eastern states and societies, with contributions from Turkey, Iran, Egypt, Cyprus, Lebanon, Iraq, Kurdistan, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia, Israel and Palestine. It will be essential reading for researchers and students working in the fields of Education, Sociology and History, particularly those with an interest in national identities in the MENA region.

Why do countries celebrate defining religious moments or significant events in their history, and how and why do their leaders select certain events for commemoration and not others? This book is the first systematic study of the role of celebrations and public holidays in the Arab Middle East from the fall of the Ottoman Empire to the present. By tracing the history of the modern nation-state through successive generations, the book shows how Arab rulers have used public holidays as a means of establishing their legitimacy and, more broadly, a sense of national identity. Most recently, some states have attempted to nationalize religious festivals in the face of the Islamic revival. With its many illustrations and copious examples from across the region, the book offers an alternative perspective on the history and politics of the Middle East.

Israeli history textbooks in the past contained many biases, distortions, and omissions concerning the depiction of Arabs and the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Today these misrepresentations are gradually being corrected. This study encourages the depiction of a balanced portrait in all textbooks.

By reviewing curricula and textbooks used in the Israeli educational system since the establishment of Israel, the author assesses the impact of Zionist historiography and the Zeitgeist on the portrayal of Arabs in textbooks. The study unravels the biases, distortions, omissions, and stereotypes through the analysis of several major historical events such as the 1948 war, the refugee question, the 1967 war, and the peace process.

This book highlights and examines the role of the textbook in legitimising established political and social orders. It analyses the way in which the 'other' is presented in school textbooks, focusing on a number of countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, and argues that the role of textbooks in developing and maintaining a national identity should be afforded greater critical attention. Textbooks can help form national identities by developing a society's collective memory; this might involve a historical narrative which may be self-contradictory or even fabricated to a certain extent, including myths, symbols and collective memories that divide "us" from "them", and ultimately resulting a dichotomy between the Self and the Other. As well as addressing a range of theoretical questions relating to the study of textbooks generally, the volume also covers a broad spectrum of Middle Eastern states and societies, with contributions from Turkey, Iran, Egypt, Cyprus, Lebanon, Iraq, Kurdistan, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia, Israel and Palestine. It will be essential reading for researchers and students working in the fields of Education, Sociology and History, particularly those with an interest in national identities in the MENA region.

Why do countries celebrate defining religious moments or significant events in their history, and how and why do their leaders select certain events for commemoration and not others? This book is the first systematic study of the role of celebrations and public holidays in the Arab Middle East from the fall of the Ottoman Empire to the present. By tracing the history of the modern nation-state through successive generations, the book shows how Arab rulers have used public holidays as a means of establishing their legitimacy and, more broadly, a sense of national identity. Most recently, some states have attempted to nationalize religious festivals in the face of the Islamic revival. With its many illustrations and copious examples from across the region, the book offers an alternative perspective on the history and politics of the Middle East.

Drawing on a newly developed theoretical definition of "missed opportunity," Chances for Peace uses extensive sources in English, Hebrew, and Arabic to systematically measure the potentiality levels of opportunity across some ninety years of attempted negotiations in the Arab-Israeli conflict. With enlightening revelations that defy conventional wisdom, this study provides a balanced account of the most significant attempts to forge peace, initiated by the world's superpowers, the Arabs (including the Palestinians), and Israel. From Arab-Zionist negotiations at the end of World War I to the subsequent partition, the aftermath of the 1967 War and the Sadat Initiative, and numerous agreements throughout the 1980s and 1990s, concluding with the Annapolis Conference in 2007 and the Abu Mazen-Olmert talks in 2008, pioneering scholar Elie Podeh uses empirical criteria and diverse secondary sources to assess the protagonists' roles at more than two dozen key junctures. A resource that brings together historiography, political science, and the practice of peace negotiation, Podeh's insightful exploration also showcases opportunities that were not missed. Three agreements in particular (Israeli-Egyptian, 1979; Israeli-Lebanese, 1983; and Israeli-Jordanian, 1994) illuminate important variables for forging new paths to successful negotiation. By applying his framework to a broad range of power brokers and time periods, Podeh also sheds light on numerous incidents that contradict official narratives. This unique approach is poised to reshape the realm of conflict resolution.

Analyses the political and socio economic processes that led to the rise and fall of the UAR, as well as the ramifications of this episode on the Arab world. This book tells the story of this important, yet neglected, episode in Arab history. It is based on the archiveal material located in the US, Britain, Canada, Israel, and sources in Arabic.

"An enormous amount of academic literature has been published on Nasserism since the 1950s and, to my mind, "Rethinking Nasserism" is without a doubt the last word on the subject. . . . An outstanding reappraisal of Nasserism as a major force in the 20th-century Middle East."--Israel Gershoni, Tel Aviv University

President Gamal 'Abd Nasser was a beloved figure of the Egyptian people and loomed large over the Arab world during his period of influence (1952-1970). Nasser dominated and defined the politics of an entire generation of Egyptians and successfully spoke to the masses of Arabs in other countries, even going over the heads of their own leaders--something that no other Arab leader since has been able to accomplish since on any considerable scale. In Rethinking Nasserism, distinguished scholars from Israel, the United States, and Egypt provide a definitive reappraisal of the historical force of Nasserism in the ideological, economic, social, and cultural arenas of the modern Middle East in general and of Egypt in particular.

The innovative theme of the collection is Nasserism as a form of populism, described by the editors in their introduction as a combination of various tenets of anti-imperialism, pan-Arabism (or nationalism), and Arab socialism. The book reassesses the achievements and failures of Nasserism during Nasser's presidency and the lasting impact of his ideology on subsequent regimes in Egypt and on the entire Arab world.

Contents
Foreword by Gabriel Ben-Dor
Introduction: Nasserism as a Form of Populism, by Elie Podeh and Onn Winckler
"Part I. Images of Nasserism"
1. Gamal 'Abd al-Nasser: Iconology, Ideology, and Demonology, by Leonard Binder
2. Demonizing the Other: Israeli Perceptions of Nasser and Nasserism, by Elie Podeh
3. History, Politics, and Public Memory: The Nasserist Legacy in Mubarak's Egypt, by Meir Hatina
"Part II. Political and Social Aspects of Nasserism"
4. Nasserism's Legal Legacy: Accessibility, Accountability, and Authoritarianism, by Nathan J. Brown
5. Sports, Society, and Revolution: Egypt in the Early Nasserite Period, by Yoav Di-Capua
6. Nasserist and Post-Nasserist Elites in an Official Biographical Lexicon, by Uri M. Kupferschmidt
"Part III. Nasser's Foreign Policy"
7. 'Abd al-Nasser's Regional Politics: A Reassessment, by Avraham Sela
8. 'Abd al-Nasser and the United States: Enemy or Friend? by David W. Lesch
9. Nasser and the Soviets: A Reassessment, by Rami Ginat
"Part IV. Nasser's Socioeconomic Policies and Achievements"
10. An Assessment of Egypt's Development Strategy, 1952-1970, by M. Riad El-Ghonemy
11. Nasser's Egypt and Park's Korea: A Comparison of Their Economic Achievements, by Paul Rivlin
12. Nasser's Family Planning Policy in Perspective, by Gad G. Gilbar and Onn Winckler
"Part V. Cultural Aspects of Nasserism"
13. The Nightingale and the Ra'is: 'Abd al-Halim Hafiz and Nasserist Longings, by Joel Gordon
14. Nasser and Nasserism as Perceived in Modern Egyptian Literature through Allusions to Songs, by Gabriel M. Rosenbaum

Elie Podeh is senior lecturer in the Department of Islam and Middle Eastern History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Drawing on a newly developed theoretical definition of "missed opportunity," Chances for Peace uses extensive sources in English, Hebrew, and Arabic to systematically measure the potentiality levels of opportunity across some ninety years of attempted negotiations in the Arab-Israeli conflict. With enlightening revelations that defy conventional wisdom, this study provides a balanced account of the most significant attempts to forge peace, initiated by the world's superpowers, the Arabs (including the Palestinians), and Israel. From Arab-Zionist negotiations at the end of World War I to the subsequent partition, the aftermath of the 1967 War and the Sadat Initiative, and numerous agreements throughout the 1980s and 1990s, concluding with the Annapolis Conference in 2007 and the Abu Mazen-Olmert talks in 2008, pioneering scholar Elie Podeh uses empirical criteria and diverse secondary sources to assess the protagonists' roles at more than two dozen key junctures. A resource that brings together historiography, political science, and the practice of peace negotiation, Podeh's insightful exploration also showcases opportunities that were not missed. Three agreements in particular (Israeli-Egyptian, 1979; Israeli-Lebanese, 1983; and Israeli-Jordanian, 1994) illuminate important variables for forging new paths to successful negotiation. By applying his framework to a broad range of power brokers and time periods, Podeh also sheds light on numerous incidents that contradict official narratives. This unique approach is poised to reshape the realm of conflict resolution.