The Arab Community in Albuquerque

Overview and Brief History:
Arab culture has given the world much in the way of intellectual richness. They have made large contributions on the subjects of astronomy, art, architecture, music, and science. Perhaps one of their greatest contributions was in their Arabic numerical system still used by most of the world today. Arabs also gave us the mathematical discipline of algebra.

The Arab world covers a very large and geographically spread out area. It consists of many different countries tied together by a common tongue, the Arabic language, and a common Arab heritage. Most Arabs recognize Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen, Jordan, Libya, Sudan, Tunisia, Morocco, Kuwait, Algeria, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman and the United Arab Emirates, Palestine, Mauritania, Somalia, and Djibouti as all being Arab countries. The vast geographic area these countries occupy stretches some 5,000 miles, covers an area of 5.25 million square miles, and straddles two continents: Africa and Asia.

Most Arabs consider themselves as decedents of the Semitic peoples. Semites were originally defined as people who spoke one of the Semitic languages. Linguists maintain that the Semitic languages are a part of an Afro-Asiatic super-language family that also includes Omotic, and Cushitic. Linguists postulate that the original home of the Afro-Asiatic cluster of languages was somewhere in northeastern Africa, possibly in the area between the Nile River and the Red Sea in modern Sudan. The Semitic language split from Berber and ancient Egyptian, two other Afro-Asiatic languages, and migrated eastward into far southwestern Asia. Arabic and Hebrew are both Semitic languages. Today, not all people in the Arab sphere speak Arabic. The Berbers and the Kurds are two examples of people living in Arab lands whose main language is not Arabic and who are not considered to be Semitic Arabs.

Many scholars believe that Arab culture as we know it today originated on the Arabian Peninsula among the nomadic Bedouin tribes. The clan and tribal system so common in Arab countries is an integral part of Bedouin culture. The various tribes on the Arabian peninsula often clashed with each other and for most of its early existence, the Arab world consisted of many small tribal kingdoms, similar in governance to the city states of ancient Greece. As different tribes jockeyed for power, larger kingdoms such as Syria and Iraq came into being.

From the first to the sixth centuries many Arabs began to convert to Christianity and it was soon the predominate religion in the region. However, this all changed radically in the seventh century with the meteoric rise of Islam. Originating in Mecca, but soon moved to Medina, the militant movement first spread to Syria. Expansion continued eastward in the following decades, until the Muslim sphere extended through India and Afghanistan and up to the borders of China. In succeeding centuries, Muslims expanded and consolidated their rule in many other areas, and by 1200 they controlled lands from the Atlantic to the Bay of Bengal, from central Russia to the Gulf of Aden.

A power struggle following the death of the Muslim Prophet Mohammad concerning proper succession of religious leaders resulted in a schism that has had a profound effect on Islam and the Arabs world that has persisted ever since. The two branches of Islam that resulted from this schism are known as Sunni and Shi’ite and they continue to divide the Arab nations, even as they unite as allies.

At the end of the eleventh century, Pope Urban II arrived in France and rallied Christians to take Jerusalem back from its Muslim occupants. His inspired speech unleashed a series of seven major and many minor crusades by European Christians against Arab Muslims that lasted for over two-hundred-and-fifty years. Jerusalem fell to the Christians in 1099. Eventually the rise of the Mongol Empire in the mid-thirteenth century and Egyptian victories over the Mongol and the Latin Christians brought Jerusalem back into Arab hands shortly before the dawn of the fourteenth century. However, this victory was short-lived. From the beginning of the fourteenth through the mid-twentieth centuries, most of the Arab world was conquered and ruled by the Muslim Ottoman Turks. Under benign Turkish rule, Arab culture and economic activities largely languished.

The Ottoman Empire began to show signs of decline in the eighteenth century. By the nineteenth century European powers had begun to take advantage of Ottoman weakness through both military and political penetration, including Napoleon's invasion of Egypt and French occupation of Lebanon. The economic and infrastructural development of Syria with European capital, for example building railroads with French money, brought further incursions into Turkish territory. Even before the First World War, the “sick Man of Europe” as Turkey was derisively called, had pretty much lost control of it its empire. Following the war, the Ottoman Empire was no more and Arab lands were designated to the British (Palestine) and the French (Syria and Lebanon), and new boundaries were put into place in Iraq and other Arab countries.

New governments formed or were established in the Arab countries by outside forces in France, Great Britain, and the U.S. Encouraged by a burgeoning Zionist movement which the British government did not discourage, many European Jews began immigrating to Palestine, creating and exacerbating political tensions in the region. In 1947, Great Britain turned over the now problematic and politicized Palestine to the United Nations which partitioned the nation into Jewish and Palestinian zones. A war soon followed between Arab nations and Palestinian Jewish settlers and following this war, the nation of Israel was established in a part of the former Palestine.

Today, there is still very much tension in the region and much animosity between the Arab and Israeli people, particularly those Arab nations in the Middle East. This animosity has created a cycle of violence between the two cultures that has spawned and maintained much out-migration of refugees from Arab countries.

Immigration to the United States and Albuquerque:
While most historians recognize two major waves of Arab immigration to America, they overlook a third one: the Spanish Arabs who arrived in the American Southwest in the sixteenth century. Examples of some of the Arab names among these early Spanish settlers include Herrera, Medina, Alire, and Azar. The first recognized wave began in the late nineteenth century and ended with the Second World War. The last or current wave followed the war and continues today.

The late-nineteenth century wave consisted mostly of Christian Arabs who came from what at that time was known as the Mount Lebanon area of Syria. There were Arabs from other areas, but these Syrians or Syrian-Lebanese as they are sometimes referred to, constituted the majority of the immigrant population in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Many were fleeing poor economic conditions at the time, and still others were avoiding conscripted service in the Ottoman army. The exact numbers of these immigrants are lost to history as the U.S. Census lumped Arabs together with Turks, Armenians, and Greeks before 1900.

Most of these early Arab immigrants settled in Boston and New York, though there were Arab communities in Chicago and Detroit. Few were educated and most were unskilled laborers. Most of them went into retail trades, often starting out as peddlers until they had saved enough to open dry goods stores. This was a natural gravitation as the Mount Lebanon area of Syria had long been one of the busiest trading regions in the Old World. This early group did not rapidly assimilate and instead held out hope that they would someday return to their Middle Eastern homes. There were several of these immigrants who eventually found their way to New Mexico. Typical of them was Joe Maloof who came to New Mexico to open a general store in 1892. Other common New Mexican Arab names from this earlier period include Budagher, Bellamah, and Hyder.

Following the Second World War the trend has been toward increased immigration by Muslim Arabs in addition to the Christians already emigrating. The partitioning of Palestine in 1947, which allotted less land to a numerically larger Arab population, caused one wave of Arab immigration. Subsequent Israeli expansion during the 1948-1949 war caused even more Palestinian, Jordanian, Lebanese, and Syrian emigration. The pattern was repeated following the 1967 war. The First Gulf War ushered in an era of other Arab immigrants from places such as Kuwait. In addition to internal pushes for emigration, intellectuals left the Middle East during this period for higher education opportunities in the West. In the early 1970's there was a spurt of immigration to Gallup, Albuquerque, and Santa Fe from refugees from two Palestinian villages, Beit Hanina and Deir Dibwan, who came to New Mexico to work in trading Native American jewelry. However, their case is not that common. Most recent Arab immigrants to Albuquerque came either because of UNM, Sandia Labs, or another professional job. Most are highly educated. According to the latest U.S. Census information, there were 2,505 Arabs living in Albuquerque in 2000.

Cultural Traditions:
The Arabic language is the common denominator, or glue, that holds much of Arab culture together. Arabic is taught as a second language at the Salaam Academy for Arabs in Albuquerque. Arabic is also taught at UNM, but most of classes are dominated by U.S. soldiers.

Traditional dress that is worn in the Middle East rarely worn by Arabs in Albuquerque, especially following the tragic events of September 11, 2001. The “Kofia” or “Hatar” is a headwrap that is worn by Arab men. The fabric patterns and folding techniques are unique to tribes and regions and are used as identifiers. Color is also significant. Iraqi’s wear maroon; the Gulf countries wear blue and white; and Palestinians wear black and white headwear. Bright red Kofias are indicative of Mediterranean countries and darker red and white ones are Kurdish. An “Eghal” holds the Kofia in place. It is usually made of a plain black band, but some people may use a strip of shells or beads strung together. Another practice among the Bedouin is to wear coins on these headwraps as a sign of wealth.

There are several Middle Eastern and at least one Arab restaurant in Albuquerque. Cuisine varies depending on its point of origin and there are many influences from Greek and Turkish cooking in what is considered to be Arab food today; but there are also many commonalities in the Arab diet. Rice, tea, and coffee among them.

Islam plays a very important part in the cultural lives of many Arabs living in Albuquerque. There is a mosque that many attend, the Islamic Center of Albuquerque. However, not all Arabs are Muslims. Many of the earlier immigrants were Christians, and there are still Christian Arabs immigration. One person interviewed for this survey attended the Greek Orthodox Church.

Adobe architecture so common in New Mexico has its roots in Arab lands. Adobe arches are found in Arab cities as well as the southwest. The word adobe itself is speculated as having Arabic origins.

Artistic Traditions:
Music and dance are customarily used for community celebrations in Arab culture. There is not so much a sense of them as artistic forms to be watched or listened to, as they often are in western culture. For many years, musical groups were brought in from outside Albuquerque for special events, but the practice is rare today.

Debkeh, a form of folk dancing, is practiced at weddings and is taught in Albuquerque. Both Egyptian and Palestinian dance classes are available. Belly dancing is also taught here although it is considered to be North African in origin.

There is a master Iraqi oud player living in Albuquerque, but he performs in concerts and not for dances.The oud is a short-necked, half pear-shaped, direct Arab ancestor of the European lute. The oud's name derives from the Arabic al-oud (branch of wood) which in Europe morphed into the word lute. A typical oud contains five pairs of strings, each pair tuned in unison, and a single bass string; although up to thirteen strings may be found on some. The oud is most commonly tuned in fourths to the acending notes: CGDAEB. Strings are generally made of nylon or gut, and are plucked with a plectrum known as a risha or mizrap. Another distinctive feature of the oud is its head, with the tuning pegs bent back at an angle to the neck. The oud used in the Arab world is slightly different to the ones found in Turkey, Armenia and Greece.

Annual Events and Celebrations:
There once was a tradition of Hafli parties among Middle Eastern people of various backgrounds as mentioned above. The parties were held at the Alamar Club for about a decade but that ended during the Lebanese Civil War because many in the group were Lebanese and they became divided over the conflict. There was also a huge annual party at a local hotel for people from the community and American friends and family in the 1940's and 50's. Now people go to El Paso for the annual Arabic Food Festival.

Conclusions:
Arabs have been a part of Albuquerque’s cultural makeup for well over one-hundred years. Among their many needs, a Middle Eastern or Arab community center with no religious affiliation was a priority. Ideally this cultural center would have library space, video equipment, a gift shop, a meeting room, and instructors in folk arts, such as cross-stitching, embroidery, dress making, and cooking.

Currently there is a Near East Alliance in Albuquerque and in the past there was also a Syrian Lebanese Arab Club.

It has been difficult for many in the Arab community to maintain traditions in Albuquerque. Many do not visit their homeland or have any plans on returning because, as one Palestinian told us, “there is nothing to go back to now.” However, it has gotten much easier to stay current on culture and news through modern technology. Whereas in times past, Arabs would get together to listen to the latest music that someone had brought with them from Arab lands, today, Arabs in Albuquerque watch Arabic ART TV stations on satellite featuring an MTV format or Arabic movies, or they watch news on Al-Jazeera. The listen to Arabic music and download the latest Middle Eastern hits as MP-3 files or order CD’s on-line.