Vol. 43 No. 2 (1995)
Research Article

Identity, Nationalism, and Placenames: Zionist Efforts to Preserve the Original Local Hebrew Names in Official Publications of the Mandate Government of Palestine

PDF
  • Yossi Katz
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1179/nam.1995.43.2.103

Published 1995-06-01

Copyright (c) 1995 Maney

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

Abstract

Placenames promote identification and connection, and serve the ideological needs of those who give the names. In this context, 1examine Zionist efforts during the British mandate in Palestine to preserve the original Hebrew names found in the Bible and other ancient sources as placenames in Palestine in the documents, correspondence, and official signs of the mandate government. The Zionists gave to placenames in Palestine a special role for advancing their ideological-national goals and for maintaining a connection between the Jews in Palestine and the diaspora with their historical homeland. I also examine the British attitude to these Zionist efforts and conclude that this attitude was related to Britain's overall approach to the issue of Palestine.

PDF

References

  1. Arikha, Jacob A. 1937. Restoration of Place-Names in Eretz Israel Jerusalem: Jewish National Fund.
  2. Ben-Zvi, Izhak. 1931. “Memorandum of the Vaad Leumi to the Government of Palestine concerning the method of writing geographical and personal names, accompanied by two lists of geographical names.” Our Language, Committee for the Hebrew Language in the Land of Israel. Ed. A. Zifroni, 4, 1–42.
  3. Bitan, Hana. 1992. “Government Names Committee.” Eretz Israel 23: 366–70.
  4. Bowman, Humphrey. 1941. Middle-East Window. London: Longmans, Green and Co.
  5. Central Zionist Archive Information Circular. 1938. File KKL5/ 10503. No. 4/98, 11 March.
  6. Central Zionist Archive Information Circular. Letter 1947. File J1/8332. From Izhak Ben-Zvi to Vaad Leumi member M. Garbovsky, 6 November.
  7. Clermont-Ganneau, Charles. 1896-9. Archaeological Researches in Palestine During the Years 1873- 1874, I, II. London: Palestine Exploration Fund.
  8. Cohen, Michael J. 1978. Palestine, Retreat from the Mandate: The Making of British Policy 1936-1945. London: Paul Elek.
  9. Cohen, Saul B. and Nurit Kliot. 1981. “Israeli Place Names as a Reflection of Continuity and Change in Nation-Building.” Names 29 : 227–46.
  10. Cohen, Saul B. and Nurit Kliot. 1992. “Place-names in Israel”s Ideological Struggle Over the Administered Territories.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 82: 653–80.
  11. Dalman, Gustaf H. 1924. Orte und Wege Jesu 3 Aufl. Güterslah: Bertelsmann.
  12. Derzie, Orly. 1993. “Space and Names: Settlements, names, nationalism and social relations.” Thesis,Tel-Aviv University.
  13. Guérin, Victor M. 1868-75. Description Géographiqueihistorique et archéologique de la PalestineiI-Judée, Il-Samarie, III-Galilée. Paris: imprimerie imperial.
  14. Israel State Archives (ISA), File E/20/31 (microfilm):
  15. Israel State Archives (ISA). Letter 1932a. Humphrey Bowman to the General Secretary, 4 March.
  16. Israel State Archives (ISA). Letter 1932b. General Secretary to the Director of the Department of Education, 9 June.
  17. Israel State Archives (ISA). Letter 1933a. Izhak Ben-Zvi to the General Secretary, 12 September.
  18. Israel State Archives (ISA). Letter 1933b. Vaad Leumi to the General Secretary, 12 September.
  19. Israel State Archives (ISA). Letter 1933c. Director of the Department of Education to the General Secretary, 28 September.
  20. Israel State Archives (ISA). Letter 1933d. “Brigade of Defenders of the Language in Palestine” to the General Secretary, 3 October.
  21. Israel State Archives (ISA). Letter 1934. Vaad Leumi to the General Secretary, 2 May.
  22. Israel State Archives (ISA). Letter 1936. Commissioner for land and Surveys to the General Secretary, 24 November.
  23. ISA, File E/20/31, Memorandum. 1933. PCGN to the High Commissioner for Palestine, Sir A.G. Wauchope. 1 February.
  24. Katz, Yossi. 1993. “The Political Status of Jerusalem in Historical Context: Zionist Plans for the Partition of Jerusalem in the Years 1937-38,” Shofar 11: 41–53.
  25. Katzburg, Nathaniel. 1974. From Partition to White Paper: British Policy in Palestine 1936-1940. Jerusalem: Yad Ben-Zvi.
  26. Kliot, Nurit. 1989/90. “Arab Place Names in Israel.” Horizons — Studies in Geography 30: 83–90.
  27. Lewis, Peter G. 1982. “The Politics of Iranian Place Names.” Geographical Review 72: 99–102.
  28. Maisler, Benjamin. 1930. Untersuchungen zur alten Geschichte und Ethnographie Suries und Palästina. Giessen: A. Töpelmann.
  29. McCarthy, Kevin M. 1975. “Street Names in Beirut, Lebanon.” Names 23: 74–88.
  30. Palestine Exploration Fund. 1881. The Survey of the Western Palestine; Arabic and English Name Lists 1, 2. London: Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund.
  31. Palestine Royal Commission Report. 1937. His Majesty”s Stationery Office, Jerusalem (July): 279–80, 296.
  32. The Palestine Gazette. 1941. No. 1133, 2 October: 1.
  33. Permanent Committee on Geographical Names for British Official Use. 1925. First List of Names in Palestine. London: Royal Geographic Society.
  34. Peterson, Charles B. 1977. “The Nature of Soviet Place-names.” Names 25: 15–24.
  35. Reichman, Shalom, Yossi Katz and Yair Paz. 1991. “The Absorptive Capacity of Palestine 1882-1948: A Geographical Appraisal.” Eretz Israel 22: 206–20.
  36. Reuveny, Jacob. 1993. The Administration of Palestine under the British Mandate 1920–1948: An Institutional Analysis. Ramat Gan: Bar-Ilan UP.
  37. Sapir, Eliyahu. 1911. Ha’aretz. Jaffa: Kohelet.
  38. Schrader, Eberhard. 1904. Die Keilinschriften und das Alte Testament. Giessen: J. Ricker.
  39. Schwarz, Joseph. 1845. Tevuoth Ha-arez. Jerusalem.
  40. Second Report of the United States Board of Geographic Names, 1890-1899. 1901. Washington: Government Printing Office.
  41. Smith, George A. 1904. The Historical Geography of the Holy Land. Edinburgh: Hodder and Stoughten.
  42. Sopher, David E. 1955. “Arabic Place Names in Spain.” Names 3: 5–13.
  43. Stewart, George R. 1945. Names on the Land. New York: Houghton- Mifflin.
  44. Stewart, George R. 1954. “A Classification of Place Names,” Names 2: 1–13.
  45. Transliteration from Arabic and Hebrew into English, from Arabic into Hebrew and from Hebrew into Arabic, with Transliterated Lists of Personal and Geographical Names for Use in Palestine. 1931. Jerusalem: Government of Palestine.
  46. Weslager, C.A. 1976. “New Castle, Delaware and its Former Names.” Names 24: 101–105.