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Handala

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Symbol and personification of the Palestinian people

Fictional character
Handala
Image of HandalaHandala, the Palestinian defiance symbol
First appearance
Last appearance1987
Created byNaji al-Ali
In-universe information
Full nameحنظلة
GenderMale
Occupation10 year old child
AffiliationJustice, steadfastness (see sumud), poverty
OriginPalestinian refugee
NationalityPalestinian

Handala (Arabic: حنظلة, romanized: Ḥanẓala), also Handhala, Hanzala or Hanthala, is a prominent national symbol and personification of the Palestinian people.

The character was created in 1969 by political cartoonist Naji al-Ali, and first took its current form in 1973. Handala became the signature of Naji al-Ali's cartoons and remains an iconic symbol of Palestinian identity and defiance. The character has been described as "portraying war, resistance, and the Palestinian identity with astounding clarity".

The name comes from the Arabic word for the colocynth (Arabic: حنظل, romanized: ḥanẓal), a perennial plant native to the Levant which bears bitter fruit, grows back when cut, and has deep roots.

Handala's impact has continued in the decades after al-Ali's 1987 assassination; today the character remains widely popular as a representative of the Palestinian people, and is found on numerous walls and buildings throughout the West Bank (notably as West Bank Wall graffiti art), Gaza and other Palestinian refugee camps, and as a popular tattoo and jewellery motif. It has also been used by movements such as Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions and the Iranian Green Movement.

Early publication

Handala appeared for the first time in Al-Seyassah in Kuwait on 13 July 1969, and first turned his back to the viewer and clasped his hands behind his back from 1973 onwards.

Symbolism

Handala's age – ten years old – represents Naji al-Ali's age in 1948 when he was forced to leave Palestine and would not grow up until he could return to his homeland: Al-Ali wrote that:

Handala was born 10 years old and he will always be 10 years old. It was at that age that I left my homeland. When Handala returns, he will still be 10 years old, and then he will start growing up.

His posture, with his turned back and clasped hands, symbolises the character's "rejection at a time when solutions are presented to us the American way" and as "a symbol of rejection of all the present negative tides in our region." His ragged clothes and standing barefoot symbolise his allegiance to the poor. Al-Ali described Handala as "the symbol of a just cause":

He was the arrow of the compass, pointing steadily towards Palestine. Not just Palestine in geographical terms, but Palestine in its humanitarian sense—the symbol of a just cause, whether it is located in Egypt, Vietnam or South Africa.

Legacy

West Bank Wall graffiti art in Bethlehem: Handala and Liberty as "Pietà"

Al-Ali stated in an interview prior to his assassination that: "Handala, whom I created, will not end after I die. I hope that this is not an exaggeration when I say that I will continue to live in Handala, even after I die". Current usages of the Handala motif include:

Gallery

See also

Bibliography

References

  1. ^ Faber, Michel (10 July 2009). "Review: A Child in Palestine: The Cartoons of Naji al-Ali". The Guardian.
  2. Alazzeh, Ala (2012). "Abu Ahmad and His Handalas". In LeVine, Mark; Shafir, Gershon (eds.). Struggle and Survival in Palestine/Israel. University of California Press. pp. 427–444. ISBN 978-0-520-26252-2. JSTOR 10.1525/j.ctt1ppwdk.34. …one of the most popular symbols of Palestinian nationalism.
  3. Gandolfo 2010, p. 60.
  4. ^ Oweis 2009.
  5. Ashley, John; Jayousi, Nedal. "Discourse, Culture, and Education in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict 49 The Connection between Palestinian Culture and the Conflict" (PDF). Netanya Academic Centre. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  6. ^ ʻAlī, Nājī; Al-Ali, Naji (2009). A Child in Palestine: The Cartoons of Naji Al-Ali. Verso Books. ISBN 978-1-84467-365-0.
  7. Sadeghi, Shirin (18 November 2009). "QODS DAY: Protesters Transform Jerusalem Day Into Iran Day". HuffPost.
  8. Zohar, Gil Stern (7 January 2011). "Guest Columnist: Srulik, meet Handala". The Jerusalem Post.
National personifications
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