A critical Reflection on the Keffiyeh

The keffiyeh, as it is popularly known today, though significantly associated with the Palestinians (resulting in its identification as the Palestinian keffiyeh) has a fascinating history that dates back to Mesopotamia, particularly among the Babylonians and Sumerians. It is widely acknowledged that the keffiyeh symbolizes solidarity and resistance in the Arab countries, especially in Palestine where Palestinian rebels wore it as a way of hiding their identity in order to avoid arrest during the 1936 Arab Revolt against the British (The history of keffiyah: A traditional scarf from Palestine, 2021). Even when the British banned it, all Palestinians began wearing the keffiyeh so as to make it difficult to identify rebles, and these two events contributed to the keffiyeh emerging as a symbol of resistance and solidarity in the country then, and even today (Sweedenburg, 2009). For students who are trying to delve into Middle Eastern studies or are interested in the socio-political implications of cultural symbols, then seeking guidance through politics dissertation help is going to give them the most valuable insights related to the role of the keffiyeh in contemporary discourse.

However, despite its popularity and significance in Palestine, the origin of the keffiyeh can be traced back to the Sumerians and Babylonians in Mesopotamia in around 3100 BC. The keffiyeh was commonly worn by the priests, who ruled over, managed and controlled the lands where they lived, as a symbol of authority, rank or honor (The history of keffiyah: A traditional scarf from Palestine, 2021). The keffiyeh was later on adopted by the peasants in Mesopotamia as a head covering- they wore it to protect them from sand and the sun, and to wipe sweat from their faces while working on the land, and to protect them from the rain and cold during winter (Shirazi-Mahajan, 1993).

The keffiyeh is today more of a fashion trend or symbol, rather than the resistance and solidarity symbol it was years back. Following its origination in Mesopotamia and subsequent popularity in Palestine, the keffiyeh has today emerged as a fashion trend throughout the world, as it is made and worn in various designs and colors (Bartlett, 2019). This has resulted in the keffiyeh as a fashion article becoming a controversial issue in Palestine as some people consider its availability and use of varied colours instead of the red-white and black-white colours it originally used, and with others wearing it without fully understanding its origins and resemblance, according to Schwartz-DuPre and Scott (2015), an act of cultural appropriation and simultaneous signification of indistinguishable consumerism and opposition to consumerism.

In line with the dictum of neoliberalism, the keffiyeh has significantly, though not entirely, been commodified by Westerners (fashionistas and hipsters) (Schwartz-DuPre and Scott, 2015). This is considered as leaching the political power and symbolism which (Palestinians) attach to it, as well as indicating how culture works and the control of global capitalism. According to Adorno (2005) and Clough (2008), the monetary value of the keffiyeh, which is all that capitalism recognizes, rests on the devaluation of its politico-cultural attributes that contributed and contribute to it as a symbol for solidarity. Therefore, capitalists, in a bid to profit, have tried to depict the keffiyeh as non-political, since recognizing it as political label would result in various entities, corporates, corporeals or individuals not wishing to be identified with it, in turn resulting in the desiccation of the value of sales.

The symbolic significance of the keffiyeh, also known as yamegh, shemagh, igal, Arab scarf or Palestinian hatta, in Palestine which has seen it being described as the country’s unofficial flag was traditionally worn by folding it diagonally into a triangle and draping it over the head, especially among rural Palestinian men (Shirazi-Mahajan, 1993). According to Swedenburg (2009), the keffiyeh took on a significant symbolism following the Palestinian flag’s ban by the Israeli occupation authorities in 1967 until 1993 during the Oslo Accords. And given the importance of visible and portable symbols to Palestinians, the banning of the Palestinian flag for close to three decades led to the emergence of the keffiyeh, which the Palestinians already attached a lot of rich symbolism and history, as a daily portable and visible expression of the country’s identity (Sweedenburg, 2009). However, its development as a fashion trend today has seen it worn in rather different ways.

For instance, most people today wear the keffiyeh by securely tying or fashioning it around their necks, with its use which now transcends nationality, gender and religion being common among sports stars, celebrities, human rights activists, protesters and young people (The Palestinian keffiyeh: All you need to know about its origins, 2021). Therefore, it is evident that while the older Palestinian generations wore, and some still do, the keffiyeh on their heads as part of the country’s tradition and a representation of its struggle and cause, those (especially the young) who wear it today, in Palestine and everywhere else, do so as a fashion statement.

The varied use of the keffiyeh today, as in the previous years, depicts it as having no religious symbolism, resemblance or significance. This is because its use, despite being linked to the Sumerian and Babylonian priests in Mesopotamia, was not in any way associated with religion. Additionally, the Babylonian and Sumerian peasants and the Palestinian peasants and farmers also used it while working on the land to protect them from the sun and sand, to wipe sweat and to protect them from the rain and cold during winter (Shirazi-Mahajan, 1993). Although it is the rural Palestinian men (peasants and farmers) who were already wearing the keffiyeh that started and led the Arab Revolt, the Palestinians in other cities and towns also began wearing kefiyehs in solidarity with the rebels and to make it harder for the British to identify the revolution’s leaders (Swedenburg, 2021). The use of the kheffiye especially to cover one’s head was a vital aspect of the traditional Palestinian culture, and its use was not limited to the Arabs or those who subscribed to Islam (Damluji, 2010). It is however noteworthy that even Christians were wearing it. The outstanding point here is that no religion or ethnic group holds monopoly on the keffiyeh.

Therefore, while the Arab people are credited (rightly so) for the being the first to wear the keffiyeh, it must also be acknowledged that no particular religion or group can lay legitimate claim for the possession of the kefiyyeh’s symbolic ideals, more importantly social justice and solidarity (Renfro, 2018). This is because these ideals are universal and can therefore not be attributed to a single group, religion, ethnicity or country. As such, it is evident that the keffiyeh is not a religious symbol and has zero association to the Islamic religion. Otherwise, its use would be restricted to only those who practiced Islam, and condemned among non-Muslims who wore it.

It can therefore be concluded that although the keffiyeh has been presently commodified to a greater degree, it remains an essential component of Palestinian history and culture, and which serves as a symbol of the country’s struggles and cause.

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References

Adorno, T.W., 2005. Minima moralia: Reflections on a damaged life. Verso.

Bartlett, D., 2019. Fashion and Politics. Yale University Press.

Clough, P.T., 2008. The affective turn: Political economy, biomedia and bodies. Theory, Culture & Society, 25(1), pp.1-22.

Damluji, N.N., 2010. Imperialism reconfigured: the cultural interpretations of the keffiyeh.

Fairtrade Gifts from Palestine | Handmade Palestine. 2021. The history of Keffiyeh: A traditional Scarf from Palestine. [online] Available at: [Accessed 18 December 2021].

Middle East Eye. 2021. The Palestinian keffiyeh: All you need to know about its origins. [online] Available at: [Accessed 18 December 2021].

Renfro, E., 2018. Stitched together, torn apart: The keffiyeh as cultural guide. International Journal of Cultural Studies, 21(6), pp.571-586.

Swedenburg, T., 2009. Bad rap for a neck scarf?. International Journal of Middle East Studies, 41(2), pp.184-185.

Swedenburg, T., 2021. SEEING DOUBLE: PALESTINIAN/AMERICAN HISTORIES OF THE KUFIYA. Michigan Quarterly Review, 60(1), pp.341-0_23.