What do you think?
Rate this book
قبل الشتات: التاريخ المصور للشعب الفلسطيني ١٨٧٦-١٩٤٨م
نبذة النيل والفرات:
يشكل هذا الكتاب في مجمله مرجعاً وثائقياً لا مثيل له لكفاح الشعب الفلسطيني وحياته اليومية طوال سبعين عاماً من تاريخه الحديث قبل شتاته، وسجلاً لذاكرته التاريخية. ينقسم الكتاب إلى خمسة أقسام هي: أولاً أيام الحكم العثماني الأخيرة (1876-1918)، ثانياً، من الاحتلال البريطاني إلى الثورة الفلسطينية الكبرى (1918-1935)، ثالثاً، الثورة الكبرى (1936-1939)، رابعاً، من مؤتمر لندن إلى توصية هيئة الأمم بتقسيم فلسطين (1939-1947). ويتضمن كل قسم من هذه الأقسام الخمسة، مقدمة وصفية تحليلية، يتبعها تسلسل زمني لأحداث الفترة التي يغطيها القسم، تم إعداده استناداً إلى المصادر العربية والعبرية والإنكليزية، ثم تعليقات دقيقة على كل صورة من الصور المنشورة التي حفل بها هذا الكتاب حيث تم اختيار حوالي الـ 5000 صورة من آلاف الصور الموزعة في مجموعات خاصة وعامة، في الشتات الفلسطيني، وفي كل من بريطانيات والولايات المتحدة. وتغطي هذه الصور كل نواحي الحياة الفلسطينية قبل سنة 1948 في الريف وفي المدن، ويرافق النص ست خرائط ملونة، ترصد تطور حركة الاستيطان الاستعماري الصهيوني منذ بداياته الأولى.
يشكل هذا الكتاب في مجمله مرجعاً وثائقياً لا مثيل له لكفاح الشعب الفلسطيني وحياته اليومية طوال سبعين عاماً من تاريخه الحديث قبل شتاته، وسجلاً لذاكرته التاريخية. ينقسم الكتاب إلى خمسة أقسام هي: أولاً أيام الحكم العثماني الأخيرة (1876-1918)، ثانياً، من الاحتلال البريطاني إلى الثورة الفلسطينية الكبرى (1918-1935)، ثالثاً، الثورة الكبرى (1936-1939)، رابعاً، من مؤتمر لندن إلى توصية هيئة الأمم بتقسيم فلسطين (1939-1947). ويتضمن كل قسم من هذه الأقسام الخمسة، مقدمة وصفية تحليلية، يتبعها تسلسل زمني لأحداث الفترة التي يغطيها القسم، تم إعداده استناداً إلى المصادر العربية والعبرية والإنكليزية، ثم تعليقات دقيقة على كل صورة من الصور المنشورة التي حفل بها هذا الكتاب حيث تم اختيار حوالي الـ 5000 صورة من آلاف الصور الموزعة في مجموعات خاصة وعامة، في الشتات الفلسطيني، وفي كل من بريطانيات والولايات المتحدة. وتغطي هذه الصور كل نواحي الحياة الفلسطينية قبل سنة 1948 في الريف وفي المدن، ويرافق النص ست خرائط ملونة، ترصد تطور حركة الاستيطان الاستعماري الصهيوني منذ بداياته الأولى.
351 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1984
11 people are currently reading
1095 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
Read
April 12, 2010كتاب مصور
أسعد بين الفينية والأخرى بتقليب صفحاته
فهو يعيدني لأيام لم أكن حاضرة فيها
لكن وطني كان حاضرا
أرى في صوره أناس هم أهلي
عاشوا في وطن هو وطنهم
وأفكر...ترى لو عشنا مثلهم في وطننا
أكنا سنكون سعداء
وماهي القضية التي كنا سنحارب من أجلها
أسعد بين الفينية والأخرى بتقليب صفحاته
فهو يعيدني لأيام لم أكن حاضرة فيها
لكن وطني كان حاضرا
أرى في صوره أناس هم أهلي
عاشوا في وطن هو وطنهم
وأفكر...ترى لو عشنا مثلهم في وطننا
أكنا سنكون سعداء
وماهي القضية التي كنا سنحارب من أجلها
February 22, 2019
هذا الكتاب عظيم عظيم، فهو يوضّح المسيرة الفلسطينية
على مدى سنوات طوال تبدأ إبّان الحكم العثماني إلى يومنا الحالي
الكتاب مُنظّم جدًا ولم أقرأ أو أشاهد قط كتاب قبله على
هذا النحو من الترتيب والتوثيق والدقّة
وجاء الكتاب مُقسّم على مراحل وأقسام أساسية
وكل قسم مُدعّم بالكثير والمُثير من الصور الحقيقية لا مُحاكاة
وجاءت الأقسام كالآتي:
١_ أيام الحكم العثماني الأخيرة (١٨٧٦-١٩١٨)
٢_ الإحتلال البريطاني إلى الثورة الفلسطينية الكبرى(١٩١٨-١٩٣٥)
٣_ الثورة الكبرى(١٩٣٦-١٩٣٩)
٤_ من مؤتمر لندن إلى توصية هيئة الأمم بتقسيم فلسطين(١٩٣٩-١٩٤٧)
٥_ الحرب الداخلية ومحاولة تحطيم المجتمع الفلسطيني
(نوفمبر ١٩٤٧-أيّار ١٩٤٨).
كل حقبة تم تناولها بالكثير من التفاصيل وإلحاق المصادر والترجمات
وما هو ملفت نظام إدراج الصور للقرى والعوائل والطوائف
والحِرف والعديد من المناسبات والأحداث.
مُلفت جدًا هو التقدّم الذي كانت تعيشه فلسطين
والحضارة العريقة وخاصة ما يتعلّق بالمهن والحرف.
كذلك مُلفت كيفية إندماج المسلمين والمسيحيين معًا
كأسرة واحدة وأقرب للديانة الواحدة من حيث التآلف والود.
هذا الكتاب كنز حقيقي وأتمنى أن أحصل عليه ورقيًّا.
عنوان الكتاب: قبل الشتات "التاريخ المُصوّر للشعب الفلسطيني ١٨٧٦-١٩٤٨"
اسم المؤلّف: وليد الخالدي
سنة النشر : ١٩٨٧
الطبعة: الأولى
الناشر: مؤسسة الدراسات الفلسطينية
عدد الصفحات: ٣٥١
التقييم: ٥/٥ نجمات.
القراءة: الكترونية.
ملاحظة:
هذا أول كتاب منذ بداية قراءاتي لهذا العام أمنحه ٥ نجمات
نادية أحمد
٢٢ فبراير ٢٠١٩
April 3, 2013
كتاب مصور يحوي ما يفوق ال 400 صورة تحكي حياة الفلسطينين قبل الشتات أي قبل 1948 أيام الحكم العثماني والعربي والبريطاني يتناول مختلف جوانب الحياة الفلسطينية وصراعهم مع اليهود مع تعريفات مختصرة عن الصور والتعريف بكل مرحلة.ز
May 23, 2021
My grandparents contributed content - and helped edit - this great book. A must-read for anyone interested in understanding the effects of the diaspora of 1948 had on Palestinians, as well as the Middle East at large.
July 27, 2024
This book is in some ways a form of treasure that must be protected since it documents a genocide.
It's one thing to hear about the Nakba in words, but as contemporary evidence proves it's another thing to see the images that go with those words. Here we see not only the homes that were destroyed or taken over, the villages that were eventually bulldozed, the people who were turned into refugees or killed. We also the vibrancy of the culture that was, the culture that those who have committed this attempt at erasure are constantly denying the existence of. So, beyond just the images of families and people in their day to day experience we also see the 20th century experience of the coming together of a Palestinian culture with their own organizations and communities and how the expression of those seems quite familiar. We see the leaders of the first Palestinian political parties that began even before the end of Ottoman rule. The introductory essays for each section (Ottoman, World War I, Mandate, Great Revolt 0f 1936-39, World War II, the civil war and Nakba) give a good account of the what and why of events (some excellent maps in color that demonstrate vividly the levels of injustice in the very raw deal that was presented to Palestinians).
If there's one note of hope that we can feel it's that events have moved beyond the 1991 foreword to this book which has a tone of resignation that those of us witnessing events today don't have to subscribe to, even as the ongoing genocide whose origin has been aptly documented here has intensified.
If you don't hate the British Empire already when you start reading this book you will when you're done. There's a great editorial cartoon from the period of the Mandate where the former Ottoman governor who was notoriously brutal during World War I, is depicted as basically saying "I bet you miss me now."
The central takeaway from this book is that there was a Palestinian polity, a culture, a society, an identity that existed well before the end of the Ottoman Empire and the creation of the British Palestinian Mandate and which was beginning to be expressed before the first inklings of Zionism, but was afterward ever affected by that movement. During the Ottoman period there was a time when this identity looked to find its voice in representation in an Ottoman legislative assembly, but the rise of Turkish nationalism meant that a broader umbrella identity in the Ottoman Empire became a diminished possibility--in the war the Palestinians joined in a pan-Arab nationalist movement which allied with the British and were inevitably betrayed. Under the mandate the British actively implemented the directives of the Balfour declaration and when there was a violent reaction did their version of the modern Cletus Safari (Bureaucrat Safaris?) where panels had to spend months on junkets to come up with "They're mad because we're stealing their country"
This unevenness can best be expressed by the mild or absent responses that the British had when Zionists murdered their soldiers and assassinated their commanders and political leaders IN THE MIDDLE OF WORLD WAR II. By exiling Palestinian leadership and outlawing their political parties in the wake of the great uprising that ended just before World War II started the British effectively hamstrung Palestinian organization and resistance during the war which made the biggest difference in the aftermath of the war. Without effective leadership they couldn't organize. The book tends to view the surrounding Arab countries' leadership as outstandingly naive in this period as they were dependent on the notion that "surely the British won't just up and leave Palestine" and so they underestimated what needed to be done to counter the Zionist threat and ultimately ensured the failure of Palestinian resistance. While Zionists had spent the entire Mandate period building up their munitions stockpiles and training for war the Palestinians did not. (And were in some ways disinclined or made to be disinclined to do so because of the nature of the response to their revolt before the war.). Key arms deals with the Czechoslovak government and with the complicity of other countries along with American arms made sure that the disorganized Palestinians were practically unarmed in 1947 in comparison to the Haganah and the Irgun.
Also, Harry Truman can rot in hell.
It's one thing to hear about the Nakba in words, but as contemporary evidence proves it's another thing to see the images that go with those words. Here we see not only the homes that were destroyed or taken over, the villages that were eventually bulldozed, the people who were turned into refugees or killed. We also the vibrancy of the culture that was, the culture that those who have committed this attempt at erasure are constantly denying the existence of. So, beyond just the images of families and people in their day to day experience we also see the 20th century experience of the coming together of a Palestinian culture with their own organizations and communities and how the expression of those seems quite familiar. We see the leaders of the first Palestinian political parties that began even before the end of Ottoman rule. The introductory essays for each section (Ottoman, World War I, Mandate, Great Revolt 0f 1936-39, World War II, the civil war and Nakba) give a good account of the what and why of events (some excellent maps in color that demonstrate vividly the levels of injustice in the very raw deal that was presented to Palestinians).
If there's one note of hope that we can feel it's that events have moved beyond the 1991 foreword to this book which has a tone of resignation that those of us witnessing events today don't have to subscribe to, even as the ongoing genocide whose origin has been aptly documented here has intensified.
If you don't hate the British Empire already when you start reading this book you will when you're done. There's a great editorial cartoon from the period of the Mandate where the former Ottoman governor who was notoriously brutal during World War I, is depicted as basically saying "I bet you miss me now."
The central takeaway from this book is that there was a Palestinian polity, a culture, a society, an identity that existed well before the end of the Ottoman Empire and the creation of the British Palestinian Mandate and which was beginning to be expressed before the first inklings of Zionism, but was afterward ever affected by that movement. During the Ottoman period there was a time when this identity looked to find its voice in representation in an Ottoman legislative assembly, but the rise of Turkish nationalism meant that a broader umbrella identity in the Ottoman Empire became a diminished possibility--in the war the Palestinians joined in a pan-Arab nationalist movement which allied with the British and were inevitably betrayed. Under the mandate the British actively implemented the directives of the Balfour declaration and when there was a violent reaction did their version of the modern Cletus Safari (Bureaucrat Safaris?) where panels had to spend months on junkets to come up with "They're mad because we're stealing their country"
This unevenness can best be expressed by the mild or absent responses that the British had when Zionists murdered their soldiers and assassinated their commanders and political leaders IN THE MIDDLE OF WORLD WAR II. By exiling Palestinian leadership and outlawing their political parties in the wake of the great uprising that ended just before World War II started the British effectively hamstrung Palestinian organization and resistance during the war which made the biggest difference in the aftermath of the war. Without effective leadership they couldn't organize. The book tends to view the surrounding Arab countries' leadership as outstandingly naive in this period as they were dependent on the notion that "surely the British won't just up and leave Palestine" and so they underestimated what needed to be done to counter the Zionist threat and ultimately ensured the failure of Palestinian resistance. While Zionists had spent the entire Mandate period building up their munitions stockpiles and training for war the Palestinians did not. (And were in some ways disinclined or made to be disinclined to do so because of the nature of the response to their revolt before the war.). Key arms deals with the Czechoslovak government and with the complicity of other countries along with American arms made sure that the disorganized Palestinians were practically unarmed in 1947 in comparison to the Haganah and the Irgun.
Also, Harry Truman can rot in hell.
December 24, 2014
I'm a sucker for Holy Land history so of course I had to get this book. Unfortunately it wasn't quite what I expected. It leans a lot on the political side and as such the images are often of politicians and/or of military factions, which although obviously part of the history, I’d hoped to see a lot more images of Palestinian families. (I would’ve loved to see more images of Deir Yassin, but alas all that figured was a family portrait taken in 1927.)
In terms of written content, I wasn't convinced the text was always entirely accurate, and in different ways I couldn’t help but feel a limited mention of Christian Palestinians, either intentional or not.
Now if only there could be a book made strictly—or mostly—with Palestinian family pictures… :)
In terms of written content, I wasn't convinced the text was always entirely accurate, and in different ways I couldn’t help but feel a limited mention of Christian Palestinians, either intentional or not.
Now if only there could be a book made strictly—or mostly—with Palestinian family pictures… :)
February 28, 2019
جميل ولكن محزن جدًا
January 10, 2024
أولى قراءات سنة 2024, موسوعة تركزت بشكل شبه كُلي على الصور لا على النصوص
December 5, 2025
قبل الشتات: التاريخ المصور للشعب الفلسطيني ١٨٧٦-١٩٤٨م
مرجعاً وثائقياً لا مثيل له لكفاح الشعب الفلسطيني وحياته اليومية طوال سبعين عاماً من تاريخه الحديث قبل شتاته، وسجلاً لذاكرته التاريخية. ينقسم الكتاب إلى خمسة أقسام هي: أولاً أيام الحكم العثماني الأخيرة (1876-1918)، ثانياً، من الاحتلال البريطاني إلى الثورة الفلسطينية الكبرى (1918-1935)، ثالثاً، الثورة الكبرى (1936-1939)، رابعاً، من مؤتمر لندن إلى توصية هيئة الأمم بتقسيم فلسطين (1939-1947). ويتضمن كل قسم من هذه الأقسام الخمسة، مقدمة وصفية تحليلية، يتبعها تسلسل زمني لأحداث الفترة التي يغطيها القسم، تم إعداده استناداً إلى المصادر العربية والعبرية والإنكليزية، ثم تعليقات دقيقة على كل صورة من الصور المنشورة التي حفل بها هذا الكتاب حيث تم اختيار حوالي الـ 5000 صورة من آلاف الصور الموزعة في مجموعات خاصة وعامة، في الشتات الفلسطيني، وفي كل من بريطانيات والولايات المتحدة. وتغطي هذه الصور كل نواحي الحياة الفلسطينية قبل سنة 1948 في الريف وفي المدن، ويرافق النص ست خرائط ملونة، ترصد تطور حركة الاستيطان الاستعماري الصهيوني منذ بداياته الأولى.
December 12, 2025
I’ve read a lot of books on the horrors inflicted upon Palestinians by Zionists, but this one genuinely stands out. It is a true gut punch to look into the eyes of the men, women and children who would be killed, brutalized and expelled by European settlers for the sole crime of having been born in the wrong place at the wrong time and living in a land coveted by foreigners. To see their gatherings, their amusements, their streets, their dress, their entire lives in pictures and to know what awaited them is utterly heartbreaking. It is impossible not to wonder what became of each of them. Did they survive? Were they expelled from their homes? From their country? Did they manage to make something of themselves after losing everything, or was the blow simply too much to bear?
A masterpiece, one that anyone who cares about Palestinians or about human beings simply must read.
A masterpiece, one that anyone who cares about Palestinians or about human beings simply must read.
August 25, 2022
كتاب مهم لمن يريد أن يعرف - بالتواريخ والوقائع الثابتة - كيف ضاعت فلسطين وكيف قامت إسرائيل.
الكتاب قليل الكلام كثير الصور... لأن ما حدث - ولا يزال يحدث - في فلسطين يصعب التعبير عنه بالكلام!
لم يتيسر لي الحصول على نسخة من الكتاب واكتفيت بنسخة من الإنترنت، وهذا حرمني من مشاهدة الصور والخرائط بألوانها الطبيعية، والصورة الملونة - بلا شك - تقول وتروي أكثر مما ترويه الصورة بالأبيض والأسود!
على أمل إعادة قراءة الكتاب مرة أخرى بعد اقتنائه يوما ما وبالطبع ستكون قراءة لها روح ورائحة فلسطين.
الكتاب قليل الكلام كثير الصور... لأن ما حدث - ولا يزال يحدث - في فلسطين يصعب التعبير عنه بالكلام!
لم يتيسر لي الحصول على نسخة من الكتاب واكتفيت بنسخة من الإنترنت، وهذا حرمني من مشاهدة الصور والخرائط بألوانها الطبيعية، والصورة الملونة - بلا شك - تقول وتروي أكثر مما ترويه الصورة بالأبيض والأسود!
على أمل إعادة قراءة الكتاب مرة أخرى بعد اقتنائه يوما ما وبالطبع ستكون قراءة لها روح ورائحة فلسطين.
January 13, 2022
فكرة الكتاب جيده
كان ممكن ان يخرج كتاب افضل من الحالي
كان ممكن ان يخرج كتاب افضل من الحالي
November 13, 2023
Gathering information. Everyone can point to antecedents to blame for violence, but I think people need to wage peace.
April 18, 2025
فكرة الكتاب جيده
كان ممكن ان يخرج كتاب افضل من الحالي
August 10, 2025
Before Their Diaspora: A Photographic History of The Palestinians 1876-1948 by Walid Khalidi
I have been struggling to put into words why this book is of the utmost importance. It shows through photographic evidence and text that Palestine has always been there, and will always be there.
I came across this paragraph in Palestine: A Socialist Introduction in the chapter “Roots of the Nakba, Zionist Settler Colonialism” by Sumaya Awad & Annie Levin
“For an identity to be formed, it must be grounded in tradition and a shared notion of historical memory. Israel succeeded in fabricating both in order to create the Israeli citizen. In order for Israel to establish for itself a new and legitimate national identity, the other, the Palestinian, had to be excluded, and its history reformulated either to fit into the Israeli narrative or to be absorbed by surrounding Arab states. Palestinians have been robbed of the right to narrate their own past. This right to remember is made impossible by the Israeli state, through its censorship of textbooks, criminalization of Nakba commemoration, and refusal to acknowledge Palestinian self-determination and sovereignty. In fact, many critical documents from the period are under lock and key, accessible only to Israelis, if at all.”
And so there is it. This book is a wealth of documentation about the existence of Palestinians in Palestine. And it is a treasure.
I have been struggling to put into words why this book is of the utmost importance. It shows through photographic evidence and text that Palestine has always been there, and will always be there.
I came across this paragraph in Palestine: A Socialist Introduction in the chapter “Roots of the Nakba, Zionist Settler Colonialism” by Sumaya Awad & Annie Levin
“For an identity to be formed, it must be grounded in tradition and a shared notion of historical memory. Israel succeeded in fabricating both in order to create the Israeli citizen. In order for Israel to establish for itself a new and legitimate national identity, the other, the Palestinian, had to be excluded, and its history reformulated either to fit into the Israeli narrative or to be absorbed by surrounding Arab states. Palestinians have been robbed of the right to narrate their own past. This right to remember is made impossible by the Israeli state, through its censorship of textbooks, criminalization of Nakba commemoration, and refusal to acknowledge Palestinian self-determination and sovereignty. In fact, many critical documents from the period are under lock and key, accessible only to Israelis, if at all.”
And so there is it. This book is a wealth of documentation about the existence of Palestinians in Palestine. And it is a treasure.
August 16, 2025
A terrific book!
Something this book makes clear is the disparity between the Palestinians and Jewish segment of Mandatory Palestine. Although Jewish militias and armed forced were officially illegal, they were long supported by the British (monetarily, logistically, training-wise....) while no such Palestinian counterpart was developed. The great disparity in terms of the organizational, logistical, financial, and armed superiority of the Jewish forces, along with the clear objective they had, was the reason for the defeat of the Palestinians. Simultaneously, Palestinian political representation was severely handicapped by both the British and Jewish colonists, thus further limiting how much agency Palestinians had.
I recommend everyone read this book!
This is also a fairly light read!
Furthermore, another great book to read alongside this book is 'Zionism and the Palestinians' by Historian Simha Flapan.
Something this book makes clear is the disparity between the Palestinians and Jewish segment of Mandatory Palestine. Although Jewish militias and armed forced were officially illegal, they were long supported by the British (monetarily, logistically, training-wise....) while no such Palestinian counterpart was developed. The great disparity in terms of the organizational, logistical, financial, and armed superiority of the Jewish forces, along with the clear objective they had, was the reason for the defeat of the Palestinians. Simultaneously, Palestinian political representation was severely handicapped by both the British and Jewish colonists, thus further limiting how much agency Palestinians had.
I recommend everyone read this book!
This is also a fairly light read!
Furthermore, another great book to read alongside this book is 'Zionism and the Palestinians' by Historian Simha Flapan.
July 10, 2022
سجل تاريخي مصور للأحداث والوقائع في فلسطين من عام ١٨٧٦م إلى عام النكبة ١٩٤٨م.
يستعرض الكتاب تلك المدة مقسمة على خمس فترات، يشرح لكل فترة شرحاً مفصلاً، يتبعه تسلسل زمني وألبوم مصوّر لأحداث تلك الفترة.
ويوثّق في صفحاته الحياة الاجتماعية والثقافية والاقتصادية والدينية، بالإضافة إلى الحياة السياسية ومقاومة وكفاح الشعب الفلسطيني. كما يبين كيف كان الإنتداب البريطاني وجهاً آخراً للإحتلال الصهيوني.
يستعرض الكتاب تلك المدة مقسمة على خمس فترات، يشرح لكل فترة شرحاً مفصلاً، يتبعه تسلسل زمني وألبوم مصوّر لأحداث تلك الفترة.
ويوثّق في صفحاته الحياة الاجتماعية والثقافية والاقتصادية والدينية، بالإضافة إلى الحياة السياسية ومقاومة وكفاح الشعب الفلسطيني. كما يبين كيف كان الإنتداب البريطاني وجهاً آخراً للإحتلال الصهيوني.
May 3, 2017
"In the Name of God, Let Palestine Be Left Alone"
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews