The Rise and Fall of Arab Nationalism

posted on: Oct 22, 2021

By Arab America Contributing Author/ Christian Jimenez

Nationalism is one of the most powerful and influential movements in the world and one that began during the 19th century. The term nationalism refers to the idea that a nation of people with a common culture, language, history, etc. should have an independent state of their own.  This  movement has been studied by many historians who looked at the many types of nationalism in Europe and around the globe, such as inside the Austro-Hungarian and the Russian Empires during the 19th century. But did you know that there was also a growing Arab Nationalism in the region as well?  Let’s discuss the rise and fall of Arab Nationalism from the 19th century to the year 1970.

The Arabs During the Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire ruled the Arab World for many centuries. They conquered the areas of Syria, the Hejaz, Iraq, and Egypt from the Mamluk Sultanate in the 16th century, Mesopotamia from the Safavids also in the 16th century, and North Africa by the end of the 16th century.  This meant that by the 17th century the Ottoman Empire was in control of most of the Arab World, but the degree to which they ruled differed from region to region.  In the Hejaz there was only indirect rule and the empire only had an official presence in the important cities of the region, such as Mecca and Medina.  Meanwhile, in Syria, Egypt, and Iraq  there was direct rule from Istanbul due to the populations of these areas being denser and more populous.  However, despite the presence of the Ottoman Empire in most of the Arab World, relations between the Turks and the Arabs were on good terms for the most part.  The Arabs being able to be a part of the local administration in their region as well as little discrimination against the majority Sunni Arab population, according to nzhistory.gov.nz, helped maintain this good relationship.  This loyalty to the Ottomans by the Sunni Arabs was reinforced by their belief that Ottoman rule was legitimate due the sultans claiming the title of caliph, or leader of the Islamic Community.  This meant that from the 16th to the 19th centuries the Arabs of the Ottoman Empire were mostly accepting of their rule.  

However, this soon began to change during the 19th century.  One of the reasons for the deterioration of relations between the Ottoman Empire and the Arabs was the spread of nationalism around the world, which was also affecting other multiethnic empires such as the Austro-Hungarian and the Russian Empires.  In the Ottoman Empire itself, some of these nationlist movements had already led to the loss of territory in the Balkans prior to World War One, where the Greeks achieved their independence in the 1820s.  The Serbs, Romanians, Albanians, and other Balkan peoples would achieve their independence from the Ottoman Empire by the year 1878, with help from the Russians.  This culminated in the Balkan Wars in 1812 where the Ottomans lost all of their European possessions except for the area around Istanbul.  Seeing the success of the Balkan peoples, there were some Arabs who believed and were inspired that they too could also achieve their independence for a unified Arab state.  Other reasons for the rise of Arab Nationalism was the completion of the Hejaz Railroad in the year 1908, which connected Syria to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.  This railroad worried many of the Arabs living there including that of the Hashemite clan, the same as Mohammad, who worried about the Ottomans sending trainloads of Ottoman government officials, tax collectors, and troops according to nzhistory.govt.nz.  This caused great fear for the Hashemites who did not wish to be under the direct rule of Istanbul, and led them to desire complete independence from the Ottomans and to create a new Arab caliphate.  A third factor was the dissatisfaction of many Sunni Arabs and their belief that the Ottomans had strayed away from Islam by adopting many practices from the West.  They also had the view that many of the greatest glories and achievements of Islam were under the Arabs, and that the Ottomans had caused Islam to decline to the great powers of Europe.   A fourth possible factor was that of Arab culture and its institutions that were on the rise around this time.  One of the most prominent examples started in the late 19th century where there was the revitalization of Arabic literature in the region.  This movement was called the Arabic Literature Renaissance, which was inspired by a renewed interest in the classics of Arabic Literature, which led to the formation of the Modern Arabic Literature that we see today.  Other developments included the creation of the American University of Beirut, which was founded in 1866, the first Arabic dictionary created in 1867, and the first Arabic Encyclopedia in 1870.  Soon, many Arabic newspapers will also spread throughout the Arab World during the late 19th and early 20th centuries according to political scientist M.A. Aziz.  

These grievances towards the Ottoman Empire as well as these new cultural developments led to the cities of Baghdad, Beirut, and Damascus to become some of the major centers of Arab Nationalism where the educated urban elite played a major role in its propagation throughout the region. Along with this, there were many Arab societies that would be formed in the Ottoman Empire around this time, with one of the major ones being that of Al-Fatat, which at first only wanted Arab autonomy.  However, the rise of Arab Nationalism would soon be turned into high gear by the rise of the Young Turks who were a Pan-Tukic and Turkish nationalist group.  They seized power in the Young Turk Revolution in 1908 and desired a more centralized government for the Ottoman Empire, which was opposed by many Arabs who wanted increased autonomy instead, and many local Arab officials were replaced by CUP officials, which were mostly Turkish, which also upsetted many Arab notables.   The Young Turks also favored increased Turkification, which became more of a priority when the more nationalist faction of the Young Turks, the Committee of Union and Progress(CUP), seized power from the Freedom and Accord Party in 1913.  These moves upset many Arabs across the region and caused many Arab Nationalists to demand independence, including al-Fatat after they were persecuted by Ottoman authorities.  All of this culminated in the First World War where the Arab Revolt took place.  The revolt was led by the Sharif of Mecca and ruler of the Hejaz, Hussein bin Ali Al-Hashimi, and his sons Faisal and Abdullah who were seeking to build a new independent Arab caliphate after the destruction of the Ottoman Empire.  This Arab Revolt would soon be successful, but they were betrayed by their British allies who reneged on their promise to Hussein for an independent Arab state, built from the remnants of the Ottoman Empire.

Arab Nationalism After the Arab Revolt

This betrayal was exemplified by the treaty of Sykes-Picot, which transferred imperial power from the Ottomans to the British and French.  The British would rule Iraq, Palestine, and Jordan while the French would have control over Lebanon and Syria.  Meanwhile, the region of North Africa was already conquered by European powers long before World War One, with most of it also going to Britain and France, such as Egypt in 1882 and Algeria in the 1830s respectively.  This betrayal, along with British and French colonization, transferred Arab nationalist resistance and anger from the Ottomans to the Europeans.  Throughout the Middle East, the Arabs did not want the mandate system and were against the Sykes-Picot agreement, which was expressed through the King-Crane report of 1919 as well as through revolts in Iraq and Syria during the interwar years.  Around this time Arab nationalists were able to spread their message further throughout the Arab World due to improvements in travel, communications, and the spread of the Arab press, which culminated in the first Pan-Arab Conference in the city of Jerusalem in the year 1931 according to M.A. Aziz.  Further causes of unity among Arabs would be the situation going on in Palestine where, thanks to the Balfour Declaration, many Zionsits would enter Palestine in their attempt to build their own state there with help from the British.  This issue would soon cause Arab-Zionist tensions to boil over with The Arab Revolt, which lasted from 1936 to 1939, which was suppressed by the British and Zionists.  Also around this time, and taking place a few years later in 1945, where the leaders of Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan would form the Arab League in the city of Cairo, Egypt.  This event was another important step for Arab nationalists according to GlobalEdge.  However, it would be after the Second World War that Arab Nationalism would be at its summit.

The ideal of Arab Nationalism would soon reach its peak after the first Arab-Israeli War of 1948 where the Arab armies of Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, and Jordan lost to the Zionists.  The outcome of the war angered the Egyptian population who resented King Farouk because they blamed him for the loss of Egypt and the Arabs to Israel.  This loss, as well as the continuing British influence in Egypt and in the Suez Canal since their nominal independence in 1922, led to the Egyptain Revolution which took place in 1952.  This revolution thrust into power an Egyptian army officer named Gamal Abdel Al-Nasser who would become the ruler of Egypt from 1956 to 1970.  During these years, Nasser would be known for his charisma and as a proponent of Arab Nationalism and Socialism.  He would also nationalize the Suez Canal despite pressure from Britain in the event known as the Suez Crisis.  He also played the superpowers of the USSR and the US against each other, and spread the ideal of Arab Nationalism throughout the Middle East where he argued for a Pan-Arab State.  However, the movement of Arab Nationalism would soon be on the decline with the most important events being that of the Six Day War which led to another Israeli victory, and the death of Nasser himself in 1970.  These two events would soon spell the end of Arab Nationalism as new movements such as Islamism would take its place. Despite some attempts to create a Pan-Arab state, such as the Arab United Republic between Egypt and Syria in 1958, the idea of Arab Nationalism has never been able to create a Pan-Arab nation as some Arab Nationalists had dreamed of achieving.  Hopefully, there will be future attempts of Arab cooperation to deal with the issues facing the Middle East today.  

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