Saboda dalilai na aiki, juyin halittar kalmomi da sunayen wurare sau da yawa yakan gabaci juyin halittar ra'ayoyi, kuma yakan biyo bayansa. Duk da cewa kalmar siyasa-ƙasa Palestine za a iya komawa zuwa ƙarshen Zamanin Tagulla da 'yan asalin Philistines, ƙarfafuwar ra'ayin Palestine za a iya komawa zuwa Herodotus da sauran masana tarihi, masu nazarin al'ummomi da masana ƙasashe na Girka a zamanin Classical Antiquity. Wannan bincike yana nufin haɗa Palestine ta Zamanin Tagulla da Palestine ta Classical Antiquity da zamani, tare da binciken asalin kalmar Palestine toponyms – kalmar ta samo asali ne daga kalmomin Girka topos ('wuri') da onoma ('suna') – da sauye-sauyensu a tsawon lokaci da ta cikin lokuta daban-daban.

For practical reasons, the historical evolution of terms and place names often precedes and follows the evolutions of concepts. Although the geo-political term Palestine can be traced to the late Bronze Age and the indigenous Philistines, the consolidation of the concept of Palestine can be traced to Herodotus and other Greek historians, ethnographers and geographers of Classical Antiquity. This study intends to link Bronze Age Palestine and Classical Antiquity Palestine with modern times and explore the etymology of Palestine toponyms – the term derives from the Greek words topos (‘place’) and onoma (‘name’) – and their changes through and across time.

Ƙwaƙwalwar al'umma ta zamani ta Falasdinawa da sunayen wuraren ƙasar sun samo asali tun zamanin Neolithic har zuwa zamani, ta hanyar rungumar al'adu da dama da kuma kiyaye gadon ƙasar da ya haɗu kuma yana da yadudduka da dama. A cikin al'umma mafi yawanta manoma, a ƙasa ɗaya daga cikin mafi albarka a Fertile Crescent, yawancin sunayen wuraren Larabawan Falasdinu sun dogara ne akan abincin shuke-shuke (kamar nau'ikan wake, lentil), itatuwan 'ya'yan itace (zaitun, ɓaure, inabi) da wuraren halitta (tuddai, filaye, maɓuɓɓugan ruwa, koguna, wadi, kwari da duwatsu).

Modern Palestinian collective memory and place names have evolved from the Neolithic Age into the modern period by embracing multiple traditions and preserving the shared and multi-layered heritage of the land. In a largely peasant society with one of the most fertile lands in the Fertile Crescent, many Palestinian Arab toponyms were based on plant foods (such as varieties of beans, lentils), fruit trees (olive, fig, vine) and natural geographical sites (hills, meadows, springs, streams, wadis, valleys and mountains).

Gabaɗaya, sunayen ƙauyuka da garuruwan Falasdinu sun kasance masu tsayayye sosai, amma sunayen larduna da gundumomi suna ta canzawa a hankali.

By and large the names of Palestinian villages and towns were very stable, but names of provinces and districts were evolving.

Ana samun Falasɗinu a cikin taswirorin duniya mafi dadewa da aka sani tun daga zamanin ƙarshen ƙarni na dā (Late Antiquity), da kuma taswirar kalmomi mashahuriya ta Claudius Ptolemy (100–c.

Palestine is found on the earliest known world maps beginning with Late Antiquity and the famous ‘word map’ of Claudius Ptolemy (100–c.

170 AD). Hakika, ilimin taswira ilimi ne na aiki, kuma tun lokacin da Ptolemy ya yi taswirar duniya da al'ummar Hellenawa suka sani a karni na biyu, taswira ba ta taba zama wakilcin gaskiya ba cikin adalci. A zamanin tsakiya ne masana ilimin kasa Musulmai irinsu al-Khawarizmi suka bunkasa ilimin taswira, suka kuma yi amfani da shi wajen hidimar gwamnatin Abbasiyawa da kuma dalilai na aiki kamar cinikayyar Musulmai ta kasashen waje, kewayawa a teku da aikin hajji. A zamani na baya-bayan nan, ilimin taswira da sauya sunayen wurare su ma sun zama jigo wajen fadada cinikayyar Turawa da gina daular mulkinsu (Bassett 1994:

170 AD). Of course, cartography is a practical science and since Ptolemy produced a map of the world known to Hellenistic society in the 2nd century cartography has never been about ‘objective’ representation of reality. In the Middle Ages cartography was developed by Muslim geographers such as al-Khawarizmi and deployed in the service of the Abbasid state and for practical purposes such as international Muslim trade, navigation and pilgrimage. In modern times cartography and renaming were also central to expanding European trade and empire-building (Bassett 1994:

316–335).

316–335).

Sunayen wurare (ciki har da ƙauyuka, garuruwa, birane, tituna da ƙasashe, da kuma wuraren halitta kamar duwatsu, tuddai, kwaruruka, koguna, maɓuɓɓugai da wadi) an yi su ne don "su ba da alamu game da gadon tarihi da al'adun wurare da yankuna" (Kearns and Berg 2002: 284). Duk da haka, a zahiri sunayen wurare ba wai kawai nuni ne na wuri ba; suna da tushe a cikin alaƙar iko da gwagwarmaya kan ƙasa da albarkatu, da kuma asalin mutanen da ke zaune a waɗannan wuraren (Kearns and Berg 2002).

Place names (including human settlements such as villages, towns, cities, streets and countries and natural places such as mountains, hills, valleys, rivers, springs and wadis) are meant ‘to provide clues as to the historical and cultural heritage of places and regions’ (Kearns and Berg 2002: 284). Yet in reality place names are not just spatial references; they are rooted in power relations and struggles over land and resources and the identities of the people that inhabit these places (Kearns and Berg 2002).

Gwagwarmayar neman filaye, sunayen wurare, da sanya sabbin suna ko sake sanya suna tsakanin 'yan asalin ƙasa da masu mulkin mallaka 'yan ci-ranin yankin abu ne da ya zama ruwan dare. Misalai sun haɗa da Zimbabwe (Rhodesia), Islas Malvinas (Tsibiran Falkland), Istanbul (Constantinople), Arewacin Ireland (Ulster; Ƙananan Gundumomi Shida), Azania (Afirka ta Kudu), Aotearoa (New Zealand), Falasɗinu (Isra'ila), al-Quds (Urushalima) (Masalha 2007, 2012, 2013; Benvenisti 2002; Zerubavel 1995, 1996; Yacobi 2009; Gann 1981; Nyangoni 1978; Abu El-Haj 2001; Ra‘ad 2010; Berg da Kearns 1996; Berg da Vuolteenhaho 2009; Nash 1999; Housel 2009; Kadmon 2004). A zamanin yau, sha'awar sake sanya sunayen wuraren ƙasa kuma tana da alaƙa da ɗaukar iƙirarin mallakar ƙasa. Wannan mayar da hankali kan sunayen wurare a cikin mahallin kishin ƙasa yana nuna yadda masu mulki da hukumomin gwamnati ke amfani da tsarin sunaye a matsayin hanyar gina sabon tunanin al'umma na gama-gari da "ƙirƙirar al'adu" (Hobsbawm da Ranger 1996), a matsayin dabarar kwace ƙasa, da kuma komawa ga wani abin da ake zaton zamanin zinariya ne na da ko na tatsuniya. Hukumomin gwamnati suna amfani da dabarun sake suna don shafe gaskiyar siyasa, zamantakewa da al'adu ta baya, da kuma gina sabbin ra'ayoyi na asalin ƙasa (Guyot da Seethal 2007; Nash 1999; Azaryahu da Kook 2002; Azaryahu 1996, 1997).

Struggles over land, toponyms, naming and renaming between indigenous peoples and settler-colonists are common. Examples include Zimbabwe (Rhodesia), Islas Malvinas (the Falkland Islands), Istanbul (Constantinople), Northern Ireland (Ulster; the Six Counties), Azania (South Africa), Aotearoa (New Zealand), Palestine (Israel), al-Quds (Jerusalem) (Masalha 2007, 2012, 2013; Benvenisti 2002; Zerubavel 1995, 1996; Yacobi 2009; Gann 1981; Nyangoni 1978; Abu El-Haj 2001; Ra‘ad 2010; Berg and Kearns 1996; Berg and Vuolteenhaho 2009; Nash 1999; Housel 2009; Kadmon 2004). In modern times the drive to rename geographical sites is also about staking claims to a country. This focus on place names in the context of nationalism shows how hegemonic political elites and state authorities use the toponymic process as a way of constructing a new collective memory and ‘inventing traditions’ (Hobsbawm and Ranger 1996) and as a tactic of land-grabbing as well as an ideological reversion to a supposedly ancient or mythical ‘golden age’. State authorities deploy renaming strategies to erase earlier political, social and cultural realities and to construct new notions of national identity (Guyot and Seethal 2007; Nash 1999; Azaryahu and Kook 2002; Azaryahu 1996, 1997).

Ba a sami wannan rubutun ba a cikin tambayarka. Ka ce in fassara shi zuwa Hausa, don haka ga fassarar: Dangane da kisan kare-dangi na kabilanci da Sihiyoniyawa suka yi wa mafi yawan Falasɗinu a shekarar 1948, da kuma halin da ake ciki yanzu na mai mulkin mallaka da wanda ake mulka a ƙasar, taken Sihiyoniyawan masu sassaucin ra'ayi cewa tarihin Falasɗinu na zamani ya ta'allaka ne a kan ra'ayin "ƙasa ɗaya, mutane biyu" ba shi da wani tasiri. Rashin daidaiton ƙarfi a Falasɗinu ne ya siffanta ayyukan kusan dukkan "Sabbin Masana Tarihi" na Isra'ila. Wannan aiki, akasin haka, ya ƙalubalanci wannan hangen nesa da ya dogara da "kishin ƙasar Sihiyoniyawa", kuma yana kira ga hanyoyin kawar da mulkin mallaka a binciken ilimi. Aikin ya nuna cewa hangen nesa na kishin ƙasa yana taimakawa wajen ɓoye zuciyar rikicin Falasɗinu. Haka kuma, aikin ya nuna cewa a zuciyar batun Falasɗinu akwai babban rashin daidaito tsakanin wata ƙungiyar mulkin mallaka ta Turawan Yamma mai nufin kawar da mutane, wadda manyan ƙasashen Yamma suka goyi baya, da farko Birtaniya sannan yanzu Amurka, da kuma 'yan asalin Falasɗinu. Haka kuma, taswirar sunayen wurare da binciken da gwamnati ke ɗaukar nauyi sun taka muhimmiyar rawa wajen mamayar Turawan Turai na zamani a duniya, da gina daulolin mulkin mallaka, da ayyukan mamayar masu zama, ciki har da aikin Sihiyoniyawa. Masana sau da yawa suna ɗauka cewa sunayen wurare suna ba da alamu game da tarihi da al'adun gado da wurare da yankuna ke rabawa. Wannan aiki yana amfani da ka'idar ƙwaƙwalwar al'umma wajen nazarin siyasar al'adu ta sanya sunayen wurare a Isra'ila. Yana amfani da nazarin Maurice Halbwachs kan yadda 'yan Salibiyya na Latin da mahajjatan Kiristoci na tsakiyar zamani suka gina ƙwaƙwalwar al'umma, kuma ya nuna dabarun sunayen wurare na Sihiyoniyawa a Falasɗinu: sanya sunayen Tsohon Alkawari da na Talmud a kan wurare an yi shi ne domin goge tarihin Falasɗinawa da na Larabawa Musulmi na asali na ƙasar. A zamanin kafin Nakba, tsarin sunayen wurare na Sihiyoniyawa ya yi amfani da binciken Turawan Yamma na karni na sha tara na "sunaye" da "wurare" na Tsohon Alkawari, kuma ya mallaki sunayen wurare na Falasɗinawa. Bayan kisan kare-dangin kabilanci na Falasdinu a shekarar 1948 da kuma raɗaɗin Nakba, gwamnatin Isra'ila, wadda yanzu take iko da kashi 78 cikin ɗari na ƙasar, ta hanzarta aikinta na sauya sunayen wurare, kuma ta bi hanyoyin da babban abin da suka fi ƙunsa shi ne kisan tunani da tarihi (memoricide). Waɗannan hanyoyin mulkin mallaka sun ci gaba har bayan mamayar shekarar 1967, kuma suna ci gaba da barazanar lalata al'adu da gadon tarihi iri-iri na wannan ƙasa.

In view of the Zionist ethnic cleansing of most of Palestine in 1948 and the current reality of coloniser/colonised in the country, the liberal Zionist slogan that the history of modern Palestine centres on the idea of ‘one land, two peoples’ rings hollow. The asymmetry of power in Palestine informs the works of nearly all Israeli ‘New Historians’. This work, by contrast, challenges this ‘Zionist nationalism’-based perspective and argues for decolonising methodologies; this work argues that the nationalism perspective serves to camouflage the heart of the conflict in Palestine; it argues further that at the heart of the question of Palestine is the vastly asymmetrical conflict between an eliminationist European settler-colonialist movement, backed by major Western powers (first Britain and now the US), and the indigenous people of Palestine. Furthermore, place-naming cartography and state-sponsored explorations were central to the modern European conquest of the earth, empire-building and settler-colonisation projects, the Zionist enterprise included. Scholars often assume that place names provide clues to the historical and shared heritage of places and regions. This work uses social memory theory to analyse the cultural politics of place-naming in Israel. Drawing on Maurice Halbwachs’ study of the construction of social memory by the Latin Crusaders and Christian medieval pilgrims, the work shows Zionists’ toponymic strategies in Palestine: their superimposition of Old Testament and Talmudic toponyms was designed to erase the local Palestinian and Arab Islamic heritage of the country. In the pre-Nakba period Zionist toponymic schemes utilised 19th century Western explorations of Old Testament ‘names’ and ‘places’ and appropriated Palestinian toponyms. Following the ethnic cleansing of Palestine in 1948 and the ruptures of the Nakba, the Israeli state, now in control of 78 per cent of the land, accelerated its toponymic project and pursued methods whose main features were memoricide. Continuing into the post-1967 occupation, these colonial methods continue to threaten the destruction of the diverse cultural and historic heritage of the land.

Asalin sunayen wurare na tarihin Falasdinu sun samo asali daga tushe iri-iri, ciki har da Finikiyanci, Filistiyanci, Aramaic, Helenanci, Ibrananci da Larabci – sunayen da ke wakiltar al'adu daban-daban da suka haɗu a cikin asalin al'adun Falasdinu. Muhimmancin zamantakewa da al'adu na tunanin sunayen wurare da kuma yadda ake bayyana wurare da kalmomi a rubuce-rubucen tarihi a bayyane yake a yawancin tarihin Falasdinu tun zamanin da, da na tsakiya, har zuwa zamani. Misali mai kyau na tsoho shi ne jerin sunan tsohuwar Falasdinu a cikin Histories (ko The History, 1987) na Herodotus, wanda aka rubuta daga shekarun 450 zuwa 420 kafin haihuwar Annabi Isa.

The toponyms of historic Palestine derive from a wide range of sources, including Phoenician, Philistine, Aramaic, Greek, Hebrew and Arabic – toponyms which are representative of the multi-layered cultural identity of Palestine. The social and cultural importance of toponymic memory and geographical rendering of sites and terms in historical writing is evident in many histories from antiquity, medieval and modern Palestine. One classical example is the listing of the name of ancient Palestine in Histories (or The History, 1987) by Herodotus, written from the 450s to the 420s BC.

An tabbata cewa Herodotus ya ziyarci Falasdin a shekarun goma na biyar na karni na biyar kafin haihuwar Annabi Isa. Kamar yadda al'adar tarihin Girkanci da Romawa ta tsara, aikin Herodotus ya fi daraja shaidar baki ga tarihin zamaninsa (Robinson, C. 2003: 26). Herodotus shi ne malamin tarihi na farko da ya ambaci wani yanki na ƙasa da ya kira Palaistinê (Παλαιστίνη), wanda ya fi girma sosai fiye da tsohuwar Filistiya. Ya ambaci Falasdin ko 'Siriya', ko kuma kawai 'Palaistinê', sau biyar, yana nufin yankin da ke tsakanin Foniciya da Masar (Rainey 2001; Jacobson 1999). Herodotus ya kuma ambaci birnin Ascalon (Akkadiyanci: Isqalluna; Girkanci: Ascalon; Larabci: 'Asqalan; Latin: Ascalonia; Ibrananci: Ashkelon), wani babban tashar jiragen ruwa na zamanin da wanda ya samo asali tun zamanin Neolithic. A zamanin Herodotus, Falasdin ta yi zurfin shirka da bautar gumaka, saboda haka, sabanin labaran tatsuniyoyi na Littafi Mai Tsarki, Herodotus bai ambaci Yahudawa ko tauhidi ba, sai dai ya bayyana Ascalan a matsayin wadda take da haikalin Aphrodite da al'adunta na bautar gumaka. Duk da cewa ana ɗaukar Tarihin Herodotus a yanzu a matsayin aikin tushe na tarihi a adabin Yamma, kuma yana aiki a matsayin muhimmin tarihin al'adu, siyasa, yanayin ƙasa da rikice-rikicen iko daban-daban da aka sani a Girka, Yammacin Asiya da Arewacin Afirka, idan ana maganar Falasdin da tunawa da sunayen wuraren, rubuce-rubucen Kiristocin Yamma ba sa dogara ga Tarihin Herodotus ba, sai dai ga labaran tatsuniyoyi na Littafi Mai Tsarki.

Herodotus is believed to have visited Palestine in the fifth decade of the 5th century BC. Like the classical tradition of Greek and Roman historiography, Herodotus’ work put the greatest value on oral testimony for contemporary history (Robinson, C. 2003: 26). Herodotus was the first historian to denote a geographical region he called Palaistinê (Παλαιστίνη), which was far wider than ancient Philistia. He refers to Palestine or ‘Syria’, or simply ‘Palaistinê’, five times, meaning an area encompassing the distinct region between Phoenicia and Egypt (Rainey 2001; Jacobson 1999). Herodotus also mentions the city of Ascalon (Akkadian: Isqalluna; Greek: Ascalon; Arabic: ‘Asqalan; Latin: Ascalonia; Hebrew: Ashkelon), a great ancient seaport city which dates back to the Neolithic Age. At the time of Herodotus Palestine was deeply polytheistic and consequently, in contrast to the myth-narratives of the Bible, Herodotus does not mention Jews or monotheism but describes Ascalan as having a temple for Aphrodite and its polytheistic tradition. Although Herodotus’ Histories is now considered a founding work of history in Western literature, and serves as a key record of the ancient traditions, politics, geography and clashes of various powers that were known in Greece, Western Asia and North Africa, when it comes to Palestine and toponymic memory Western Christian writing relies not on Herodotus’ Histories but on the myth-narratives of the Bible.

Abin mamaki, duk da haka, sunayen Girkanci na Falasdinu da Ascalan sun ci gaba da kasancewa a cikin al'adar Larabawan Falasdinu na asali da kuma a wurin malaman tarihi, masana labarin kasa da matafiya na Larabawa na zamanin tsakiya, kuma 'Ascalon' ya zama sananne ga Larabawan Falasdinu tun daga karni na 7 a matsayin 'Asqalan'.

Interestingly, however, the Greek toponym for Palestine and Ascalan were preserved in indigenous Palestinian Arab tradition and by medieval Arab historians, geographers and travellers, and ‘Ascalon’ became known to the Palestinian Arabs from the 7th century as ‘Asqalan’.

Babban abin da wannan aiki ya mayar da hankali a kai shi ne na asali (na mutum ɗaya da na gama-gari).

The emphasis of this work is on the indigenous (individual and collective)

ikon da ƙarfin mutanen Falasdinu na karɓa, daidaitawa, sarrafawa da sauya tasirin waje da muhallinsu.

agency and the ability of the peoples of Palestine to borrow, adapt, shape and transform outside influences and their own environment.

Saboda haka, amfani da kalmar ‘Hellenisation’ a Falasdinu ta hanya ta sama-sama yana da matsala. Wannan amfani ba tare da bincike ba yana rage matsayin ƙasar da ke da su tun asali, kuma yana ƙara jaddada gefen Hellenistic a matsayin babban tushen ƙarfi da halascin dangantakar. Duk da haka, ana iya ganin wasu alamu na ‘toponymical Hellenisation’ a sunayen wuraren birane na Falasdinu. ‘Toponymical Hellenisation’ na birane a Falasdinu, wanda ya fara tun lokacin da Alexander the Great ya ci yankin a ƙarshen shekarun 330 BC, kuma ya bunƙasa cikin ƙarnoni da dama, ya kasance tare da ci gaban tattalin arziki mai yawa, ciki har da tsara birane da kafa garuruwa masu ƙarfi da katanga. Nisa da cinikayya tsakanin yankuna, da kuma ‘cultural Hellenisation’ a hankali, sun yi tasiri a Falasdinu, kuma an ji wannan a cikin cibiyoyin birane da manyan birane. Baya ga tasirin Hellenisation a tsoffin garuruwan Gaza, ‘Asqalon, Jerusalem da Jaffa, ci gaba da Hellenisation na sunayen wurare da sake sunan garuruwan Falasdinu sun shafi Scythopolis (Beisan), Ptolemais (Akka/Acre), Diospolis (Lydda), Eleutheropolis (Beit Jibrin), Sepphoris (Diocaesaraea/Saffuriyah), Nicopolis (Emmaus), Petra (Greek: rock; Aramaic: Raqmu; Arabic: al-Batra), Philadelphia (‘Amman), Antipatris (Surdi fonts/Binar Bashi), Flavia Neapolis (Nablus) da Sebastos (Sabastiyah). Sebastia (Greek: Sevastee) a yau babban ƙauyen Falasdinawa ne, wanda ke kusan kilomita 12 arewa maso yammacin birnin Nablus. An sake gina shi a shekara ta 63

Consequently, the superficial use of the term ‘Hellenisation’ in Palestine is problematic. This uncritical use marginalises the indigenous agency and over-emphasises the Hellenistic side of the relationship as the primary source of power and legitimacy. However, aspects of the ‘toponymical Hellenisation’ of Palestinian urban place names are evident. Toponymical ‘Hellenisation’ of urban Palestine, which began with the conquest by Alexander the Great in the late 330s BC and developed over several centuries, was markedly accompanied by extensive economic growth and development that included urban planning and the establishment of well-built fortified cities. Distance and regional trade and gradual ‘cultural Hellenisation’ had some impact on Palestine and this was felt in the urban centres and major cities. In addition to the impact of Hellenisation on the historic cities of Gaza, ‘Asqalon, Jerusalem and Jaffa, ongoing Hellenisation of place names and renaming of Palestinian cities affected Scythopolis (Beisan), Ptolemais (Akka/Acre), Diospolis (Lydda), Eleutheropolis (Beit Jibrin), Sepphoris (Diocaesaraea/Saffuriyah), Nicopolis (Emmaus), Petra (Greek: rock; Aramaic: Raqmu; Arabic: al-Batra), Philadelphia (‘Amman), Antipatris (Surdi fonts/Binar Bashi), Flavia Neapolis (Nablus) and Sebastos (Sabastiyah). Sebastia (Greek: Sevastee) is today a large Palestinian village, located some 12 kilometres north-west of the city of Nablus. Rebuilt in 63

BC, sunansa ya samo asali daga Sebastos ('mai daraja'), kalmar Helenanci daidai da kalmar Latin Augustus, sunan da aka zaɓa don girmama Sarki Augustus. Shekaru masu yawa, garin ya kasance mazaunin bishop, da farko a Palaestina Prima a ƙarƙashin Daular Byzantine, sannan a lardin Jund Filastin a ƙarƙashin Musulunci, kuma daga baya wani bishop na Latin a Masarautar Frankish ta Urushalima.

BC, its name derives from Sebastos (‘venerable’), the Greek equivalent of the Latin Augustus, a name chosen in honour of Emperor Augustus. For many centuries, the town was the seat of a bishop, first in Palaestina Prima under the Byzantine Empire, then in the province of Jund Filastin under Islam and again a Latin bishop in the Frankish Kingdom of Jerusalem.

Al'adar Orthodox ta asali ta Sebastia an mayar da ita bayan shan kayen Crusaders na Latin, kuma ta ci gaba a karkashin Musulunci har zuwa zamani. Tun shekarar 2005, wani shahararren mutum na jama'a Balarabe Bafalasdine, Atallah Hanna (Theodosios), mai jajircewa ga asalin kishin kasar Falasdinawa Larabawa, ya kasance Archbishop na Sebastia a Patriarchate na Girka Orthodox na Urushalima, wani take na addini wanda ke nuna ci gaba da kuma tunanin al'umma mai zurfi na sunayen wurare na Falasdinu ta tarihi.

The original Palestine Orthodox tradition of Sebastia was restored after the defeat of the Latin Crusaders and continued under Islam into the modern era. Since 2005 a leading Palestinian Arab public figure, Atallah Hanna (Theodosios), with a strong commitment to Palestinian Arab national identity, has been the Archbishop Sebastia in the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, a religious title which embodies the continuities and the deeply rooted toponymic social memories of historic Palestine.

Game da sunan birnin Falasɗinu Nablus, an samo shi daga sunan Girka-Romawa Flavia Neapolis (Νεάπολις) – ma'ana 'sabon birni na Sarki Flavius' – wanda Sarkin Romawa Vespasian ya ba shi a shekara ta 72.

As for the name of the Palestinian city Nablus, it derives from Greco- Roman name Flavia Neapolis (Νεάπολις) – the ‘new city of the Emperor Flavius’ – which was given to it by the Roman Emperor Vespasian in 72

AD. Ta haka Nablus ta raba sunanta da birnin Naples na ƙasar Italiya. Flavia Neapolis an kafa ta kusa da Tell Balatah, wurin da ragowar tsohon birnin Falasdinu mai suna Shechmu suke, wanda al'ada ta danganta shi da birnin Samariyawa na Schechem. Wurin Balatah yana ɗaya daga cikin tsoffin wuraren da ke Falasdinu, kuma masana ilimin kayan tarihi suna kiyasin cewa hasumiyoyi da gine-ginen da ke wurin sun kai shekaru 4000, tun zamanin Chalcolithic da zamanin Tagulla. A yau UNESCO ta jera Tell Balatah a cikin Jerin Wuraren Al'adu da Halitta masu Yiwuwar Muhimmanci Mai Girma ga Duniya a Falasdinu. Biranen Falasdinu na dā da na zamani suna da alaƙa mai ƙarfi, ba ta fuskar tunanin sunayen wurare kaɗai ba. Shaidun ilimin kayan tarihi suna nuna ci gaba, katsewa, farfadowa da sauyi mai ci gaba na cibiyoyin birane na Falasdinu tun daga zamanin Tagulla na Farko har zuwa zamani.

AD. Thus Nablus shares its name with the Italian city of Naples. Flavia Neapolis had been founded near Tell Balatah, the site of the remains of an ancient Palestinian city Shechmu, traditionally identified with the Samaritan city of Schechem. The site of Balatah is one of the most ancient localities in Palestine and archaeologists estimate that the towers and buildings at the site date back 4000 years to the Chalcolithic and Bronze Ages. Today Tell Balatah is listed by UNESCO as part of the Inventory of Cultural and Natural Heritage Sites of Potential Outstanding Universal Value in Palestine. Ancient and modern Palestinian cities are closely related not only in terms of toponymic memories. Archaeological evidence shows the historical continuities, interruptions, revival and continuous transformation of the urban centres of Palestine from the Early Bronze Age to the modern period:

Bayanan ilimin kayan tarihi suna kai mu zuwa ƙasa da bayan irin wannan bayyana yaƙe-yaƙe, don mu samu hangen abin da rayuwa ta kasance a zahiri a Falasdinu ta zamanin Hellenawa. Gabatar da ragowar gine-gine na zamanin, sauye-sauyen tsarin zaman jama'a, da bambancin al'adun kayan rayuwa na zamanin, yana taimaka mana mu fahimci yadda mazauna sassa daban-daban na ƙasar suke rayuwa, da yadda rayuwarsu ta sauya a cikin waɗannan ƙarni masu muhimmanci. Rayuwa mai zaman lafiya, da ƙara wadata da zamantakewar al'umma masu haɗuwa da al'adu daban-daban, suna bayyana daga ƙurar da ta ɓoye, wadda ke fitowa daga damuwar masanin tarihi da yaƙe-yaƙe.

Archaeological data take us beneath and beyond such recitation [of military battles] to gain a glimpse of what life was actually like in Hellenistic Palestine. A presentation of the period’s architectural remains, changes in its settlement patterns, and the variety of its material cultures helps us understand how the inhabitants of various parts of the country lived and how their lives changed during the course of these momentous centuries. Peaceful and increasingly wealthy and cosmopolitan lifestyles emerge from the obscuring dust of the historian’s preoccupation with battles. (Berlin 1997: Abstract)

Biranen ilimi na birane a Falasdinu da wuraren birane masu bunƙasa sun taka muhimmiyar rawa wajen siffanta ra'ayin farko na Falasdinu. Duka Latin da Koine Greek sun kasance manyan harsunan Daular Byzantine har zuwa karni na 6; Latin ya ci gaba da zama harshen hukuma na gwamnati a karni na 6, yayin da harshen da ya fi yaduwa tsakanin 'yan kasuwa, manoma, ma'aikatan jirgin ruwa da talakawan jama'a a Falasdinu shi ne Greek. Haka kuma, Aramaic – wanda yake da alaƙa ta kusa da Larabci – shi ne harshen da ya fi yaduwa tsakanin manoman Falasdinu (galibinsu Kiristoci) waɗanda suka zama mafi yawan al'ummar ƙasar. A zahiri, Greek da Latin su ne harsunan da suka fi yaduwa tsakanin biranen ilimi na Falasdinu a zamanin Byzantine, suna shafar ilimi, kasuwanci, mulki, takardun hukuma, fasaha da gine-gine, da manyan sunayen wurare a ko'ina cikin Falasdinu da Gabashin Bahar Rum. Sai dai Greek ya zama harshen sadarwa (lingua franca) na Falasdinu a ƙarshen zamanin Byzantine, ba da daɗewa ba kafin zuwan Musulunci. Saboda haka, Hellenisation na sunayen wurare a Falasdinu ba abu ne da ba a saba gani ba a zamanin Late Antiquity. Misali sananne na Hellenisation daga zamanin Late Antiquity shi ne aikin Josephus (Titus Flavius Josephus 37‒kimanin 100 AD), masanin tarihi kuma mai fassara Bayahude-Romawa na karni na 1, wanda ya iya Aramaic da Greek kuma ya zama ɗan ƙasar Roma. Shi da Philo na Alexandria, marubuci Bayahude-Greco-Roman, duka sun yi amfani da sunan wuri Falasdinu (Robinson, E. 1865: 15). Josephus ya yi imani da dacewar Yahudanci da tunanin Greco-Roman, abin da ake yawan kira Yahudanci na Hellenistic. Ya lissafa sunayen wurare na Falasdinu na gida, ya kuma sa su zama sanannu ga masu sauraron Greco-Roman. A cikin ayyukansa The Jewish War (1981) da Antiquities of the Jews (2004), waɗanda suka haɗa da bayanai game da mutane, ƙungiyoyi, al'adu da sunayen wurare, Josephus kusan bai taɓa kiran malaman Yahudawa masu iko a kan Attaura da "scribes" ba; a maimakon haka yana kiransu da sophists da elders. Haka kuma, Josephus yana kiran ƙungiyoyin Yahudawa (kalma mai ɗauke da ma'ana mara kyau) da falsafa ko makarantu. Sunan da ya yi amfani da shi wajen nufin Transjordan, Peraea ('ƙasar da ke bayan kogi'), ba a samunsa a cikin Baibul ba; ‘Amman ta zamani kuma ana kiranta da sunanta na Girka, Philadelphia. Musulmai na zamanin da da Falasdinawa na yau sun adana sunayen wurare na Girka-Roman kamar Nablus (Girka: Neapolis, Νεάπολις), Falasdinu, Qaysariah12 (Caesarea; Girka: Καισάρεια), amma ba Philadelphia ba. Aikin Eusebius na karni na 4 kan yanayin ƙasar Falasdinu, Onomasticon: On the Place Names in Divine Scripture (Notley da Safrai 2004; Eusebius 1971), ya ambaci ‘Amman: yanzu ita ce Philadelphia'.

Palestine’s educated urban elites and thriving urban spaces played an important part in shaping the early idea of Palestine. Both Latin and Koine Greek were the dominant languages of the Byzantine Empire until the 6th century; Latin remained the official language of the government in the 6th century, whereas the prevalent language of merchants, farmers, seamen and ordinary citizens in Palestine was Greek. Also, Aramaic – closely related to Arabic – was a prevalent language among the (predominantly Christian) Palestinian peasantry which constituted the majority of population in the country. In practice, Greek and Latin were the prevalent languages of the educated urban elites of Byzantine Palestine, affecting education, trade, administration, official documents, art and architecture and key place names throughout Palestine and the Eastern Mediterranean. Greek, however, became the lingua franca of late Byzantine Palestine, shortly before the advent of Islam. Consequently, the Hellenisation of Palestinian toponyms was not uncommon in Late Antiquity. A well-known example of Hellenisation from Late Antiquity is the work of the 1st-century Romano-Jewish historian and translator Josephus (Titus Flavius Josephus 37‒c. 100 AD) who spoke Aramaic and Greek and who became a Roman citizen. Both he and Greco-Roman Jewish writer Philo of Alexandria used the toponym Palestine (Robinson, E. 1865: 15). Josephus believed in the compatibility of Judaism and Greco- Roman thought, often referred to as Hellenistic Judaism.11 He listed local Palestinian toponyms and rendered them familiar to Greco-Roman audiences. In his works The Jewish War (1981) and the Antiquities of the Jews (2004) which include material about individuals, groups, customs and place names, Josephus almost never refers to Torah-authority Jewish scribes as ‘scribes’; instead he refers to them as sophists and elders. Similarly, Josephus refers to Jewish ‘sects’ (a loaded term) as philosophies or schools. The term he used to refer to Transjordan, Peraea (‘the country beyond’), is not found in the Bible, modern ‘Amman is referred to by its Greek name, Philadelphia. Medieval Muslims and modern Palestinians preserved Greco-Roman toponyms such Nablus (Greek: Neapolis, Νεάπολις), Palestine, Qaysariah12 (Caesarea; Greek: Καισάρεια), but not Philadelphia. Eusebius’ 4th century work on Palestinian topography, Onomasticon: On the Place Names in Divine Scripture (Notley and Safrai 2004; Eusebius 1971), refers to ‘Amman: this is now Philadelphia’.

Ni baya ga Hellenisation na sunayen wurare da yawa na Falasdinu da marubucin Bayahude Josephus ya yi, Uban Kafa na Kiristanci sun kara wa sunayen wuraren Falasdinu girma na addini da siyasa. Rawar wannan ƙwaƙwalwar addini-zamantakewa wajen tasiri ga taswirar yanki da ƙwaƙwalwar sunayen wurare na Falasdinu an amince da ita sosai a ƙarni na 4 miladiyya a cikin ayyuka guda biyu shahararru: fassarar Vulgate ta St Jerome zuwa Latin, da aikin da ya biyo baya kan yanayin ƙasar Falasdinu, Onomasticon: On the Place Names in Divine Scripture, na Eusebius na Kaisariya (Eusebius Caesariensis; 260/265‒339/340 miladiyya) – masanin tarihi na asalin Girka, masanin yanayin ƙasa kuma mai fassara nassi, kuma ɗaya daga cikin Uban Kafa wanda ya zama Bishop na Kaisariya kusan shekara ta 314 miladiyya. Aikin Eusebius, Onomasticon (Notley da Safrai 2004; Eusebius 1971), shi ne yunƙuri na farko mai cikakken tsari na gina da "gano" waɗannan wurare da sunaye daga labaran Littafi Mai Tsarki, kuma an gina shi a wani ɓangare bisa aikin Jerome na addini-na sarauta, wanda ya samo asali daga gaskiyar cewa Kiristanci ya zama addinin hukuma na daular. Waɗannan ayyuka guda biyu na Jerome da Eusebius, Uban Kafa biyu na Kiristanci, maimakon ainihin tarihin Falasdinu na Herodotus ne suka zama tushen ƙwaƙwalwar sunayen wurare ta addini-zamantakewa ta Yamma da sake tunanin Falasdinu a matsayin Ƙasar Tsarki ta Kirista (Sivan 2008: 57). Eusebius, a cikin Onomasticon, ya ba da jerin sunayen wurare na Provincia Palaestina, tare da ƙarin sharhi na yanki, tarihi da addini wanda a wani ɓangare ya dogara da labaran Littafi Mai Tsarki. Yanayin ƙasar Falasdinu da ya rubuta daga baya aka fassara shi zuwa Latin. St Jerome ya koma zahiri zuwa Judaea a Provincia Palaestina yayin da yake aiki kan fassarar Vulgate. Jerome, Uban Kafa na Kiristanci kuma babban mai ba da gudummawa ga ƙwaƙwalwar addininsa mai muhimmanci, shi ne mutum na farko da ya koma ya fassara Tsohon Alkawari daga Ibrananci maimakon daga Septuagint (ko 'Tsohon Alkawari na Girka').

In addition to the Hellenisation of many Palestinian toponyms by the Jewish writer Josephus, the Founding Fathers of Christianity introduced religio-political dimensions to Palestinian place names. The role of this religio-social memory in influencing the geographical mapping and toponymic memory of Palestine was widely recognised in the 4th century AD in two famous works: St Jerome’s Vulgate translation into Latin and the subsequent work on Palestinian topography, Onomasticon: On the Place Names in Divine Scripture by Eusebius of Caesarea (Eusebius Caesariensis; 260/265‒339/340 AD) – a historian of Greek descent, a topographer and an exegete and one of the Founding Fathers who became the Bishop of Caesarea about AD 314. Eusebius’ work, Onomasticon (Notley and Safrai 2004; Eusebius 1971), the first comprehensive attempt to construct and ‘locate’ these places and names from the biblical narratives, was partly based on Jerome’s religio-imperial enterprise which was driven by the fact that Christianity had become an official religion of empire. It was these two works by two of the Founding Fathers of Christianity, Jerome and Eusebius, rather than Herodotus’ actual history of Palestine which formed the basis of Western religio-social toponymic memory and the reimagining of Palestine as a Christian Holy Land (Sivan 2008: 57). Eusebius, in Onomasticon, provides a list of place names of Provincia Palaestina, with additional geographical, historical and religious commentary partly based on biblical stories. His topography of Palestine was later translated into Latin. St Jerome relocated physically to Judaea in Provincia Palaestina while working on the Vulgate translation. Jerome, a founding father of Christianity and a major contributor to its seminal religious memory, was the first person to go back and translate the Old Testament from Hebrew rather than from the Septuagint (or ‘Greek Old Testament’).

Ainihin asalin da ƙasar Falasɗinu take da shi tun zamanin ƙarshen Zamanin Tagulla ya ƙunshi ma'anoni daban-daban da ke canzawa a kan lokaci: na siyasa da ƙasa, na ɓangaren duniya, na gudanarwa, da na shari'a. Zamanin Byzantine kuma ya ƙara wani ɓangare na addini a kan ra'ayin Falasɗinu na siyasa da na duniya, a cikin sunan 'Ƙasa Mai Tsarki'. Wakilcin addini da na tsarki na Falasɗinu, Ƙasa Mai Tsarki, 'ƙasar Linjila' a matsayin tunanin addini da kuma yankin tsarki da aka hasashe, mutanen asali na Falasɗinu sun rungume su tare da yin murna da su.

The evolving multi-layered identity and conception of Palestine since the late Bronze Age has geo-political, secular, administrative and legal connotations. The Byzantine era also added a religious layer to the geo-political, secular conception of Palestine, in the form of the ‘Holy Land’. The religio-sacred representations of Palestine, the Holy Land, the ‘land of the Gospel’ as religious memory and an imagined sacred territory have been embraced and celebrated by the indigenous people of Palestine:

Musulmai (daga al'adun Alƙur'ani), Samariyawa (bisa Attaurat ta Samariyawa), Yahudawa (daga al'adun Tsohon Alkawari)

Muslims (from the Quranic traditions), Samaritans (based on the Samaritan Pentateuch), Jews (from the traditions of the Old Testament)

da Kiristoci (daga al'adun Tsohon Alkawari da Sabon Alkawari). Wannan asalin al'adu iri-iri na Falasdinu an amince da shi a duniya baki ɗaya.

and Christians (from the traditions of the Old and New Testaments). This multifaith identity of Palestine is universally recognised.

Haka kuma, tunawa da addinin Kiristanci na Yammacin duniya a zamanin tsakiya da kuma ziyarar hajji zuwa Terrae Sanctae sun yi tasiri sosai ga ka'idar ƙwaƙwalwar zamantakewa ta masanin zamantakewar al'ummar Faransa Maurice Halbwachs (1877‒1945), wanda rubuce-rubucensa masu muhimmanci kan ilimin zamantakewar ilimi da gina ƙwaƙwalwar al'umma aka sanya wa suna Mémoire Collective (1980).

Furthermore, the medieval Western Christian religious memory of, and pilgrimage to, the Terrae Sanctae had a major influence on the modern social memory theory of French sociologist Maurice Halbwachs (1877‒1945), whose seminal writings on the sociology of knowledge and the social construction of memory was entitled Mémoire Collective (1980).

A cikin aikinsa Halbwachs ya bambanta "ƙwaƙwalwar zamantakewa" mai tsari da ke canzawa da tarihin gaskiya, don haka ya kafa "ƙwaƙwalwar gama-gari" a matsayin ra'ayi da kuma wani fanni na bincike daban. Kalmar "ƙwaƙwalwar gama-gari" da kanta tana komawa ga wanda ya kafa ilimin zamantakewa na zamani, Émile Durkheim (1858–1917), wanda ya rubuta sosai a littafinsa Les formes élémentaires de la vie religieuse (2003) game da addini mai tsari, ƙwaƙwalwar gama-gari, tunawa da al'adun tunawa. Halbwachs, almajirin Durkheim kuma masanin ilimin zamantakewa mai bin tsarin positivism, ya bambanta "tarihi" da "ƙwaƙwalwar zamantakewa" mai canzawa, kuma ya yi jayayya cewa tunanin mutum da fahimtarsa game da abubuwan da suka wuce suna da alaƙa sosai da zama membobin ƙungiya, da "ƙwaƙwalwar gama-gari" da sanin ƙungiya. A cewar Halbwachs (1992), samar da wannan ƙwaƙwalwar zamantakewa ya dogara ne da wani "tsari" na addini ko na siyasa da kuma tsarin da ƙungiya take a cikinsa a cikin al'umma.

In his work Halbwachs contrasted structured, evolving ‘social memory’ with actual history and thus established ‘collective memory’ both as a concept and as a distinct research field. The term ‘collective memory’ itself is traceable to the founder of modern sociology, Émile Durkheim (1858–1917), who wrote extensively in Les formes élémentaires de la vie religieuse (2003) about organised religion, collective memory, remembering and commemorative rituals. Halbwachs, a student of Durkheim and a positivist sociologist, contrasts ‘history’ with evolving ‘social memory’ and argues that an individual’s memories and understanding of the past are closely related to group memberships, ‘collective memory’ and group consciousness. According to Halbwachs (1992), this production of social memory is dependent upon a religious or political ‘cadre’ as well as the framework within which a group is situated within a society.

Aikin Halbwachs kan tsarin zamantakewa na ƙwaƙwalwar gama-gari da yadda ake gina da sake haifar da ƙwaƙwalwar zamantakewa ya fara ne da babban binciken sa kan Les Cadres Sociaux de la Mémoire (1925, 1992) da La Topographie légendaire des évangiles en terre sainte: étude de mémoire collective (1941, 1992). Halbwachs ya fi mayar da hankali ne kan ƙwaƙwalwar zamantakewa ta addini da ta ƙasa. Aikinsa La Topographie légendaire des évangiles en terre sainte ya mayar da hankali kan alamomin tunawa, al'adu da wakilce-wakilce da ake iya gani a bainar jama'a. Haka kuma yana nazarin ƙwaƙwalwar addini-zamantakewa ta jerin tsararraki na mahajjatan Kiristoci na zamanin da da mayaƙan Crusades na Latin a cikin Terrae Sanctae, da yadda suka raba Falasdinu, Siriya da Larabawa zuwa yankuna, da yadda waɗannan ƙungiyoyi suka "gano" sannan suka "sake gano" (suka sake haifarwa) su.

Halbwachs’ work on the social framing of collective memory and the construction (and reproduction) of social memory began with his landmark study on Les Cadres Sociaux de la Mémoire (1925, 1992) and La Topographie légendaire des évangiles en terre sainte: étude de mémoire collective (1941, 1992). Halbwachs was preoccupied with religious and nationalist social memory. His work La Topographie légendaire des évangiles en terre sainte focuses on publicly available commemorative symbols, rituals and representations. It also examines the religio-social memory of successive generations of medieval Christian pilgrims and Latin Crusaders in the Terrae Sanctae and their geographical subdivision of Palestine, Syria and Arabia, and how these groups ‘found’ and then ‘found’ again (reproduced)

Wannan jumla ta nemi fassara ne, amma ba ta ƙunshi rubutu cikakke da zan fassara ba face jumlar "particular place names from the Gospel narratives." Ga fassararta: wuraren da aka ambata da sunansu musamman a cikin labaran Linjila

particular place names from the Gospel narratives.

Wannan aiki zai nuna yadda ƙwaƙwalwar al'umma (ta addini da zamantakewa) ta malaman Littafi Mai Tsarki na Yamma, irin su Edward Robinson da Victor Guérin, (kamar Crusaders da maniyyata na zamanin tsakiya), ta sake "gano" tare da sake gina (abubuwan da suka faru).

This work will show how the collective (religio-social) memory of Western scriptural scholars such as Edward Robinson and Victor Guérin (like the medieval Crusaders and pilgrims) ‘found’ again and (reconstructed)

A cikin karni na sha tara, wasu sunayen wurare na musamman a Falasdin daga labarin Littafi Mai Tsarki sun zama tushen ayyukan sauya sunayen wurare na Zionist. Sunayen wurare, wuraren yanayin ƙasa da shimfidar ƙasa kuma – don aro kalmar masanin tarihin Faransa Pierre Nora, Les Lieux de mémoire (1996, 1997, 1998) – ‘wuraren tunawa’ ne da ƙungiyoyin jama'a ke gina su da gangan tare da kula da su don tunawa da al'adu da tunanin jama'a da na mutum-mutum da kuma asalin mutane da al'umma. Bisa ka'idar tunawar jama'a ta Halbwachs, Nora da sauran masana, wannan littafi kuma yana zana wasu hanyoyi.

in the 19th century particular place names in Palestine from the biblical narrative – place names which formed the basis of Zionist replacement toponymic projects. Place names, geographical sites and landscape are also – to borrow French historian Pierre Nora’s term, Les Lieux de mémoire (1996, 1997, 1998) – ‘sites of memory’ around which social groups consciously construct and cultivate social and cultural memory and individual and collective identities. Underpinned by the social memory theory of Halbwachs, Nora and others, this book also draws on other approaches:

bincike kan takardun tarihi na tarihi na Isra'ila; tarihin baka da labarun ƙwaƙwalwa na Falasdinawa; da yin taswira da samar da taswira a matsayin al'ada a Falasdinu‒Isra'ila.

the exploration of Israeli archival historical documents; Palestinian oral history and memory accounts; map-making and the cultural production of maps in Palestine‒Israel.

A zamanin zamani, musamman a lokacin Mandate na Birtaniya a Falasdinu (1918‒1948), kalmar ‘Bafalasdine’ an yi amfani da ita wajen nufin dukkan mutanen da ke zaune a Falasdinu, ba tare da la’akari da addininsu ko kabilarsu ba, har da Yahudawan mazauna Turai waɗanda hukumomin Mandate na Birtaniya suka ba su ɗan ƙasa. A baya, a rabin na biyu na karni na 19, Birtaniya ta kafa Asusun Binciken Falasdinu (PEF) a matsayin aikin mulkin mallaka. An kafa shi a Landan a shekarar 1865 a ƙarƙashin kariyar Sarauniya Victoria, kuma ya ƙirƙiri kalmomin ‘Falasdinu ta Yamma’ da ‘Falasdinu ta Gabas’ (Binciken Falasdinu ta Yamma da Binciken Falasdinu ta Gabas), sannan ya shirya balaguron yin taswirar ƙasa a Falasdinu a shekarun 1870. Yawan littattafan da PEF ta buga ya haɗa da The Fauna and Flora of Palestine (Tristram 1884). Babu wani wuri da PEF ta ambaci maganar ‘Ƙasar Isra’ila’ – wannan kalma daga baya masu kafa Sihiyoniyanci na Yahudawa ne suka ƙirƙira ta.

In the modern period, and especially during the British Mandate of Palestine (1918‒1948), the term ‘Palestinian’ was used to refer to all people residing in Palestine, regardless of religion or ethnicity, including those European Jewish settlers granted citizenship by the British Mandatory authorities. Earlier, in the second half of the 19th century, the British had set up the Palestine Exploration Fund (PEF) as an imperial project. It was founded in London in 1865 under the patronage of Queen Victoria and coined the terms ‘Western Palestine’ and ‘Eastern Palestine’ (the Survey of Western Palestine and Survey of Eastern Palestine) and mounted geographical map-making expeditions in Palestine in the 1870s. The large number of publications by the PEF included The Fauna and Flora of Palestine (Tristram 1884). There was no mention of the expression ‘Land of Israel’ by the PEF – this was later coined by the founding fathers of Jewish Zionism.

Duk da haka, ɗaya daga cikin manyan manufofin siyasa-addini da dabarun PEF ya bayyana a fili daga littafinta da kanta: Names and Places in the Old and New Testament and Apocrypha: with their Modern Identifications (Palestine Exploration Fund 1889). PEF ta jera sunayen wurare sama da 1150 da suka shafi Tsohon Alkawari da 162 da suka shafi Sabon Alkawari. Jim kaɗan bayan mamayar sojojin Birtaniya a Falasdinu a shekarar 1918, hukumomin Mandate na Birtaniya sun fara tattara bayanai game da sunayen wurare daga mazauna Falasdinu na gida. Bayan PEF, hukumomin Mandate sun ɗauka cewa Larabawan Falasdinu (Musulmai, Kiristoci da Yahudawa Larabawa) sun kuma adana ilimin tsoffin sunayen wurare wanda zai iya taimakawa wajen gano wuraren binciken kayan tarihi da na Littafi Mai Tsarki.

However, one of the key religio-political-strategic objectives of the PEF was clear from its own publication: Names and Places in the Old and New Testament and Apocrypha: with their Modern Identifications (Palestine Exploration Fund 1889). The PEF listed more than 1150 place names related to the Old Testament and 162 related to the New Testament. Shortly after the British military occupation of Palestine in 1918, the British Mandatory authorities set out to gather toponymic information from the local Palestinian inhabitants. Following the PEF, the Mandatory authorities assumed that the Palestinian Arabs (Muslim, Christian and Arab Jews) had also preserved knowledge of the ancient place names which could help identify archaeological and biblical sites.

Në Palestine, kishin'ar da ke tsakanin mai mulkin mallaka da waɗanda aka mallakawa game da ƙasa, yawan jama'a, iko da mallaka kuma ta ta'allaka ne da wakilci, ɓata wakilci da wakilcin kai. Wakilcin kai na alama da mai mulkin mallaka na Turai da ya kafa mazauni yake yi a matsayin "komawa zuwa tarihi" yana aiki ne wajen tumɓuke ɗan asalin ƙasar da kuma "raba" shi da tarihi. Mai mulkin mallaka da ya kafa mazauni ya mamaye sararin ƙasar, ya kuma mallaki gādon Falasɗinawa na asali, a lokaci guda kuma ya raba kansa da Bafalasɗine wanda aka mallaka aka kuma hana shi gādo. Samar da ilimin tarihi da iko daga Bayahuden Ashkenazi mai Sihiyoniyanci da ya kafa mazauni, wanda ke nuni ga kansa kamar macijin da ke cin wutsiyarsa, ya haifar da tarin tatsuniyoyi na kafuwa, da dabarun mayar da kai ɗan asali da kuma mayar da kansa tsoho, ciki har da tatsuniyoyin "gudun hijira da komawa" da "komawa zuwa tarihi". Amma "komawa da yawa" na Sihiyoniyanci, kamar yadda masanin Isra'ila Gabriel Piterberg ya bayyana a cikin The Returns of Zionism (2008), ba wai kawai sun bayyana a cikin "komawa zuwa tarihi" mai ɗaukar hankali da baƙon Bature ya yi don ƙwace ƙasar ba, har ma an gina su ne a kan goge tarihi, rashin wanzuwar ɗan asalin Falasɗinu, da tumɓuke Falasɗinawa a zahiri da kuma raba su "da tarihi".

In Palestine, the struggle between the coloniser and colonised over land, demography, power and ownership also centred on representation, misrepresentation and self-representation. The metaphoric self-representation of the European settler-coloniser as a ‘return to history’ works to uproot and ‘detach’ the native from history. The settler-coloniser invaded the space and appropriated the heritage of the local Palestinians and simultaneously detached itself from the colonised and disinherited Palestinian. The production of historical knowledge and power by the Ashkenazi Zionist settler-coloniser – a self-referencing ouroboros – resulted in the creation of a range of foundational myths, self-indigenising and self-antiquating strategies, including the myths of ‘exile and return’ and ‘return to history’. But the ‘many returns’ of Zionism, as Israeli scholar Gabriel Piterberg put it in The Returns of Zionism (2008), did not just manifest themselves in the obsessive ‘return to history’ by the European settler coming to reclaim the land, they were also constructed around erasure, the non-existence of the indigenous people of Palestine and the actual, physical uprooting of the Palestinians and their detachment ‘from history’.

Tun daga lokacin da PEF ya fara taswira da bincike, kuma musamman tun bayan kafa Isra'ila mai kawar da al'umma a 1948, samar da ilimin tarihi da gwagwarmayar al'adu kan sunayen (da sake sunayen) wuraren Falasdinu, garuruwa da ƙauyuka, sun zama manyan makamai ga dabarun kishin-ƙasar Zionist na mulkin mallaka, da dabarun maida ƙasar ta Littafi Mai Tsarki, da mayar da ita Ibraniyanci da kuma Yahudantar da ita, waɗanda ke neman raba Falasɗinawa da tarihin ƙasar. Kanta sunan wuri (toponymy) reshe ne na ilimin sunaye (onomastics ko onomatology), wato nazarin asali, tarihi da amfanin sunaye iri-iri. Anthroponomastics (ko anthroponymy) kuma nazarin sunayen mutane ne. Babi na goma zai binciko dabarun Zionist na sunayen wuri, sunayen mutane, da sanya wa kansu suna. Ayyukan kawar da al'umma na mulkin mallakar Zionist a Falasdinu ba su tsaya kan kwace ƙasa da korar ƴan asalin Falasdinu ba kawai. Waɗannan ayyuka sun ƙunshi kuma kai-ƙasar-kai-ɗan-asali, kai-ƙasar-kai-tsofi, maida ƙasar ta Littafi Mai Tsarki da Ibraniyanci, baya ga Yahudantar da ƙasar.

Since the mapping and explorations of the PEF and especially since the establishment of an ethnically cleansing Israeli state in 1948, the production of historical knowledge and cultural struggle over the naming (and renaming) of Palestine sites/cities/towns and villages have become major weapons of Zionist settler-colonial nationalism, biblicisation, Hebrewisation and Judaisation strategies that sought to detach the Palestinians from the history of the country. Toponymy itself is a branch of onomastics or onomatology, the study of the origin, history and uses of names of all kinds. Anthroponomastics (or anthroponymy) is the study of personal names. Chapter ten will explore Zionist toponymic, anthroponymic and self-naming strategies. The eliminationist projects of Zionist settler-colonisation in Palestine did not just centre on land-grabbing and the ethnic cleansing of the indigenous people of Palestine. These projects also consisted of self-indigenisation, self-antiquation, biblicisation and Hebrewisation in addition to the Judaisation of the land.