'Ajamis in Lebanon: The Non-Arab Arabs?

Author(s): Roschanack Shaery-Eisenlohr

Source: Middle East Report, No. 237 (Winter, 2005), pp. 40-41
Published by: Middle East Research and Information Project
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/30042474
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'Ajamis in Lebanon
The Non-Arab Arabs?
Roschanack Shaery-Eisenlohr
tisMuharram, themonth ofthemartyrdom ofImam Hussein, and evaluated as incorrect, andbyextension labeling themas for-
thefemale-run husseiniyya in West Beirut is packed with women eigners, assimilating them to Persians as a historical"other"
I dressed inblack. Asthesounds ofLebanese andIraqi ArabicofArabs. Nevertheless, 'Ajami is alsotheself-description ofa
dialects, aswellasPersian, fillthehallways ofthisShi'i community Persian-speaking Shi'imerchant community thatmigrated from
center, thefemale religious performer (qari'a)signals that theritualSafavid Persia toBaghdad, which washeldbytheSafavids from
program will
(majlis) begin shortly. She is an Iraqi, and while she 1508-1533 and 1622-1638. The Persian and
'ulama religious
reads from herthick notebook, awoman standing next toherreads the students whomoved from Qajar IrantoKarbala' andNajaf inthe
same textinPersian forthose intheaudience who donotunderstand eighteenth century arealsoconsidered partofthis'Ajami com-
Arabic. Some ofthese women areIranians whohave married intoIraqimunity. Infact,attheturn ofthetwentieth century, approximately
Shi'i families ofPersian descent whosettled inLebanon afterbeing 75percent oftheinhabitants ofKarbala' wereofPersian and
origin
expelled from Iraq bythedeposed Baathist regime. spokePersian. After thecreation ofmodern Iraq in1921,many
Under thepretext ofpurging Iraq ofdisloyal citizens, there- continued toliveinBaghdad, Karbala' andNajaf, andevenspread
gimeexpelled large numbers ofIraqi Shi'a during three periodstoother regions inIraq. In1924,theIraqi Nationality Law was
since1975. Atthetimeofborder disputes with Iran in 1975, atthe introduced, these
obliging 'Ajamis accepttoeither Iraqi nationality
beginning oftheIran-Iraq warin1980andagain in1990-1991orleave thecountry.
during theIraqi invasion ofKuwait andthesubsequent Shi'iupris- Hostility towards IraqisofPersian descent increased, sothat
inginsouthern Iraq, Saddam Hussein's government forced Shi'a bytheendoftheIraqi monarchy in1957,only12percent ofthe
outofIraq, mainly toIran, Syria, Jordan andtheGulf states. The population ofKarbala' wereknown tobeofPersian origin.The
displaced of1975and1980included thoseIraqi Shi'a ofPersianidentity andrights ofthesePersian migrants andtheirdescen-
origin commonly referredtoas'Ajamis. Many ofthem wound upin dantsremained a boneofcontention between Iran andIraq for
Lebanon, where they have constructed a distinct Shi'i
Iraqi identity most ofthe twentieth century.However, withthe exception ofone
thatsetsthem apart from both theLebanese Shi'a whocompriseepisode in1975,itwasnotuntil thebeginning oftheIraq-Iran
roughly 40percent ofthepopulation andtheIranians whoserve War in1980thatlarge numbers of'Ajamis wereexpelled inan
intheIslamic Republic's outreach institutions. organized manner fromIraq. They wereforced todepart within
TheBaathist regime labeled the'Ajamis asspiesforIran, exclud-days, without their belongings.
ingthem bydefinition from mainstream, Sunni Arab-dominated Some'Ajamis whocame toLebanon asrefugees inthe1980s
Iraqi nationalism. Theexiled IraqiShi'a, however, have constructed and1990sdidsobecause oftheir tiesto'Ajami traders whohad
alternative visions ofIraqi nationalism thatdownplay differences inLebanon
settled inthe1950sand1960s. Others, justlikeother
between Sunnis andShi'is, aswellasthosebetween Iraqi Shi'a IraqiShi'a, came toLebanon toseekasylum through theUN,and
claiming local Arab descent and those of Persian background. saw Lebanon as a transit
point to a Western country. Asof2001,
They takepride inthefactthattheyareShi'is from Iraq, bearerstheUNHighCommissioner forRefugees reported 1,828Iraqi
oftheIraqi Shi'irituals andtraditions thattheyconsider most refugees inLebanon, mostofthem Shi'a.These numbers reflect
authentic, pertaining intheir viewtothelandofthemostsacred only those whoapplied forUNrefugee statusandnotthose staying
Shi'iholysites,where thekeyevents inearly Islamic history lead- illegallyinthecountry. Afterthe2003USinvasion ofIraq,accord-
ingtotheemergence ofShi'ism unfolded. ingtotheBeirut daily thenumber
al-Safir, ofIraqis inLebanon
InArabic, theterm'ajam refers topeople whodonotspeak rosetoabout 40,000. TheLebanese statehasoften arrestedand
Arabic orwhosefirstlanguage is notArabic, inparticular Per- detained theserefugees under a lawpreventing foreignersfrom
sianspeakers. Atthesametime, 'Ajami isadesignation usedto illegally entering Lebanese InDecember
territory. 2001,Lebanese
refer topeople ofPersian descent. Among Arabs, theword can authorities evendeported about 300UNHCR-registered Iraqi
bederogatory, referring tothosewhospeak Arabic ina mannerrefugees to Syria, whoseauthorities inturndeported themto
Iraq,thereby violating Article31oftheUNRefugee Convention,
Roschanack Shaery-Eisenlohr is a lecturerin the Department of Asian and Near
EasternLanguagesand Literaturesat WashingtonUniversityin St. Louis.Sheconducted
which holds that statesshould not penalizeasylum seekersfor
fieldwork in Beirut in 2000 and 2002-2003. illegal
entry.

40 EASTREPORT
MIDDLE 237 WINTER
2005
 Inorder toprotect these'Ajamis andother IraqiShi'iasylum modest monetary andin-kind support fromSistani's officein
seekers andrefugees, a teamofLebanese human rights activ-Beirut.
Sistani doesnotmaintain schools andhospitals inBeirut,
istscallingthemselves theAdHocCommittee fortheSupportandhisfollowers canmake useneither ofHizballah's facilities
ofNon-Palestinian Refugees andAsylum Seekers wasfoundednorofFadlallah's. One'Ajami woman whosehusband urgently
inSeptember 2000.They seekanendtothearbitrary arrest,de- needed anoperation recallshowshewenttoFadlallah's office
tentionanddeportation oftheserefugees, whooften hideinthe onlytoberebuffed empty-handed, eventhough shesawhisat-
southern suburbs ofBeirut andinthePalestinian refugee camps.tache"holding bundles of$100billsinhishands ona Friday
Samira Trad,a London-trained Lebanese lawyer and a member of afternoon." Her husband eventuallydied.
thecommittee, hasrepeatedly been arrested byLebanese security Faced withthesedifficulties,'Ajamis andother IraqisinLeba-
forsupporting theseIraqis andforvoicing herconcerns about nonhave built theirownsocial networks, ofwhich theWest Beirut
human rights violationsinLebanon. husseiniyya isonelocus. Commemorations ofthebirthdays ofthe
Among theIraqiShi'isand'Ajamis Icame toknow, thereexisted Prophet Muhammad andmembers ofhisfamily takeplace here,
asenseofestrangement from bothIranian officialinstitutionsin asdocelebrations ofweddings. Along withtheinstitutionalized
Lebanon andfrom Lebanese Shi'a,fordifferent reasons. While meetings atthehusseiniyya, which theysharewithLebanese
someoftheolder'Ajami familieshave maintained commercial ties andIranians, 'Ajami women meet on a regularbasisinthehome
toIran,aswellaslinks totheIranian government and the Iranian ofone of their number for Qur'anreadings commemorative
and
religiouseliteinthefieldofIslamic publishing, most'Ajamis are performances.
disappointed inhowlittleIranianinstitutionsinLebanon, withtheir Another important institution
for'Ajamis isatinyrestaurant in
vastfinancialresources,care about theirfate.Most ofthe'Ajamis I Biral-'Abid,aheavilyLebanese Shi'i
neighborhood inthesouthern
metthink ofIraq astheirhomeland, andnone evermentioned Iran suburbs ofBeirut. Theowner isan'Ajami woman whohadlived
asaneventual placeofreturn, despite theirPersian origins. Itis inKarbala'for18years beforebeing expelled in1981.While she
worth noting thatlower andmid-ranking 'Ajami mullahs officiatecaters forthehusseiniyya, theIranian Cultural Center inBeirut
as preachers during Muharram andother special occasions in andother Shi'i-run sheconsiders
institutions, hermain work in
Iranian-influencedmosques andhusseiniyyas in Lebanon. Speak-therestaurant andthemission ofherlifetobehelping theIraqi
ingArabic inanIraqi which
dialect, many Lebanese Shi'aconsiderShi'ipoor. Inaway, herestablishment functions asaone-person
tobemostauthentic andappropriate fortheseoccasions, these NGO, a multi-purpose social
andritual center.
'Ajamimullahs alsostand forIranian interestsintheArab world Itis a place where oldclothes arecollected tobedistributed
formany Lebanese Shi'a. among thedisadvantaged, whose grievances areregularly given
Fortheirpart, 'Ajamisandother IraqiShi'isfeelacertain moral a hearing, andmoney forrelatives
stillinIraq iscollected. She
over
superiority Lebanese One
Shi'a. 'Ajami woman recalled her alsoaccepts monetary which
contributions, she then doles out
shock,upon arrivinginLebanon inthe at
1960s, being confronted according to herown assessment of recipients'needs. She is
withso many "ignorant"Shi'a.ALebanese Shi'iwoman, know-known formatchmaking between Iraqi Shi'imenandLebanese
ingthatthis'Ajami woman hadcomefrom Karbala',asked herto Shi'iwomen, anundesirable arrangement formany Lebanese
teachherabitabout "Muhammad andFatima." The'Ajami womanfamilies, asaccording toLebanese lawneither thehusband nor
wastaken aback atthedisrespect thisLebanese woman showedthechildren ofsuchmarriages willbeeligibleforLebanese citizen-
fortheProphet andhisfamily, notusinghonorifics, butspeak-ship.Therestaurant isa regular meeting pointformany 'Ajamis
ing"asiftheProphet Muhammad andFatima al-Zahra'were her andother IraqiShi'a.
next-doorneighbors!" 'Ajamis' Shi'iidentity, Saddam's
precisely justificationfortheir
Believingthattheirritualsand beliefsare more authentic than andliteral
figurative expulsion from "Arab" Iraq,isforthem the
thoseofLebanese, because, astheyputit,Iraqis "have drunk proof oftheirIraqiness. forthe'Ajamis,
Iraq, is another wayto
thewater ofKarbala'," Iraqi Shi'isaredoubly disappointed by refertothechief holysitesofShi'ism. Intheir eyes,aswell,being
what theyviewasthelackofrespect andattention fromLeba-Iraqi gives them aprivilegedpositionintheShi'iworld. Many Iraqi
nesepartiesandinstitutions. Defacto, thesocialandcharitableShi'a Imetcompared pre-invasion Iraqi societypositively tothe
organizations ofHizballah ortheparty's former spiritual head multi-confessional society ofLebanon, pointing toSunni-Shi'i
Sayyid Muhammad Hussein Fadlallah are openonly to those intermarriageas an ofhow sectarian
example everyday differences
whofollow theparty lineorarethefollowers (muqallids) of Fad- in Iraqare much less evident.Theyblamed Saddam Hussein's
Intheeyesofmany
lallah. 'Ajamis andother Iraqi Shi'a,while regime forsowing sectarian andethnic dissension. Thewaysin
theirLebanese co-religionistsspeak ofpan-Shi'i solidarity,in which'Ajamis have created anIraqiidentityoppose thedominant
there
reality is noconcern fortheplight ofIraqi Shi'isresidenttrend inSaddam's Iraq todefine thecountry asexclusively Arab.
in Lebanon. TheIraqis mainly consider Grand Ayatollah Ali Theexample of'Ajami shows,
Iraqis infact,howethnic categories
Sistanitheirmarja, thelearned clericfrom whom theyaccept suchasArab orPersian arecategories ofpolitical practiceand
guidance onspiritual andother matters, buttheyreceive only arenotnecessarily useful asanalyticaltools. a

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