Palestinian

: The term "Palestinian" has other usages, for which see definitions of Palestinian.

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The Palestinians are a mainly Arabic-speaking people with family origins in Palestine. The Palestinian population is largely Sunni Muslim, with Christian, Druze, and other minorities. The 1968 Palestinian National Covenant defines Palestinians as Arabs who had inhabited Palestine before 1947, Jews who had inhabited Palestine before the beginning of the modern Zionist immigrations, and their descendants through the male line. The current draft of the Palestinian constitution, which will take effect once an independent state is established and the Palestinian Authority is dismantled, states that: "Palestinian citizenship shall be organized by law without prejudicing the right of anyone who acquired it before 15 May 1948 in accordance with the law or the right of the Palestinian who was resident in Palestine before that date. This right is transmitted from fathers and mothers to their children. The right endures unless it is given up voluntarily." http://www.kokhavivpublications.com/2003/israel/02/0302170000.html

Related Topics:
Arabic - Palestine - Sunni - Muslim - Christian - Druze - Palestinian National Covenant - Arab - Jew - Zionist - Palestinian Authority

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Under the British mandate period from 1918 to 1948, the term "Palestinian"

Related Topics:
British mandate - 1918 - 1948

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usually referred to anyone living in Palestine: Arab, Jew or other. Since the creation of Israel and the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, this usage of the term has practically ceased. While some exclude Israeli Arabs from today's definition of "Palestinians", others (including most Palestinians) do consider them to be Palestinians. Thus the term over the centuries has shifted from ethnic to regional and again to an ethnic description.

Related Topics:
Israel - 1948 Arab-Israeli war - Israeli Arab

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While most Palestinians define themselves as Arabs, some Palestinian intellectuals prefer to emphasize their continuity with the previous population of the area, and see themselves as Canaanite rather than Arab (cf. Abu-Sahlieh). The great majority of Palestinians are the descendants of Arabic speakers resident in Palestine during the period before the creation of Israel, although the term can include certain non-Arab groups. They include most of the Arab minority in Israel. Another distinguishing characteristic of the Palestinians is their dialect; rural Palestinians, almost uniquely among Arabic speakers, pronounce the letter qaaf as k (Arabic kaaf), although Bedouin and most urban families do not.

Related Topics:
Canaanite - Israel - Dialect - Bedouin

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