I'm not from Appalachia, but I follow you with interest (I'm Palestinian-American from the most obvious Midwestern city). I wish you or someone would write about the incessant reduction of Appalachian identity to Scots-Irish ethnicity, not only by J.D. Vance.
I’m ¼ Lebanese and came up in almost the exact same situation. Can 100% sympathize on your feelings about your heritage. But meeting other Arabs fully assuages any doubt I had about my place in the culture. I’ve never met a more welcoming people, other than maybe Appalachians. There are so many parallels that can be drawn between Appalachia and the Middle East.
I can very much relate to your feelings about identity! I am also two generations removed from my Middle Eastern roots. Often, rather than say I am Lebanese on my dad's side, I usually say I am Lebanese-Appalachian, because my own cultural resonance is more similar to that of an Italian American's...meaning my cultural inheritance is rooted in my great-grandparents country of origin but was birthed entirely in West Virginia, so it transmuted into something else (like having full Lebanese relatives named Donna Jean?) I grew up in a Lebanese community of first and second generation kids, their parents had fled the war, so I was obviously more disconnected from Lebanon than they were. But my grandfather was obsessed with imparting Lebanese culture upon us, we ate Lebanese food at every gathering, listened to Fairouz, and many of my cousins are 100% Lebanese by blood, meaning that their parents married into other Lebanese West Virginian families--I always thought that made it so much simpler than what I was given. But after lots of struggle about how to write about this identity in terms of the greater sociopolitical landscape, or even if I could claim this identity at all, I came to realize that it is a very important part of West Virginia, Middle Eastern, and immigrant history. It's not so much about identity politics or even oppression as much as it is about tying the Middle East to Appalachia. Right now, when others talk about flattening Iran/Gaza/Syria/Lebanon "into a parking lot," it's because these places and people are so dehumanized they can't imagine us in their own image. But we are actually part of their collective history! My family is as much Appalachian as it is Lebanese. And people elsewhere are always shocked when I say there is a substantial Middle Eastern presence in West Virginia. I think it's an interesting and relevant story that needs to be told, for reasons beyond ourselves. I'm so happy you are exploring this part of your history!
This is very well said! The more I dig, the more I realize how much of a presence middle eastern people have in Appalachia, especially Lebanese people in West Virginia in fact.
My family are Palestinian Maronites who settled in Michigan. A friend is an Eastern Orthodox Palestinian whose famiy settled in...West Virginia! And started a church. It can be done.
Love that! Do you know what part of West Virginia they settled in? I grew up very Catholic and our priest in Charleston was Syrian, born in Parkersburg I believe…that always shocks people on the outside, when I tell them I was raised with a Catholic Syrian priest in West Virginia… it was so normal to me growing up I didn’t think anything of it. We exist!
I love that you call your grandad pawpa. My sweet uncle, God rest his soul, from West Virginia was pawpa to all his grandkids including the 1/2 Iranian grandkids. I love visiting West Virginia, it's beautiful and the people are warm and welcoming.
BTW I have zero middle eastern blood and think Bibi is reigning terror and God help us, he's doing it with a nod from us. Shameful.
Woah. I’m also a Southerner who is 3/8 Syrian, with my only significant cultural ties being that I’ve had homemade kibbeh and saw my grandma eat kibbeh nayeh (which is raw).
Like you, I’ve never faced discrimination. The closest was that after 9/11, my parents told my sister and me to lie if someone asked about our mom’s ethnicity (she is 3/4 Syrian and brown-skinned). But it never came up.
Interestingly, my combination of light skin and vaguely Arab facial features lead to a lot of folks thinking I’m of Jewish heritage.
I also feel in a strange position of feeling like I should speak out for Arabs and Arab Americans, but my ties feel so tenuous.
Your Papaw looks like many of my neighbors from my childhood in Clarksburg, WV! Our town had large Lebanese, Syrian and also Italian populations...many of whom immigrated to work in the coal mines and glass factories that provided a good life for North Central WV. I have fond memories of eating Stuffed Grape Leaves and Kibbeh (fried, of course😁) I am heartsick at what our country has become.
I encourage you to keep digging into this. There’s someone in my family that’s 25% Lebanese and also saw their family totally assimilate inside of two generations. They’re now reclaiming aspects of Arabic culture for themselves and finding it really rewarding.
I'm not from Appalachia, but I follow you with interest (I'm Palestinian-American from the most obvious Midwestern city). I wish you or someone would write about the incessant reduction of Appalachian identity to Scots-Irish ethnicity, not only by J.D. Vance.
That's an interesting point, and worth diving into more!
I’m ¼ Lebanese and came up in almost the exact same situation. Can 100% sympathize on your feelings about your heritage. But meeting other Arabs fully assuages any doubt I had about my place in the culture. I’ve never met a more welcoming people, other than maybe Appalachians. There are so many parallels that can be drawn between Appalachia and the Middle East.
This is genuinely really helpful to hear.
I can very much relate to your feelings about identity! I am also two generations removed from my Middle Eastern roots. Often, rather than say I am Lebanese on my dad's side, I usually say I am Lebanese-Appalachian, because my own cultural resonance is more similar to that of an Italian American's...meaning my cultural inheritance is rooted in my great-grandparents country of origin but was birthed entirely in West Virginia, so it transmuted into something else (like having full Lebanese relatives named Donna Jean?) I grew up in a Lebanese community of first and second generation kids, their parents had fled the war, so I was obviously more disconnected from Lebanon than they were. But my grandfather was obsessed with imparting Lebanese culture upon us, we ate Lebanese food at every gathering, listened to Fairouz, and many of my cousins are 100% Lebanese by blood, meaning that their parents married into other Lebanese West Virginian families--I always thought that made it so much simpler than what I was given. But after lots of struggle about how to write about this identity in terms of the greater sociopolitical landscape, or even if I could claim this identity at all, I came to realize that it is a very important part of West Virginia, Middle Eastern, and immigrant history. It's not so much about identity politics or even oppression as much as it is about tying the Middle East to Appalachia. Right now, when others talk about flattening Iran/Gaza/Syria/Lebanon "into a parking lot," it's because these places and people are so dehumanized they can't imagine us in their own image. But we are actually part of their collective history! My family is as much Appalachian as it is Lebanese. And people elsewhere are always shocked when I say there is a substantial Middle Eastern presence in West Virginia. I think it's an interesting and relevant story that needs to be told, for reasons beyond ourselves. I'm so happy you are exploring this part of your history!
This is very well said! The more I dig, the more I realize how much of a presence middle eastern people have in Appalachia, especially Lebanese people in West Virginia in fact.
My family are Palestinian Maronites who settled in Michigan. A friend is an Eastern Orthodox Palestinian whose famiy settled in...West Virginia! And started a church. It can be done.
Love that! Do you know what part of West Virginia they settled in? I grew up very Catholic and our priest in Charleston was Syrian, born in Parkersburg I believe…that always shocks people on the outside, when I tell them I was raised with a Catholic Syrian priest in West Virginia… it was so normal to me growing up I didn’t think anything of it. We exist!
I will ask.
I love that you call your grandad pawpa. My sweet uncle, God rest his soul, from West Virginia was pawpa to all his grandkids including the 1/2 Iranian grandkids. I love visiting West Virginia, it's beautiful and the people are warm and welcoming.
BTW I have zero middle eastern blood and think Bibi is reigning terror and God help us, he's doing it with a nod from us. Shameful.
Woah. I’m also a Southerner who is 3/8 Syrian, with my only significant cultural ties being that I’ve had homemade kibbeh and saw my grandma eat kibbeh nayeh (which is raw).
Like you, I’ve never faced discrimination. The closest was that after 9/11, my parents told my sister and me to lie if someone asked about our mom’s ethnicity (she is 3/4 Syrian and brown-skinned). But it never came up.
Interestingly, my combination of light skin and vaguely Arab facial features lead to a lot of folks thinking I’m of Jewish heritage.
I also feel in a strange position of feeling like I should speak out for Arabs and Arab Americans, but my ties feel so tenuous.
Your Papaw looks like many of my neighbors from my childhood in Clarksburg, WV! Our town had large Lebanese, Syrian and also Italian populations...many of whom immigrated to work in the coal mines and glass factories that provided a good life for North Central WV. I have fond memories of eating Stuffed Grape Leaves and Kibbeh (fried, of course😁) I am heartsick at what our country has become.
I encourage you to keep digging into this. There’s someone in my family that’s 25% Lebanese and also saw their family totally assimilate inside of two generations. They’re now reclaiming aspects of Arabic culture for themselves and finding it really rewarding.
I'll definitely do this