Tourism and the Emergence of Nation-States in the Arab Eastern Mediterranean, 1920s-1930s

Jasmin Daam worked as a teaching and research assistant at the University of Kassel (Germany) at the chair for Global History from 2015 to 2020. In addition, she has been a member of the research network ‘The Modern Mediterranean: Dynamics of a World Region, 1800-2000’ since 2016.

This book is an amazingly rich and meticulously researched study of the history of tourism development across the Eastern Mediterranean during the interwar period. It addresses a critical and understudied era in the history of tourism in the Middle East, while also offering a new and original angle to explore the politics of the nation and state formation in the colonial/Mandate era. The scope of the project is very impressive as it covers Egypt, Palestine, Syria, and Lebanon using diverse original archives and other materials across several languages. The careful attention to detail and close reading of parliamentary debates, travelogues, letters, photos and other materials is sustained throughout the chapters. – Waleed Hazbun, University of Alabama

• Table of Contents List of Illustrations Note on Transliteration Abbreviations Acknowledgements 1. Introduction References 2. Space of sovereignty: Abolishing the colonial order of tourism in Egypt? Turning away: Photographing authenticity in times of transformation Negotiating tourism: Ambitions and limits of Egyptian tourism development Recreating Egyptian tourist spaces Conclusion References 3. New tourists, new attractions, ‘New Palestine’: Implementing a new tourist space in Mandate Palestine Relegating the Holy Land to the past: New mediators for the present The ‘conquest of tourism’: Reaching out to tourists Creating ‘New Palestine’: Tourism development as a territorial claim Conclusion References 4. Contested rule and fragmented space in French Mandate Syria The two sides of the same postcard Urban pride and the imperial politics of tourism No common ground: The divided landscapes of tourism in Syria Conclusion References 5. Lebanon: The tourist nation-state Brochures: Outlining a nation High Seasons, low seasons: The Franco-Lebanese relationship in terms of tourism Topography of a tourist nation-state Conclusion References Conclusion: Tourist transformations A middle-class project Tourism as a transformative resource The tourist’s age References Index of persons, associations and enterprises Index of places Notes on persons, associations and enterprises