Paper short abstract:

The folktale is not just a narrative of entertainment; it can also act as a hybrid site for cultural resistance, cultural and collective memory reaffirmation, and continuity in the Palestinian discourse of orality.

Paper long abstract:

Following the trauma of the Nakba (Catastrophe) of 1948, Palestinians still suffer from constant violations of their rights, land and culture. To fight forgetfulness and denial, some Palestinian folklorists have sought to collect, document, analyse and translate pre-1948 Palestinian folktales. One major example is Speak, Bird, Speak Again (1989), a selection edited by Ibrahim Muhawi and Sharif Kanaana, and its Arabic version Qul Ya Tayerقول يا طير (2001). The paper examines the folktales in the English and Arabic compilations along with the compilers' paratextual elements (introduction, footnotes, afterwords, etc.) in order to explore the importance of orality and folk narratives in framing and preserving Palestinian memory and identity. The folktales, told mainly by women, are divided by the compilers into five main groups, following the individual's life cycle from childhood to old age: Individuals, Family, Society, Environment and Universe. Synthesising various concepts within memory studies, the paper will discuss three main aspects: the compilers, storytellers, and folktales. By examining the scholarly contribution of the compilers and the agency of the storyteller, the paper argues, reinforce the narrative of cultural resistance hence reaffirming cultural memory and identity.