Las guerras del hummus: comida local, récord Guinness y gastropolítica palestino-israelí
Jews and Palestinians have long been involved in a violent conflict over territory, resources and national identity, yet share a culinary passion: Hummus. This dip of mashed chickpeas seasoned with tahini and lemon juice is ubiquitous in Middle Eastern public and private culinary spheres and is extr...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Online |
| Language: | Spanish |
| Editor: |
El Colegio de México
2015
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://estudiosdeasiayafrica.colmex.mx/index.php/eaa/article/view/2040 |
| Journal: |
Estudios de Asia y África |
| authentication_code | dc |
|---|---|
| _version_ | 1844256219454242816 |
| author | Avieli, Nir |
| author_facet | Avieli, Nir |
| author_sort | Avieli, Nir |
| category_str_mv |
"Bolivia", "hyperinflation", "economic crisis", "Bolivia", "hiperinflación", "crisis económica"
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| collection | OJS |
| description | Jews and Palestinians have long been involved in a violent conflict over territory, resources and national identity, yet share a culinary passion: Hummus. This dip of mashed chickpeas seasoned with tahini and lemon juice is ubiquitous in Middle Eastern public and private culinary spheres and is extremely popular among Arabs and Jews alike. In 2008 hummus became the subject of a heated debate between Israel and Lebanon that revolved around cultural copyright and questions of national heritage, as well as implicit economic considerations. In this article I discuss the so called “Hummus Wars”; a series of culinary events performed in Lebanon and Israel in an attempt to solidify hummus as an element of each nation’s culinary heritage by setting up a world Guinness record for the largest Hummus dish. The ethnography of one of these events, hosted at the Palestinian-Israeli village of Abu Gosh, highlights the unexpected role of mediators assumed by Palestinians of Israeli citizenship. Anthropologists are paying increasing attention to “local food” and to the cultural processes that define food as local, showing time and again how the idea of “our food” is constructed through constant processes of negotiation and adaptation. The Hummus Wars, however, are different in that the debate was not about accurate preparation, authentic recipes, embeddedness in the local ecology or terroir, nor is it about quality. Rather, it deals with blunt questions of ownership and power. The Hummus Wars’ uniqueness is further intensified by the fact that this mundane and ancient dish is claimed by modern, relatively young nation states, involved in an active military conflict. While most of the scholarship highlights distinction, national pride and cultural purity, the Hummus Wars are all about appropriating the food of the other or, more precisely, appropriating the food of the enemy. Most importantly, these events are so intriguing because of the unexpected and leading role of mediators undertaken by Palestinians of Israeli citizenship in the events. While social scientists tend to look at the culinary sphere as a reflection of social life, and on national dishes as symbolic representations of the nation, the analysis of these events reveals how national identities are negotiated and mediated within the culinary sphere and how minority groups participate in these processes of gastro-identity. |
| format | Online |
| id | oai:oai.estudiosdeasiayafrica.colmex.mx:article-2040 |
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| journal | Estudios de Asia y África |
| language | spa |
| publishDate | 2015 |
| publisher | El Colegio de México |
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| Terms_governing_use_and_reproduction_note | Derechos de autor 2015 Estudios de Asia y África |
| data_source_entry/ISSN | Estudios de Asia y África; Vol. 50, No. 3 (158), September-December, 2015; 569 - 592 Estudios de Asia y África; Vol. 50, núm. 3 (158), septiembre-diciembre, 2015; 569 - 592 2448-654X 0185-0164 |
| spelling | oai:oai.estudiosdeasiayafrica.colmex.mx:article-20402025-09-01T18:19:14Z The Hummus Wars: Local Food, Guinness Records and the Palestinian-Israeli Gastropolitics Las guerras del hummus: comida local, récord Guinness y gastropolítica palestino-israelí Avieli, Nir hummus comida conflicto Israel Palestina hummus food conflict Israel Palestine Jews and Palestinians have long been involved in a violent conflict over territory, resources and national identity, yet share a culinary passion: Hummus. This dip of mashed chickpeas seasoned with tahini and lemon juice is ubiquitous in Middle Eastern public and private culinary spheres and is extremely popular among Arabs and Jews alike. In 2008 hummus became the subject of a heated debate between Israel and Lebanon that revolved around cultural copyright and questions of national heritage, as well as implicit economic considerations. In this article I discuss the so called “Hummus Wars”; a series of culinary events performed in Lebanon and Israel in an attempt to solidify hummus as an element of each nation’s culinary heritage by setting up a world Guinness record for the largest Hummus dish. The ethnography of one of these events, hosted at the Palestinian-Israeli village of Abu Gosh, highlights the unexpected role of mediators assumed by Palestinians of Israeli citizenship. Anthropologists are paying increasing attention to “local food” and to the cultural processes that define food as local, showing time and again how the idea of “our food” is constructed through constant processes of negotiation and adaptation. The Hummus Wars, however, are different in that the debate was not about accurate preparation, authentic recipes, embeddedness in the local ecology or terroir, nor is it about quality. Rather, it deals with blunt questions of ownership and power. The Hummus Wars’ uniqueness is further intensified by the fact that this mundane and ancient dish is claimed by modern, relatively young nation states, involved in an active military conflict. While most of the scholarship highlights distinction, national pride and cultural purity, the Hummus Wars are all about appropriating the food of the other or, more precisely, appropriating the food of the enemy. Most importantly, these events are so intriguing because of the unexpected and leading role of mediators undertaken by Palestinians of Israeli citizenship in the events. While social scientists tend to look at the culinary sphere as a reflection of social life, and on national dishes as symbolic representations of the nation, the analysis of these events reveals how national identities are negotiated and mediated within the culinary sphere and how minority groups participate in these processes of gastro-identity. Por mucho tiempo, judíos y palestinos han estado involucrados en violentos conflictos por territorio, recursos e identidad nacional; sin embargo, comparten una pasión culinaria: el hummus. Este puré de garbanzos machacados, sazonado con tahini y jugo de limón, se encuentra en todos lados dentro de las esferas culinarias públicas y privadas, y es muy popular entre árabes y judíos por igual. En 2008, el hummus se volvió el centro de un acalorado debate entre Israel y Líbano debido a derechos culturales de autor y cuestiones de herencia nacional, así como por las consideraciones económicas implícitas. En este artículo discuto las llamadas “guerras del hummus”, una serie de proyectos culinarios realizados en Líbano e Israel en un intento por consolidar al hummus como un elemento de la herencia culinaria de cada nación a través de la imposición de un récord mundial Guinness por el platillo de hummus más grande. La etnografía de una de estas actividades, llevada a cabo en el pueblo palestino-israelí de Abu Gosh, subraya el inesperado papel de mediadores desarrollado por palestinos con ciudadanía israelí. Los antropólogos están prestando más atención a la “comida local” y a los procesos culturales que definen la comida como local, y muestran una y otra vez cómo la idea de “nuestra comida” es construida por medio del constante proceso de negociación y adaptación. Sin embargo, las guerras del hummus son diferentes, pues el debate no es sobre la correcta preparación, las recetas auténticas, su implantación en la ecología local o el terroir, ni sobre la calidad; más bien, trata de cuestiones directas de propiedad y poder. La singularidad de las guerras del hummus se exacerba por el hecho de que este platillo, antiguo y mundano, es reivindicado por Estados-nación modernos, relativamente nuevos, envueltos en un conflicto militar activo. Mientras que la mayoría de los trabajos académicos resaltan la distinción, el orgullo nacional y la pureza cultural, las guerras del hummus tratan de la apropiación de la comida del otro o, más precisamente, de apropiarse de la comida del enemigo. Más importante aún, estas actividades son intrigantes debido al inesperado rol interpretado por palestinos con ciudadanía israelí, quienes tuvieron el papel principal en ellas. Mientras que los científicos sociales tienden a mirar la esfera culinaria como un reflejo de la vida social, y los platillos nacionales como representaciones simbólicas de la nación, el análisis de estas actividades revela cómo son negociadas y mediadas las identidades nacionales dentro de la esfera culinaria y cómo los grupos minoritarios participan en estos procesos de gastroidentidad. El Colegio de México 2015-09-01 info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion application/pdf application/xml https://estudiosdeasiayafrica.colmex.mx/index.php/eaa/article/view/2040 10.24201/eaa.v50i3.2040 Estudios de Asia y África; Vol. 50, No. 3 (158), September-December, 2015; 569 - 592 Estudios de Asia y África; Vol. 50, núm. 3 (158), septiembre-diciembre, 2015; 569 - 592 2448-654X 0185-0164 spa https://estudiosdeasiayafrica.colmex.mx/index.php/eaa/article/view/2040/2040 https://estudiosdeasiayafrica.colmex.mx/index.php/eaa/article/view/2040/2274 Derechos de autor 2015 Estudios de Asia y África |
| spellingShingle | hummus comida conflicto Israel Palestina hummus food conflict Israel Palestine Avieli, Nir Las guerras del hummus: comida local, récord Guinness y gastropolítica palestino-israelí |
| title | Las guerras del hummus: comida local, récord Guinness y gastropolítica palestino-israelí |
| title_alt | The Hummus Wars: Local Food, Guinness Records and the Palestinian-Israeli Gastropolitics |
| title_full | Las guerras del hummus: comida local, récord Guinness y gastropolítica palestino-israelí |
| title_fullStr | Las guerras del hummus: comida local, récord Guinness y gastropolítica palestino-israelí |
| title_full_unstemmed | Las guerras del hummus: comida local, récord Guinness y gastropolítica palestino-israelí |
| title_short | Las guerras del hummus: comida local, récord Guinness y gastropolítica palestino-israelí |
| title_sort | las guerras del hummus comida local record guinness y gastropolitica palestino israeli |
| topic | hummus comida conflicto Israel Palestina hummus food conflict Israel Palestine |
| topic_facet | hummus comida conflicto Israel Palestina hummus food conflict Israel Palestine |
| url | https://estudiosdeasiayafrica.colmex.mx/index.php/eaa/article/view/2040 |
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