Arab Literary Travels

Jordan: Identity as a Host

     All of these conflicts along with the incredible effects that they have had on the country of Jordan itself ask us to consider what it means to be a host and how that affects how a nation perceives itself. Nadeen’s class presentation and discussion questions after the presentations really made me start thinking about identities of both the host and the refugee and how intertwined they can become both personally and legally. Returning to Joseph Massad’s arguments, in his eyes, Jordanian identity especially has become difficult to define because the country sees a difference in “citizenship versus nationality and heritage,” creating categories that don’t always overlap because of the rules of citizenship (Massad). Under the current laws surrounding citizenship in Jordan, child born in Jordan who has never known another culture or identity could not be considered Jordanian by citizenship if their father holds a citizenship from another country, regardless of their mother’s identity (Massad). This paternal passing of identity creates many problems legally and personally, especially for second and third generation refugees.

     There is no true conclusion to this question of Jordanian identity with regard to hosting refugees because the crises continue. As a concluding thought for this project, however, I would like to bring in one of the first pieces concerning identity and travel: Clifford’s “Diasporas” in Routes: Travel and Translation in the Late Twentieth Century. Particularly useful in thinking about Jordan as a host and the refugees it is hosting is his idea that people’s identities are a collage, meaning that they have messily overlapped parts that come from a variety of sources thrown together in a beautiful way (Clifford). Jordan is not just one thing, one people, one identity, but rather an identity that consists of multiple parts living in harmony together. As a kingdom, as a host nation, as a diverse people group with a rich and international heritage, Jordan truly embodies this idea of a collage, changing and transforming based on the present climate and current pressures placed on them as a nation known for their hospitality.  
 

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