Intifada () is an Arabic language word for a Rebellion, or a resistance movement. It can also be used to refer to a civilian uprising against oppression.[Ute Meinel, Die Intifada im Ölscheichtum Bahrain: Hintergründe des Aufbegehrens von 1994–1998, LIT Verlag Münster, 2003 p.10: 'Der Begriff der Intifada, der die Vorstellung eines legitimen Ausbebegehrens gegen Unterdrückung enthält, ist gegenwärtig ein Schlüsselbegriff in der arabischen Welt, von dem eine grosse emotionale Anziehungskraft ausgeht.' ()]
In the 20th century, the word intifada has been used to describe various uprisings. In the Iraqi Intifada in 1952, Iraqi parties took to the streets to protest their monarchy.
In Arabic-language usage, any uprising can be referred to as an intifada, including the 1916 Easter Rising,
Lexical information
Morphology
Intifāḍa (انتفاضة) is an Arabic
maṣdar (مصدر), or verbal noun, of (اسم مرة
) of the verb
intafaḍa (انتفض), derived from the
Semitic root n-f-ḍ (ن-ف-ض) related to shaking (off), dusting (off), and making something shiver.
The verb انتفض
intafaḍa is in the
Arabic verbs اِفْتَعَلَ
iftaʿala, referred to in Western sources as 'form VIII,' denoting
Reflexive verb."
Meaning
The
Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic gives the meaning of the verb انتفض
intafaḍa as: "to be shaken off, be dusted off; to shake; to shudder, shiver, tremble (jo with); to sheke of from oneself (i s.th.); to wake up, come to consciousness," and of its verbal noun انتفاضة
intifāḍa as a "shiver, shudder, tremor; awakening (pol.); popular uprising."
Israeli–Palestinian conflict
In the context of
Palestine, the word
intifada refers to attempts to "shake off" the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in the
First Intifada and
.
[Sharif Kanana, 'Women in the Legends of the Intifada,' in Suha Sabbagh (ed.), Palestinian Women of Gaza and the West Bank, Indiana University Press, 1998 p.114.] The term was originally chosen to signify "aggressive nonviolent resistance";
[Mary K.Roberson, 'Birth, Transformation, and Death of Refugee Identity: Women and Girls of the Intifada,' in Ellen Cole, Esther D Rothblum, Oliva M Espin (eds.) Refugee Women and Their Mental Health: Shattered Societies, Shattered Lives, Routledge, 2013 p.42.] in the 1980s, Palestinian students adopted
intifada as less confrontational than terms in earlier militant rhetoric since it bore no connotation of violence.
[Mary Elizabeth King, A Quiet Revolution: The First Palestinian Intifada and Nonviolent Resistance, Nation Books 2007 p.208] The First Intifada was characterized by
,
,
Economic boycott, and
, including the widespread
Stone throwing and
at the Israeli army and its infrastructure in the West Bank and Gaza. The Second Intifada was characterized by a period of heightened violence. The
Suicide Attack carried out by Palestinian assailants became one of the more prominent features of the Second Intifada and mainly targeted Israeli civilians, contrasting the relatively less violent nature of the First Intifada.
The phrase "Globalize the intifada" is a slogan used to promote worldwide activism in solidarity with Palestinian resistance. The phrase and those associated with it have caused controversy, particularly concerning their impact and connotations. Critics have claimed it encourages widespread violence or terrorism.
List of events named Intifada
In Arabic-language texts, uprisings anywhere can be referred to using the word
intifada, including, for example, the 1916
Easter Rising (),
the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising (),
and the 1949
Jeju uprising ().
In English, the word may refer to these events, overwhelmingly in the Arabic-speaking world:
-
Iraqi Intifada, a series of strikes and riots in Iraq in 1952, aimed against the Hashemite monarchy rule
-
October Revolution, a series of strikes, riots, and demonstrations in Sudan, that ended with the dissolution of the Abbud military regime and the beginning of second civilian rule in 1964
-
March Intifada, a leftist uprising against the British colonial presence in Bahrain in March 1965
-
Zemla Intifada, against Spanish colonial rule in then Spanish Sahara, in June 1970
-
In Lebanese internal conflicts:
-
February 6 Intifada (1984), during the Lebanese Civil War
-
Cedar Revolution or "Intifada of Independence", the events in Lebanon after Rafic Hariri's 2005 assassination
-
The 1984 Egyptian intifada, (October 1, 1984 - October 2, 1984), a bloody uprising and civil resistance movement
-
1990s uprising in Bahrain, an uprising demanding a return to democratic rule, also known as the "1990s Intifada"
-
1991 Iraqi uprisings, an armed uprising against Saddam Hussein in Iraq, also known as "Iraqi Intifada of 1991"
-
In the Western Sahara conflict:
-
First Sahrawi Intifada, protests by Sahrawi activists in the Western Sahara, south of Morocco (1999–2004)
-
Second Sahrawi Intifada or Independence Intifada, demonstrations and riots in Western Sahara, south of Morocco, beginning in May 2005
-
Gdeim Izik protest camp, also referred as Third Sahrawi Intifada or simply Third Intifada
-
2005 French riots referred to be the historian Andrew Hussey as "the French Intifada"
-
Arab Spring, a revolutionary wave which began on 18 December 2010 in Tunisia, sometimes referred to as "Intifada":
-
Tunisian Revolution, or Tunisian Intifada
-
Yemeni Revolution, or Yemeni Intifada
-
2011 Egyptian revolution, or Egyptian Intifada
-
2011–2013 Sudanese protests, or Sudanese Intifada
-
Second Arab Spring, a series of anti-government protests in several Arab countries starting in late 2019, also known as "Arab Spring 2.0":
-
17 October Revolution, nicknamed the Tax Intifada
-
2019–2021 Iraqi protests, nicknamed Iraqi Intifada
-
In the Israeli–Palestinian conflict:
-
March 1982 Palestinian general strike, a significant wave of protests in the occupied Palestinian territories after the Israeli government ordered the dissolution of West Bank city councils elected in 1976, sometimes referred to as the "Intifada of 1982"
[Bregman, Ahron. Cursed Victory: A History of Israel and the Occupied Territories. Penguin UK, 2014.] or as part of a "Revolt Against the Civil Administration" that began in late 1981.
-
First Intifada, a Palestinian uprising against the Israeli occupation lasting from December 1987 to 1993
-
Second Intifada, also called Al-Aqsa Intifada, an uprising against Israeli occupation leading to intensification of Israeli-Palestinian violence, which began in late September 2000 and ended around 2005
-
2014 Jerusalem unrest, a series of violent acts and attacks in Jerusalem in 2014 sometimes referred to as "Intifada"
-
2015–2016 wave of violence in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict – 2015 escalation in Israeli–Palestinian conflict, sometimes referred to as "Al-Quds Intifada" or "Jerusalem Intifada" or "Knife Intifada"
[ NGO: Israeli army has killed 49 children since October . MEMO, 17 February 2016]
-
2021 Israel–Palestine crisis, also known as the "Unity Intifada"
-
Ongoing Gaza war, referred to by some commentators as the Third Intifada
-
2024 pro-Palestinian protests on university campuses, nicknamed the "student intifada" by activists and critics
See also
-
The Electronic Intifada, an online publication which covers the Israeli–Palestinian conflict from a Palestinian perspective
-
Serhildan, sometimes considered the Kurds equivalent to "intifada".
-
International Conference on Supporting Palestine Intifada
-
Revolution
External links
