Ep. 15: The History: The Nakba as History and Trauma (Prof. Dr. Adel Manna – Van Leer Jerusalem Institute)

Guest: Professor Adel Manna – Van Leer Jerusalem Institute Hosts: Yusuf & Mert Bio: Professor Adel Manna is a leading scholar of modern Palestinian history, combining archival research with Palestinian oral histories and family narratives. He authored Nakba and Survival (2016; English: 2022) and co-authored Two Sides of the Coin: Independence and Nakba 1948 (2011) with Prof. Motti Golani. His work explores sensitive historical truths with rigor and respect for multiple perspectives. In this Episode: Recorded in Berlin’s Neukölln district, this episode explores the Nakba and its lasting impact. Prof. Manna begins with his family history, including his father witnessing an atrocity in Majd al-Kurum, and traces 1947–48 from a Palestinian perspective. Topics include displacement, dispossession, refugees, and contested interpretations of Plan Dalet—seen by Israeli scholars like Benny Morris as defensive, but by many Palestinian historians as a blueprint for displacement. The episode highlights memory preservation through family stories and oral histories and shows why the Nakba remains central to Palestinian collective memory and identity. This episode was recorded on July 16, 2025. Links: Manna, Adel. Nakba and Survival: The Story of Palestinians Who Remained in Haifa and the Galilee, 1948–1956. University of California Press, 2022. PDF Zurayk, Constantine K. The Meaning of the Disaster. Khayat's College Book Cooperative, 1956. Archive Review of Manna by Benny Morris: Haaretz Responses by Israeli historians: Ofer Ashkenazi, Daniel Blatman Morris, Benny. The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem Revisited, 2nd ed., Cambridge University Press, 2004. PDF Other 1948 resources: Flapan, Segev, Schlaim, Pappe, Morris. Monde Diplomatique Please also check out our episodes on 1948 with Derek Penslar, Muriel Asseburg and Gudrun Krämer. Disclaimer:Guest opinions are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcast team. Technical legal terms are explained in Episode 36 with Prof. Claus Kreß; contested histories are addressed by Prof. Gudrun Krämer in Episode 21.