Of Tenderness and Henna

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Posted by Babaganooj on May 12, 2000 at 20:21:32:

In answer to your question Ms. Jones about henna use
in urban Syria, it's really hard for me to be a judge
on the state of henna in that part of the world, partly because I have been away for about a decade from home
(visited occasioanlly.) But the way I perceive it is
really a complex issue. I mean to put that in its local perspective, old monuments, bazaars, and ancient ruins
and relics are interwined with newer type architecture,
or designs. This in itself can be seen in other aspects of
a culture striving to preserve its roots, while accomodating modern trends. So the point is really you will
find henna tradition alive and well in some parts of the city
of Aleppo. If you make a trip to one of the ancient bazaars there ( that humbly goes back to 4000 years ago) you still
find small shops that trade only henna with all its varieties. Women in some parts of Aleppo still carry traditions that go back millenia ago. One thing that comes to mind is sugar parties (hair removal(legs) parties, or as I would like to refer to them as women hair removal support groups:-)

Now here is something that might be of interest to you Ms.
Jones. I have not seen this explanation attempted anywhere else yet, and if no one so far has dealt with the topic, please feel free to quote me on that as an authority on the topic since I hold a Master's Degree in Linguistics from
a known US University. Here it is.

Semitic Languages are based on a root system from which all
other words are derived from the meaning of that particular
root. Now if we look at the word henna, the root that this
word was derived from is (HNN) which correlates to tenderness. Semitic Languages (and Arabic for that matter)
use vowels to derive nouns or adjectives, etc, while consonants bear the meaning (semantics.)

So henna, in this regard, is a noun derived from that root
that points to the quality of tenderness. Hanan, also is
tenderness itself. Hanoun(masculine) Hanouna (feminine)
means tender. Haneen, also derived from the same root, means nostalgia or homesickness, which really bears semantic (meaningwise) relationship to tenderness.

As far as your point about how the Middle East is projected
in western society in general, is really a game politicians
and media benificiaries have always enjoyed playing here there, everywhere else for that matter. It reflects temporal biases seasoned with political events here and there. But for people to enjoy each others' cultures requires unlearning those biases. Unlearning, my dear friend, as I found out having lived in a different culture,
is waaaaaaay more challenging than learning. You know what
though? It is equally waaaaaaaaay more rewarding.

My Best Regards

Babaganooj
*please feel free to drop me a line or two on
my e-mail address above, if I can be of help
on some cultural aspects here and there.

Love

Babaganooj



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