Language carries meaning.

Language carries meaning. This truth both makes language so useful and so scary. When it comes to Israel/Palestine, this is especially so. There are a variety of ways to refer to the territory between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. For example: Israel, Palestine, Israel/Palestine (Palestine/Israel), Palestine-Israel (Israel-Palestine), Greater Israel, Historic Palestine, Israel and the Palestinian Territories, and others.

I primarily use the term "Israel/Palestine" because I believe that doing so best captures the entirety of the land and its narratives as I study them. Or, as Anton Shamas wrote: "because Haifa was in Palestine, and now it is in Israel and there's nothing to be done about it but accept the geographic fact."

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Students, colleagues, and co-facilitators I work with are welcome to use the terms that feel most appropriate to them, and I welcome learners to experiment with, and critically reflect on, the language that feels right as they deepen their knowledge of the region.