Taha Najjarine
For my whole life, I’ve always known myself to be Lebanese considering both my parents have a Lebanese background. Despite this, there is a weird connection to Italy in my family that I do not fully understand. Now, Italians and Lebanese are all Mediterranean people. We share many features such as having olive skin, dark hair, and a great sense of style. Beirut has been a stylish travel destination for centuries, much like Rome. My dad, however, seems to like telling people we are Italian.
This has a huge back story behind it. Every time my mum makes Italian food, my dad starts telling stories like, “You see back in Italy…” Then he demonstrates ways to eat pasta, how the classy people use knives and forks to eat their pizza. I can never imagine doing this because I love using my hands and getting messy. It shows that I actually enjoy the food. That’s the Arab way. After he finishes the demonstration, my dad starts claiming that his grandparents and his parents are all from Italy and used to own their own popular restaurant. Now this causes my whole family to laugh because we all know that all of us have only got Lebanese blood in us and that his parents live in Lebanon and have lived there their whole lives, as did his grandparents. When I was younger, though, I would fall for it and question myself at times, “Do I really have Italian blood inside of me?”
I’ve never told anyone I’m Italian because I know it’s not true, considering my grandparents are full Lebanese and live in Lebanon. Though while we’re watching soccer, we turn Italian and have family living in Milan and Rome. When watching any Italian player or Italian team or the Italian national team, my dad claims that it’s his third cousin when, in reality, the player doesn’t even know of our existence. Just imagine, though, being cousins with a soccer player who represents a big country in a sport that you love. Then again that’s just a dream. Though it’s always in my brain, “Do I really have Italian blood inside of me?” Like, I’m not gonna lie, it would be cool but it’s not true, which I don’t mind because I love being Arab. But we can always dream about being Italian—there’s no wrong in it.
Now when you think about it, both the Italians and the Lebanese have huge histories and are huge tourist attractions. Italy is the birthplace of the Romans who gave us Rome. They also have iconic foods such as pizza and pasta which I wouldn’t mind having as the star dishes of my country. Then top that all off with having amazing history in the sport you love and having four World Cup titles to your name. Lebanon, though, has even greater attractions to make you love the culture and country. Yeah, Lebanon has never qualified for the World Cup, let alone won it, but it’s not all about sports. Any food that you try from Lebanon, you can’t say that you like or dislike it, because you’ll loveit. It is as if you’re entering a whole new dream.
Before Lebanon was called Lebanon, it was the city-state of Tyre which was occupied by the Phoenicians. The Phoenicians were known to be great sailors and cunning merchants. One thing that allowed the Phoenicians to stay high in the books of history is that they created the first ever alphabet, which is the ancestor of many other alphabets that we use today. The Egyptian and Sumerian form of writing was a language of symbols and pictures. They created the alphabet in order to easily facilitate trade with other surrounding countries. In addition to their alphabet-creating skills, the Arabs also gained the ability to use other languages. In modern Lebanon, French and English are the two optional languages to learn at school alongside Arabic. So I guess with the Phoenicians making the alphabet, it explains why Arabs, especially ‘Lebos’, love to talk and to negotiate their way out of problems, especially in school.
Italy and Lebanon both have fascinating histories and cultures. But if anyone were to tell me to choose between the two countries, I’d choose Lebanon anytime, anywhere. I’d leave the same day to go there. Next time my dad’s stories start coming out, of course in a respectful way, I’m gonna say I’m happy to be Lebanese or, as some people might wanna say, I’m happy to be Phoenician.
Taha Najjarine, Year 12, 2025, Punchbowl Boys’ High School.