Lexicon

Terminology in the Jerusalem context can be complex and also controversial. Words and their meanings shape narratives. Our Lexicon goes beyond standard definitions and also offers, where applicable, nuanced shades of meanings that matter to Palestinian Jerusalemites.

Liftawi

An Arabic nisba (a name that indicates a person’s place of origin, family, or tribal affiliation) referring to a person from the Palestinian village of Lifta, which lay on the western outskirts of Jerusalem and was emptied and destroyed in 1947–48.  

Lions’ Gate

The English name for one of the seven open gates in the wall of the Old City of Jerusalem. See also Bab al-Asbat. 

See The Gates of the Old City for more detailed information.