The Latest at Goethe

What is a homeland? This is a question that the Palestinian Israeli Ayman Sikseck and eleven other writers ask at the German-Israeli Literature Conference. In the interview, he depicts his own personal perspective of the subject matter and his paradoxical everyday life in a torn city.

Mr. Sikseck, you deal with the topic of “homeland” in your work. How do you approach it?

For me, as perhaps for every Palestinian living in Israel, the theme of a “homeland” is quite complex. My actual homeland – the state in which I was born – is Israel. Yet my symbolic homeland is Palestine. Because of this contradiction, I am actually always dealing with the subject and of course, this is reflected strongly in my writing. I probably get as close as I can to my homeland in it, since while writing, I can create it myself.

What is a homeland?

In general, we consider our homeland the place we feel at home and not our nationality. The term has lost this meaning. Because of my own roots, I feel in a sense homeless; I do not have a national homeland. For me, homeland is solely an ideological symbol. It no longer describes a region, a city, a town or a country, but an idea. This idea, for me, lies in the culture, the literature and the art. Yet, in politics, the idea of homeland is unfortunately still inseparable from that of the nation.

So, you’re saying that a homeland can no longer be geographically positioned?

Geographical boundaries have long forfeited their significance. The absurdity of trying to position a homeland geographically today is illustrated very well by Israel. Israel’s borders are constantly being redrawn. Regions are occupied, returned and then occupied again.

Can you take your homeland with you?

I think you can feel at home with yourself. Just as much, you can also feel out of place. I personally hope to one day live in Europe and at the same time I have an ambivalent relationship with Israel. Although neither joy nor happiness beckon here, you feel a duty to stay. To leave would be a betrayal.

Do we need a homeland?

Yes. Everyone needs a homeland. But, the idea of a homeland itself can vary greatly. For me, homeland is merely a cultural symbol. For someone else, though, it might be very strongly linked to a region. Neither of these two ideas is “correct,” they’re simply two different perspectives.

The word “homeland” – or in German “Heimat”– is actually something typically German, a word that emphasizes the emotional bond and differs from “fatherland,” which is more oriented to the nation. How is this in the Arabic and Hebrew languages?

In Hebrew and in Arabic, too, the words for “homeland” refer more to an emotional bond and not the greater national context. In my writing, I refer to our “rootedness,” our origins. As a Palestinian in Israel one is encouraged to forget one’s origins and Palestinian history. If you do not wish to lose yourself, you therefore always have to renew your bonds to your homeland; keep it alive.

What role does one’s mother tongue play in this? Is it an inseparable element of a homeland?

Naturally, the language and the homeland are very closely related. In the city I was born in, Jaffa, for example, the official language is Hebrew although the majority of inhabitants are Arabic. For this reason, I was never as fluent in my mother tongue, Arabic, as I was in Hebrew, and for a long time I was more familiar with Hebrew than with Arabic literature. When I became aware of that, I felt empty and began to deal intensively with the Arabic language. Then, through the language I gained access to Palestinian literature and could thus create a connection with my own history.

Was that helpful for you?

I rediscovered my roots. This may fulfil me culturally, but in everyday life I still move between two homelands. I write and publish my novels in Hebrew; in everyday life I speak and read Arabic. In my writing, I attempt to convey the problems of the lost homeland in Palestinian society to Jewish Israelis.

Your greatest wish for your homeland?

My greatest wish would be that Palestinians and Israelis give up their dreams of being the only people in this country. This dream is simply and honestly impossible. I am firmly convinced that the only solution would be a bi-national country, a country that is equally Israeli and Palestinian, Islamic and Jewish, a country with cultural, political and social representatives from both sides. There are many people here who share my opinion, but in politics, sadly, the idea of two separate national states is still dominant. It is difficult to be optimistic.

Das Interview was conducted by Franziska Kekulé