I believe all of you will agree with me that the mass media represents Arabs and Muslim people in general as violent, tolerance-lacking individuals who wish to bring nothing but havoc into this world. Undeniably, you have seen a movie where the bad guy is, of course, an Arab who goes around and kills people without a blink of an eye.

Unfortunately, all these representations have made people believe that Arabs are not good people, and a large percentage of the population always associate them with terrorist attacks, crimes, and hatred. In the next paragraphs of today’s article, we will list the most common and wrong stereotypes about Arabs and will try to explain in the best possible way why all of them are completely wrong.

Top 3 Stereotypes about Arabs That Are Completely False

Myriads of people have formed a poor opinion about Arab people because of the numerous wrong representations shown on the news, movies, TV series, and even music videos. All these factors combined together have, unfortunately, resulted in a huge misconception many believe in. Nevertheless, I believe it is high time someone put an end to this. Therefore, I have decided to go through several stereotypes regarding Arabs and explain why they are awfully wrong. Here is a list of them:

• All Arabs Are Muslims
• All Terrorists Are Arabs
• Arabs Are Violent People Because of the Islam

I truly hope that with the following imparted information, I will succeed in my endeavor of changing your views about the Arab culture and its beliefs. Allow me to clarify that this post has nothing to do with spreading religion or anything like that. On the contrary, my single aim is to deliver some useful and essential data that will make you realize that those common stereotypes are actually untrue.

All Arabs Are Muslims

This statement is so common that many individuals are surprised to find out that not all Arabs are Muslims. In fact, there are Arabs who are Christians or Druze. There are even Arab people who have no religion. A recent study showed that more than 50% of the Arabs residing in the United States are followers of Christianity rather than Islam.

Considering this, it is advisable to not label every Arab as Muslim and to not consider every Muslim an Arab. Muslims’ religion is Islam, but, as foresaid, many Arab people believe in Christianity. Some of the countries with the largest Arab population are Algeria, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Palestine, Sudan, and Morocco.

All Terrorists Are Arabs

Now, that one is perhaps the worst misconception when it comes to Arab people. Millions of people associated terrorism with Arabs. One of the reasons for this is the fact that 90% of the time, terrorists in movies or TV shows are Muslims or Arabs. In addition to this, it is quite common to see news on the TV regarding a terrorist attack, and most of the time the criminal is said to be an Arab.

There are some cases when the terrorist is unknown, but it is suspected that, most likely, he is a Muslim. All this improper information has transformed people’s thoughts about Arab people, and, honestly, they have certainly contributed to the present existence of racism. A large number of people are prejudiced about the Arabian population and believe in all these incorrect stereotypes.

It is so common for the mass media to present Arabs as terrorists and bad people, that even in comedy movies, the bad guys are often wearing a keffiyeh. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this term, this is a traditional head-cloth worn by Arab people. We live in the 21st century, so it is about time the media changed the way it portrays this community.

Arabs Are Violent People Because of the Islam

We have mentioned that a considerable percentage of Arab people are not actually Muslims. However, it is an undeniable fact that most of them belong to Islam. And Islam, on the other hand, is often shown as a religion that is violent, restrictive, and bad in general. That, of course, leads to the creation of other stereotypes about Arab people, most of which are completely untrue.

All those misconceptions about Islam, combined with the portrayal of Muslim people in movies, have resulted in the establishment of a number of wrong beliefs about this community. Individuals refuse to dig deeper into the Islamic religion. They come across an article saying that Islam is violent and cruel, and they are done reading for the day.

The truth is that all this lack of proper information is one of the major reasons why a huge part of the population refuses to learn more about Arabs, their culture, traditions, and customs. As I have stated before, the creation of this website is an attempt to help people learn more about all these things, and let go of such vicious and fallacious categorizations.

Christmas is one of the most beloved holidays for Arab people. However, in different countries, it is celebrated on a different date. Therefore, the customs and traditions may also vary depending on the community’s beliefs. In the next paragraphs, I will list some of the most common Christmas traditions that take place during the winter months.

Common Christmas Traditions for Arab People

Christmas is a time of reunion, love, and endless happiness. As aforesaid, this is perhaps the most adored holiday for Arabs. Thousands of people gather together in Bethlehem to celebrate the birth of Jesus. By tradition, celebrators will go to Manger Square, which is the city square of Bethlehem, Palestine. The Jerusalem Patriarch walks in an aisle surrounded by all those people. But what does Christmas look like in the homes of Arab people from different countries? The following paragraphs are dedicated to a few popular traditions in the Arab world that occur every year. Here are the main topics I will cover:

• Decoration
• Traditional Meals
• Customs
• Songs

Traditional Christmas Decoration

I believe most of you are familiar with the traditional Christmas decoration that includes lights, Christmas trees, toys, and festoons. Christian Arabs in Lebanon take all these things quite seriously. Once the end of November comes, the streets and people’s houses transform completely. You will witness numerous large trees decorated with various toys and illuminated with colorful Christmas lights.

During the evenings, the main squares get filled with people who left their homes to enjoy a nice walk in the holiday atmosphere. Stores also join the celebration by adding tons of Christmas souvenirs and cards to their assortment. It is an interesting fact that in the last couple of years, small businesses in many countries are thriving during these beloved holidays. Needless to say, shopping centers, bakeries, and restaurants are also decorated with lights suitable for the respective festival.

Traditional Christmas Meals

In some countries, families gather together during lunch, while in others, according to the tradition, the traditional Christmas meals should be served at dinner. Again, the traditional dishes vary depending on the country. For instance, in Palestine, people eat qedreh. This is a delicious meal that should be served hot, and it consists of rice, chickpeas, and lamb. It is usually served with yogurt. Many times, qedreh is accompanied by another traditional dish known as mihshe malfouf. That is basically a cabbage roll filled with rice and meat.

On the other hand, in Lebanon people are served turkey stuffed with rice and nuts. On the table, there are also plates overflowing with different appetizers, such as sautéed potatoes, sausages, and meat-filled pastry. In the end, guests enjoy delicious desserts, such as shaabiyat, which is almost the same as baklava. By tradition, people eat these traditional dishes at lunch rather than dinner.

Syrians also have several intriguing traditional dishes that are cooked every Christmas. Undeniably, each one of them tastes like heaven to them, because a large percentage of the population goes on a strict fast before Christmas. At lunch, families gather together and enjoy tasty meals, such as mahashi and lahm bi ajin. The latter refers to a pizza-like dish that is made with baked dough and minced meat. Mahashi, on the other hand, is a traditional Syrian meal that consists of eggplants with various fillings.

Christmas Customs

Arabian Christmas is associated with a number of interesting customs. A suitable example would be the present-giving tradition in Syria. It is believed that children will be given gifts by the smallest camel because it has walked thousands of miles, collapsed, but was resurrected by Jesus Christ. By tradition, kids would leave food in front of their homes for the camel in question a night before Christmas day. When the holiday occurs, people gather together and sing traditional hymns. Then, a priest walks by everyone in the crowd and touches their hand so that everyone is blessed with health and peace for the following year.

Palestine is another country that organizes special events every Christmas. The first and most impressive moment associated with the holiday is the lighting of the Christmas tree, which always attracts thousands of witnesses. What’s more, during December there are numerous street performances people can enjoy without paying a single shekel.

Iraqi people also have an interesting Christmas tradition. On the day of the holiday, families with their children gather together and listen to the story of Nativity that is being read by the kids. The next step of the custom is for the adults to light thorns and witness their burning while singing a psalm. It is believed that once the thorns become ashes, people should jump in the remains three times, after which they have to wish for something in the upcoming year.