Palestine

First people

People have lived in this land for many thousands of years, and Jericho is among the oldest continuously inhabited towns in the world.¹

Known for

Palestinians are known for olive farming and for tatreez, embroidery that UNESCO lists as living heritage.²

Outside contact

Ottoman rule lasted four centuries until British forces took the land in 1917, ruling it under a mandate from 1920.³

The modern country

The 1948 war uprooted hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, remembered as the Nakba. Palestinian identity spans the West Bank, Gaza and a large diaspora, linked by family ties and the pursuit of self-determination.^4,5