1. Describe and critically evaluate the rise and fall of Arab Nationalism. 1
SPIR514 – Introduction to Middle East Politics
Describe and critically evaluate the rise and fall of Arab
nationalism.
Student ID No.: w1487170

2. Describe and critically evaluate the rise and fall of Arab Nationalism. 2
Arab Nationalism emerged during the nineteenth century from the Ottoman Levant (Bilad al-
Sham) and became a widespread philosophy which dominated the Levant in the mid to late
twentieth century Arab Nationalism is an ideology which rose to prominence in the 1950s as
Arab Nations began to gain independence from former colonial power. The premise of Arab
Nationalism is that there should be political, cultural, religious, and historical unity among
the people of Arab Nations (JIMENA, 2016). The limited scope of this paper will use the
theory of Marxism and to help rationalize the ideology of Arab Nationalism and its influence
in both the Arab and Muslim world. This will allow one to critically evaluate why the
movement rose and fell tremendously rapidly too. It will then seek to expand on the Arab
Nationalist movement and the elements one uses to identify it. Following on from this, one
will analyse the rise and then the fall of Arab Nationalism in the Middle East. This will be
scrutinized and supported through evidence with the use of the case study of Egypt. One will
dispute that the rise and fall were both extremely significant in the dimensions of the political
society in the Middle East and its legacies still relatively linger in its governmental
background.
Marxism is an economic and social system based upon the political and economic theories of
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. (AllAboutPhilosophy.org, 2016). Both share similar
elements which were key to the development, rise and fall of Arab Nationalism. At the core,
both focused on unifying its people and moving away from the capitalist Wests’ ideologies.
For example, the movement demanded ethno-national rights and a decentralisation of the
Empire. When this was not forthcoming, they adopted a new ideology: Arab Nationalism.
(Rodinson, 1982: 80) When… an ideological movement fails to solve social problems of
improve the life situations of its followers, its validity is called into question. (Moaddel,
2005: 19) This is the eventual case of the movement as it barely achieved its ideological and
practical goals.
Arab Nationalism was a movement that can be summarised as the idea that Arabs are a
people linked by social bonds of language and history (and many would add, religion) and
that their political organisation should in some way reflect this reality (Khalidi, 1991: 7).
Arab Nationalism was a liberation movement with various connotations: it was anti-colonial,
state-based and reliant on Western ideas of ideology, order and officials. Also dependent on
the Marxist ideology, previously mentioned, as it was considered a socialist liberation
movement. A further tributary of Arabs was the ideas of Mohammed ‘Abdu, an Egyptian
Islamic Scholar. His followers’ attempts recollected the golden age of Islam with no
idealisation of Western thought and ideology. The prominent features always circled around
emphasising Arab and Islamic identities in all parts of one’s society. For al-Hursi, the idea of
Arab nation gained significance above and beyond individual freedom. The undesirability of
arbitrary behaviour by the ruling elite, the significance of parliamentary democracy and
constitutionalism. (Moaddel, 2005: 169)
The fuel generating the rise of Arab Nationalism was inspired by Muslim modernists well
before 1908 (Haddad, 1994: 202) and then, according to Salibi (1988: 38), ‘Arabism was a
romantic notion whose full implications had not been worked out’. It is key to note that the
emergence of Arabism was influenced by key philosophers in Arab Society. The founders of
the Ba’th party, Michel Aflaq and Salah al-Din al-Bitar, believed that Arab States are

3. Describe and critically evaluate the rise and fall of Arab Nationalism. 3
fabricated units that must fuse into a crucible of a unitary political entity. These units have
arbitrary boundaries imposed by the imperialist powers to fragment the region and keep it
under control (Ayoob, 1995: 33). Aflaq shared the strong view that Arab unity was not
merely a constitutive part of Arab nationalism but also a prerequisite for the resurrection of
the Arab spirit and intellect (Aflaq, 1963: 181). Considering this thought of Arabism’s
founding fathers, it can be suggested that underlying and often overlooked reason of the
collapse of this movement was rooted in its foundations. There were never suggestions on
how to unify a various sovereign Arab states and how relationships among an enormous
region would have been established and solidified. From a geopolitical perspective, this was a
problematic matter that was never challenged by Arab Nationalist thinkers.
Arab nationalism, which became “anti-imperialist” after 1920, became “revolutionary” after
1948 (Martinkramer.org, 2016) with the authorisation by the United Nations to split Palestine
into two states, one Arab and one Jewish. This division portrayed the Arabs political disunity,
military weakness and underdeveloped economy. Thus, many Arab Nationalist intellectuals
also viewed the weaknesses in Arab culture and society and promised a social revolution.
Here one can further analyse the continuity between Marxist and Arab Nationalist principles,
both pursuing a revolution that included five-year plans, nationalisation and, reforms on all
platforms. The foundations of Arab Nationalism differentiated through its implementation in
society to it ideological endeavours which consequently led to the beginning of its collapse
The collapse of Arab Nationalism was inevitable because of its roots and its rapid rise in
society. It was an ideological movement that began as a replacement for the imperialistic
society the Arab World had previously encountered for decades. The nonappearance of
democracy and anarchy, the one man ruling state were all serious flaws of Arab Nationalism
and its capability to survive the setbacks. For instance, the fall of an authoritarian leader
would consequently result in the collapse of the ideology of the regime because it was
unprotected by the states. In autocracy, the root of legitimacy is not the state but the tyrant
himself. That was the case in post-Nasser Egypt, when President Anwar Sadat managed to
develop an Egypt-centric identity, which enabled him to roll back Nasser’s Arab nationalist
foreign policy (Coldwell, 2003).
Furthermore, the consequence of the six-day war in 1967 can often be used to suggest the end
of the Arabism disposition. The Israeli triumph over a united Arab force (Egypt, Syria and
Jordan) proved the lack of coordination and structure that pre-existed in the Arab Nationalist
movement. Egypt suffered vast loses and thus, was unable to be the unifier of the Arab states.
This is evident from the events following 1967; the Camp David Accords, promoting peace
between Israel and Egypt and their expulsion from the Arab League in 1979.
A further critical factor was the lack of competence of the establishments present at the time.
The anarchic system in place meant that there was barely a way of ensuring the unification of
the Arab states and to ensure all complied with the values of the movement. In 1958, the
establishment of United Arab Republic (UAR) collapsed immediately in 1961 because of
Nasser’s desire of autocratic rule. In 1963, it was once again reestablished, with participation
from Egypt, Syria and Iraq and a system allowing each state to keep its identity. For this, one
can conclude that its collapse was inevitable as Arab Nationalism was meant to unify and
grant only one identity.

4. Describe and critically evaluate the rise and fall of Arab Nationalism. 4
Another reason for the fall of Arab Nationalism was the divisions and rivalries between the
leaders of the Arab States. This was on a platform of political ideologies which divided the
focus of the formation of Arab Nationalism. This was seen through the political competition
between Arabism and Islamism. Both had different modes of identification with the Arab
people and both dominated society. The support for Nationalists was never going to received
from Islamists as in their teachings of the Qur’an and Hadiths, ethnicity was not a role player
in Islam.
This section will discuss the rise and fall Arab Nationalism through the lens of the Nasser
regime. In 1953, King Farouk of Egypt was overthrown via a military coup orchestrated by a
group of army officials, whose leader was Gamal Abdel Nasser and maneuvered himself into
position as the dominant political force within Egypt. (Cleveland and Bunton, 2009: 307).
Nasserism can be seen as the pragmatic approach towards Arab Nationalist, whereas the
Ba’th Party had much more ideological bearings. Nasser gained popularity as he stood up to
imperialism and the bourgeoisie. Nasser began his growth by opposing to join the Baghdad
Pact, an attempt to extend the [US] policy of containment to the Arab States through the use
of British influence (Cleveland and Bunton, 2009: 309). The Baghdad Pact (CENTO) of
1955, had the goal of uniting Arab states against the USSR however, the the outcome resulted
in the opposite way mainly because of Nasser’s influence. Nasser was the most influential
leader in the Arab Nationalist movement and this was only heightened by his opposition
towards the imperialist. His position on the Baghdad Pact reiterated one the fundamental
principles of Arab Nationalism. This was that the Arabs had to unify for themselves and
together, not because of the West. This strategic move was significant to Nasser’s rise in
Egypt and the Arab Nationalist movement.
His next greatest, fundamental accomplishment was the nationalization of the Suez Canal in
1956. The Suez crisis is another defining moment in Nasser’s rapid rise to power. Its
nationalization and sanctions on the Western powers were completely unacceptable to them
and led to a secret signing with Israel in 1965, with Israeli forces firstly attacking and then
UK air forces bombing the Sinai Peninsula. Nasser’s positioned was fortified as he stated that
if they wanted his person he would have surrendered. Because of this, certainty in Arab
Nationalism was at its highest level. The victory was a huge pragmatic win for the Nasser
regime because he put the interests of the both the Arab and Egyptian people at the forefront.
Whereas, the ideological Ba’th Party in Iraq, could not elect its own government. Just as the
Baghdad Pact, it similarly reiterated the Arab unity even if there was no military victory.
This allowed Egypt to secure funds for the development of infrastructure. From this, Nasser
emerged as an Arab hero and an Arab Nationalist custodian as he contested the Western
powers, Britain and France, plus Israel. The Arab world applauded Nasser and his brave
leadership; even his rivals were forced to acknowledge his achievement. (Satloff, 1994: 151)
Between 1952-67 real wages rose by 44%, not counting food subsidies, shorter hours,
insurance and social security. School education was made free in 1956, with higher education
following in 1962, when all graduates were guaranteed a job in public service. The number of
students grew by 8% a year from 1952-70. (socialistworld.net, 2016)
The sequential relapses that damaged Nasser’s heroic image as a powerful Arab Nationalist
leader include the establishment of the United Arab Republic (UAR) in 1958, which began to
alternate the continuity of his portrayal in the Levant. The true fatality to Nasser’s reputation

5. Describe and critically evaluate the rise and fall of Arab Nationalism. 5
was the 1967, Six Day War, as previously mentioned. The Six Day War was arguably one of
the toughest loses Nasser faced as the Egyptian leader, one who had once ideological
defeated the imperialists and the Zionists. Nasser popular decline also stemmed from his
exploitation of the movement as a method to inflict hegemonic policies and mediate in the
other Arab states. ‘The fate of Arab nationalism … was inexorably linked to Egypt and its
charismatic president’ (Dawisha, 2003: 282).
The death of Arab Nationalism was fundamentally predictable from its decisive ideological
elements and from the moment it began to win pace as a movement. This essay has
analytically critiqued the rise and fall of Arab Nationalism and concludes that is was largely
unsuccessful with evidence providing for alternative views. The underlying principle of a full
united Arab front was the least possible scenario for various reason as this paper has
explained. This is magnified through the impossible manor of only having one Arab identity
when the Levant is full of minorities, nationalities and origins. Moreover, the autocratic
leaders of this era were in a sense political adversaries as they wanted a united Arab
movement conversely, they could not forget about the needs of their own country and people.
It is imperative to note that the brief comparison between Marxism and Arab Nationalist
ideology does not conclude that all ideology stemmed from Marxist and one should reiterate
that this was socialist Arab movement. Arab Nationalism was a crusade that rise and declined
rapidly particularly because it was the only alternative after an imperialist Ottoman Empire
and after the post-colonial époque. The difference between the pragmatic and ideological
approach to Arab Nationalism is also touched upon. This allowed for a broader scope of a
widespread drive and a slight comparison as to which played a more beneficial role when
critiquing the rise and fall of Arab Nationalism. This document investigated the role of
Nasser as a unifying leader whose power derived from Arab Nationalism. He took Arab
Nationalism and carried it to create Egyptian Nationalism and the most famous regime in the
Middle East of the Nationalist period. The most known events argued by many scholars were
discussed throughout, included the Baghdad Pact and Suez Crisis. Both have different initial
outcomes, nonetheless, the real principal one is the unification of the Arab people which
stemmed from them because of Nasser’s political pragmatic tactic.

6. Describe and critically evaluate the rise and fall of Arab Nationalism. 6
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7. Describe and critically evaluate the rise and fall of Arab Nationalism. 7
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