Phoenicianism
 | This article possibly contains original research. (August 2007) |
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Phoenicianism (Arabic,نزعة فينيقية)is a form of Lebanese nationalism that promotes the fact that Lebanese people are not Arabs and the Lebanese speak their own language and have their own culture, separate from the surrounding Middle Eastern countries. Followers maintain that Lebanese are descended from Phoenician origins (PROVEN by National Geographics' DNA test), and are not Arab. Some also feel that they speak Lebanese, not Arabic.
Criticism against Phoenicianism
Many critics of this argument feel that Phoenicianism disregards the Arab cultural influence and linguistic influence of the Lebanese, citing much of this reasoning due to sectarian influences Lebanese culture and the insistence of many Lebanese Christians to distance themselves from Arab culture and tradition which has Islamic influences. While descendants of the ancient Phoenicians form the majority of the population of the country, irrespective of religious heritage, the nation's culture is influenced by French and Arabic culture, Islamic or not.
The Phoenician language was the foundation for Greek and Arabic and all of the languages world-wide, it is also a fact that the Lebanese language (spoken) is different than the Arabic spoken elsewhere, you may not call a Lebanese man an Arab, because he is not, he speaks his language, not a modified version of it.