Water and Nature: Lubnan al Akhdar: "لبنان الا خضر" !

Beqaa, ca. 1960s, Manoug Photograph Collection, Archives and Special Collections, Jafet Library, AUB

Faraya water spring, ca. 1950, Manoug Photograph Collection, Archives and Special Collections, Jafet Library, AUB

Adonis Afka Valley, Water Spring, 1965, Manoug Photograph Collection, Archives and Special Collections, Jafet Library, AUB

Adonis Afka Water Spring, ca. 1940s, Manoug Photograph Collection, Archives and Special Collections, Jafet Library, AUB

Amyoun, almond trees in bloom, ca. 1940s, Manoug Photograph Collection, Archives and Special Collections, Jafet Library, AUB

Bekaa valley, ca. 1950, Manoug Photograph Collection, Archives and Special Collections, Jafet Library, AUB

Bekaa Valley, Trees in the Fall, ca. 1960s, Manoug Photograph Collection, Archives and Special Collections, Jafet Library, AUB

Cable Car in Jounieh, ca. 1950, Manoug Photograph Collection, Archives and Special Collections, Jafet Library, AUB

“Standing astride the crossroads of Europe, Africa and Asia - its green hills and snowcapped peaks both oasis and barrier between a sea of water and a sea of sand - this small country holds incomparable riches of climate, geography, architecture, and of course, history[1]”. This description is a typical representation of Lebanon as a place blessed by nature or God, as indeed the Biblical “land of milk and honey”. Manoug’s photos paying homage to the idyllic location and beauty of Lebanon fed into the view of “Libnan el Akhdar”, a staple of the booming tourism industry of the emerging nation during the pre-war years.

لبنان يا قطعة سما

لبنان يا قطعة ســـــما عالارض تاني ما ألها
لوحات الله راسمها شطحات احلى من الحلى
عالطامعين محرمها وللخاشــــــعين محللها
بالسـيف ما بتغلى دما وللضيف منقول له هلا
لبنان يا قطعة سما اســـمك على شفافي صلاة

يســــعد صباحك ها الحلو يل أنت للدنيا صباح
رؤوس الجبال تكحلوا بالنور وتــــنفضّ جناح
بلبل حلو ياما الــــه صابر على جنون الريــــاح
عرم بريش اللي بلله قطر الندي ترغل وصاح
لبنان يا قطعة ســــما اسمك على شفافي صلا

كلمات: يونس الابن
ألحان: وديع الصافي
مقام: كرد
تاريخ: 1960

[1] Aramco World Magazine September - October 1982, Vol. 33 No. 5, ISSN 0003-7567