Collective Memory and Narrative Cohesion: A Computational Study of Palestinian Refugee Oral Histories in Lebanon

TL;DR

This study analyzes Palestinian refugee oral histories in Lebanon to understand how shared origins, residence, and gender influence narrative cohesion and collective memory, highlighting the importance of oral histories in identity preservation.

Contribution

It introduces a computational approach using semantic embeddings and statistical analysis to quantify factors influencing collective memory in refugee narratives.

Findings

Shared origin significantly increases narrative similarity.

Shared residence amplifies cohesion when combined with shared origin.

Women's narratives show stronger thematic cohesion, especially on British occupation.

Abstract

This study uses the Palestinian Oral History Archive (POHA) to investigate how Palestinian refugee groups in Lebanon sustain a cohesive collective memory of the Nakba through shared narratives. Grounded in Halbwachs' theory of group memory, we employ statistical analysis of pairwise similarity of narratives, focusing on the influence of shared gender and location. We use textual representation and semantic embeddings of narratives to represent the interviews themselves. Our analysis demonstrates that shared origin is a powerful determinant of narrative similarity across thematic keywords, landmarks, and significant figures, as well as in semantic embeddings of the narratives. Meanwhile, shared residence fosters cohesion, with its impact significantly amplified when paired with shared origin. Additionally, women's narratives exhibit heightened thematic cohesion, particularly in recounting experiences of the British occupation, underscoring the gendered dimensions of memory formation. This research deepens the understanding of collective memory in diasporic settings, emphasizing the critical role of oral histories in safeguarding Palestinian identity and resisting erasure.