QADIYA is an independent, noncommercial community project: an archive of Palestine’s history, built for the cause and open to everyone.
This is an early pilot. Its records were gathered with AI help from cited sources and are still being checked, so don’t rely on them yet, and tell us if something is wrong.
We’re looking for people and organisations to build it with us: historians, archivists, translators, designers, developers, and partners who can support the work.
Nabulsi soap is made by hand in Palestine from three local ingredients: olive oil, water and lye. It is made after the olive harvest; the makers stamp it with the family’s seal before packing it, and store it for a year. Men and women take part in every stage, and children help cut and pack it; the knowledge passes on in farms, olive presses, families and workshops. Nablus, whose old city held more than thirty soap factories, gave it its name; since 2007 two have remained working there. UNESCO inscribed the tradition in 2024.
PalQuest · Institute for Palestine Studies · supports · section: “Since 2007 only two soap factories have remained functional in Nablus, and they belong to the Tuqan and Shaka'a families.”