Little Arabia (Anaheim, California)
Encyclopedia
Little Arabia – Anaheim is an ethnic enclave in Orange County, California
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, the center for Orange County's Arab-Americans, who number more than 24,000 . It is sometimes referred to as "Little Gaza" which was a play on the original designation of this area as the "Garza Island." Little Arabia grew significantly in the 1990s with the arrival of immigrants from the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

, and is the home thousands of Arab-Americans predominantly hailing from Egypt, Syria, Palestine, and Lebanon.

The district is centered on Brookhurst Street in Anaheim
Anaheim, California
Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was about 365,463, making it the most populated city in Orange County, the 10th most-populated city in California, and ranked 54th in the United States...

, near the Santa Ana Freeway (I-5) between La Palma Avenue and Katella Avenue. Businesses include halal
Halal
Halal is a term designating any object or an action which is permissible to use or engage in, according to Islamic law. The term is used to designate food seen as permissible according to Islamic law...

 butcher shops, beauty salon
Beauty salon
A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment dealing with cosmetic treatments for men and women...

s, jewelry stores, travel agencies
Travel agency
A travel agency is a retail business that sells travel related products and services to customers on behalf of suppliers such as airlines, car rentals, cruise lines, hotels, railways, sightseeing tours and package holidays that combine several products...

, bakeries
Bakery
A bakery is an establishment which produces and sells flour-based food baked in an oven such as bread, cakes, pastries and pies. Some retail bakeries are also cafés, serving coffee and tea to customers who wish to consume the baked goods on the premises.-See also:*Baker*Cake...

, Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...

, Armenian
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....

, and Persian
Persian people
The Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians and themselves part of...

 restaurants, and hookah
Hookah
A hookah A hookah(Gujarati હૂકાહ) A hookah(Gujarati હૂકાહ) (Hindustani: हुक़्क़ा (Devanagari, (Nastaleeq) huqqah) also known as a waterpipe or narghile, is a single or multi-stemmed (often glass-based) instrument for smoking in which the smoke is cooled by water. The tobacco smoked is referred to...

 cafes. There are also numerous mosques and a few churches in the enclave.

According to a Little Arabia (Anaheim, California)
Little Arabia (Anaheim, California)
Little Arabia – Anaheim is an ethnic enclave in Orange County, California, United States, the center for Orange County's Arab-Americans, who number more than 24,000...

 Facebook page, local Arab Americans are seeking to promote and improve local businesses, partner with the City of Anaheim to revitalize Brookhurst Street, and promote this area to those outside Anaheim as a cultural destination.

Hookah Lounges/Restaurants

Little Arabia is known for its popular hookah
Hookah
A hookah A hookah(Gujarati હૂકાહ) A hookah(Gujarati હૂકાહ) (Hindustani: हुक़्क़ा (Devanagari, (Nastaleeq) huqqah) also known as a waterpipe or narghile, is a single or multi-stemmed (often glass-based) instrument for smoking in which the smoke is cooled by water. The tobacco smoked is referred to...

 lounges. More than a dozen businesses that serve hookah and/or sells hookah supplies exist in the district. Popular hookah lounges include Hidden Cafe, Fusion Ultra Lounge, Dream Cafe. Restaurants that serve hookah include Nubia Cafe, Al-Waha BBQ, Andaluz, Nara Bistro, Pita Paradise, and others.

Anaheim made national news in 2005 when they banned belly dancing in Little Arabia's hookah bars.

In its annual "Best of OC" awards, the OC Weekly awarded Olive Tree Restaurant, located on Brookhurst St. and Orange, the 2011 Best Middle Eastern Restaurant award. The restaurant is known for its "daily special" dishes. Each day, one or two specials, such as "Maqluba
Maqluba
Maqluba, or Makloubeh, often pronounced as Maalouba or Maglouba is a traditional Palestinian dish. It consists of rice and eggplant or cauliflower casserole that is then turned upside down when served, hence the name maqluba which translates literally as "upside-down".The ingredients are commonly...

", "Sayadeia" (marinated, grilled whole fish), and "Kabsa
Kabsa
Kabsa is a family of rice dishes that are served mostly in Saudi Arabia — where it is commonly regarded as a national dish — and the other Arab states of the Persian Gulf. Kabsa, though, is believed to be indigenous to Yemen...

".

Reaction to the "Arab Spring"

In 2011, Little Arabia became the center of Arab-American activities supporting the wave of Arab revolutions known as the "Arab Spring
Arab Spring
The Arab Spring , otherwise known as the Arab Awakening, is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab world that began on Saturday, 18 December 2010...

". On February 4 a demonstration in support of the Egyptian revolution took place on Brookhurst Street followed by a celebration on February 11 after Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak was ousted and another one on February 12. A series of pro democracy protests in support of the Syrian revolution were also held. On October 20th, local Libyan-Americans greeted the death of Moammar Gaddafi with joy.

During the Hosni Mubarak trial, local restaurants, including Nara Bistro and Nubia Cafe, were packed with people glued to TV screens watching live coverage of the trial until 5 am.

In August 2011, a restaurant named "Medan el-Tahrir" or "Tahrir Square" opened on Magnolia Ave. The restaurant hosted an event for the Syrian American Council, an organization opposed to Bashar al-Assad's rule, on August 13. The event featured a representative of the Syrian Local Coordinating Committee addressing the attendees via Skype, as well as Ausama Monajed, editor of the "Syrian Revolution News Round-up."
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