At the table of wonder: the semiotics of ghoul and food in Palestinian folktales

Abstract This study examines the dual and dialectical relationship between the ghoul and food in Palestinian folktales from an anthropological and semiotic perspective. Through analysis of selected folktales, including al-Ḥaṭṭāb wa-al- Ghoula , Nuṣṣ Nṣeis , and al-Qurṣa , this research reveals how the ghoul-food dynamic functions as a rich symbolic system reflecting societal fears, moral values, and power structures deeply embedded in Palestinian cultural consciousness. The study demonstrates that ghouls in these tales embody multiple layers of cultural tensions, ranging from primal fears of the unknown to sophisticated representations of social and political oppression. Simultaneously, food emerges as a multifaceted symbol transcending mere sustenance to represent hospitality, betrayal, gender roles, and socioeconomic dynamics within Palestinian society. Drawing on Roland Barthes’ food semiotics, Claude Lévi-Strauss’s framework of binary oppositions and mythical grammar, and Algirdas Greimas’s actantial model, this research shows how Palestinian storytellers use the ghoul-food relationship to navigate cultural tensions through multi-layered semiotic structures. The findings illustrate that these narratives function not merely as entertainment but as vehicles for transmitting cultural knowledge, encoding gender relationships, and providing sophisticated tools for political critique and cultural resistance under conditions of foreign domination.