British Museum Faces Pressure Over Use of “Palestinian” in Wall Texts
The British Museum is confronting renewed criticism over how it identifies Palestinian history and identity in its galleries. Husam Zomlot, the Palestinian ambassador to the UK, has asked the Foreign & Commonwealth Office to help persuade the museum to reinstate the word “Palestinian” in its wall texts, according to the Guardian. Zomlot described the change as a form of “erasure.”
The dispute gained force after the Telegraph reported in February that UK Lawyers for Israel had lobbied the museum to remove the term from its didactics. The group argued that using “Palestinian” in that context erases historical changes and creates a false impression of continuity. The word had appeared on maps in the museum’s Middle East galleries.
The British Museum has pushed back on the claim that it removed the term. A spokesperson said the institution uses UN terminology for maps showing modern boundaries, including Gaza, the West Bank, Israel, and Jordan, and that it refers to “Palestinian” as a cultural or ethnographic identifier where appropriate. The museum also said the term continues to appear elsewhere in the building and on its website.
Zomlot, however, said the museum’s explanation does not resolve the issue. He told the Guardian that he declined a tour with director Nicholas Cullinan because he did not believe it would lead to concrete changes. “For me, this is not only a political issue. This is not only a legal issue. This is not even just a historical issue. This is an existential issue,” he said. “Because erasing our past is erasing our present.”
The disagreement underscores how museum labels can become flashpoints far beyond the gallery wall. In institutions that present ancient and modern histories side by side, even a single term can carry competing claims about geography, continuity, and identity. For the British Museum, the controversy now sits at the intersection of curatorial language and public accountability.
