Itani Family Photographs and Oral History

Photographs

Biographical/Historical Note

Abed [David] Salam Itani was born in Beirut, Lebanon in 1952. He was the first of nine children born to Khalil and Nadia Itani. At age 15, David began working as a hairdresser. In 1977, at age 21, he moved to Saudi Arabia to escape the Lebanese Civil War. In Saudi Arabia, he struggled to work as a hairdresser due to prohibitions against men doing women’s hair. He briefly returned to Lebanon in 1978 before moving to Dubai. During this period six of David's siblings and both of his parents moved to Australia to escape the violence of the Lebanese Civil War. In 1983, David met Faye, a young American who had moved from North Carolina to Dubai. They married and, in 1984, their daughter Natalie was born. The family moved to North Carolina, where their son Khalil was born. In 1987, David and Faye opened a salon in Raleigh, NC. The family has been involved with the Triangle Lebanese Association.

Scope/Content Note

The collection contains photographs of the Itani family in Lebanon. It also includes an oral history, which is available to researchers upon request.

Abed (David) Salam Itani

Moise A. Khayrallah Center for Lebanese Diaspora Studies

circa 1956-1970s, undated

Processed by Khayrallah Program staff. Collection Guide content contributed by Claire A. Kempa and updated by Allison Hall, 2023 November.

The donor retains full ownership of any copyright and rights currently controlled. Nonexclusive right to authorize uses of these materials for non-commercial research, scholarly, or other educational purposes are granted to Khayrallah Center pursuant to U.S. Copyright Law. Usage of the materials for these purposes must be fully credited with the source. The user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials.

English

KC 0007