05
NOV
Thu
Dabke dancing — open course Next up
Goldbekhaus Hamburg
18:15 – 19:45
Arabic cultureMusicDabke
Where Arabic culture comes alive
The Arab Culture Festival brings music, calligraphy, literature and dabke to Hamburg. A yearly celebration that breaks stereotypes, opens spaces and celebrates community.
19
NOV
Thu
Goldbekhaus Hamburg
18:15 – 19:45
03
DEC
Thu
Goldbekhaus Hamburg
18:15 – 19:45
17
DEC
Thu
Goldbekhaus Hamburg
18:15 – 19:45
Next date per format · Local time · Full details under Details
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What drives us
Arabic culture is living energy
From stage performances to open workshops the focus stays the same: rhythm, belonging and a clear shared presence in the room.
In a semicircular formation people meet hand in hand and shoulder to shoulder. Synchronised movement naturally builds trust and psychological safety within the group.
Dabke comes from Bilad Al-Sham (بلاد الشام) — Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan.
Who we are
More than a festival
The Arab Culture Festival is a practice of cultural continuity: collective joy, shared knowledge and encounter through music, dance and language.
Our story
For years we have been bringing Arabic culture to Hamburg — at Goldbekhaus, at the university and in the middle of the city. Carried by a team of artists, translators and volunteers.
The team
The people who organise, translate, build and work on the festival all year round.
In numbers
What we set in motion
04
Art forms
Music, dabke, calligraphy and literature — curated anew every year.
01
Festival a year
At Goldbekhaus, the University of Hamburg and across the city.
∞
Open to all
Many formats are free and need no registration.
Feel the shared rhythm
One step. One us.
Dabke brings us together. Pick a beat and feel how single steps become a shared rhythm.
A playful sense of rhythm. You learn the real dabke steps with us on site.
Rhythm game
Ready
No animation. Pick a beat or tap on.
From the festival magazine
Voices & texts
Excerpts from our articles — about dabke, calligraphy and Arabic culture in exile.
When you see people holding hands and swaying to the music, you know a wedding or a festival is beginning. Dabke in the Levant needs no invitation.
Calligraphy is held in esteem wherever copying sacred texts is itself described as a sacred act. More important than legibility is perfect aesthetic balance.
Today I live in Hamburg and carry my Syrian nationality and my Arabic culture with me. That is why I started Arabic cultural events — culture gives people a sense of belonging.
What we do
Culture you can join
Four formats, one circle: find what suits you.
Folk dance & dabke
Dabke
When people hold hands and sway to the beat, dabke is already there — it needs no invitation.
Format entdeckenArabic music
Music
Oud, violin and percussion: concerts and sessions from classical maqam to contemporary song.
Format entdeckenCalligraphy
Script
Letters as art: workshops and exhibitions on Arabic script and its history.
Format entdeckenLiterature & hakawati
Storytelling
Readings, talks and traditional storytelling — Arabic literature in exile.
Format entdeckenStronger together
Our partners
The festival happens with the people and venues that make culture possible in Hamburg.
Let's talk.
Would you like to take part, exhibit, perform or report? Write to us — we answer personally.