Samarkand is operating from Bethlehem, West Bank, under the suffocating Israeli occupation. This reality added complexity. Cultural preservation work here carries political weight; therefore, continuing traditional practices asserts Palestinian identity, heritage, and connection to the land.
Practically, limited resources due to the ongoing occupation meant straightforward printing, standard materials, and local production, which the solution needs to account for. The bilingual nature of the work carried political weight, too. Under occupation, erasure is systematic—Arabic place names of Palestinian villages and cities are removed, replaced, or disappeared from maps and signage altogether.
In this context, ensuring that Arabic doesn't take second place simply because the work needs to appeal to international audiences becomes an act of resistance. Arabic and Latin scripts have fundamentally different structures and reading directions, requiring careful consideration to create true bilingual equivalence rather than hierarchy.