Political ideology founded by Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser. The ideal was formulated after Egypt's (and the Arab Middle East in general) defeat to the Israelis in 1956. Nasser felt he needed to consolidate his political base domestically (the Egyptian economy was in turmoil) and cause trouble for what he felt were more reactionary Arab governments such as King Hussein's in Jordan. Still licking his wounds, Nasser thought the best way to do this was through political rhetoric, rather than military action. The ideology itself was socialist in nature with a hardy dose of Arab nationalism and anti-Zionism.

Source: Six Days of War: June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle East, by Michael B. Oren