Olfa Youssef | |
|---|---|
ألفة يوسف | |
 Youssef in 2017 | |
| Born | 1964 Sousse, Tunisia |
| Nationality | Tunisian |
| Education | École Normale Supérieure de Tunis (BA) |
| Occupation(s) | Linguist, Islamic scholar |
Olfa Youssef is a Tunisian university professor and a writer specializing in Arabic linguistics, psychoanalysis and Applied Islamic Studies. Her publications deal with themes related to Islam, the Quran, the place of women in Islam, religious freedom and cross-religious dialogue. [1]
Olfa Youssef was born in 1964 in the coastal city of Sousse, where she received her primary and secondary education. She then studied at the École Normale Supérieure de Tunis to receive a BA and an "aggregation" diploma. Being valedictorian during most of her studies, she was awarded and honored by President Habib Bourguiba in 1987. Youssef's PhD in Arabic language and literature defended in 2002 deals with the subject of “Polysemy in the Quran.” [2]
Youssef occupied various administrative positions including serving as the director of the Higher Institute for Children's Executives in Carthage as well as the head of the National Library of Tunisia from 2009 to 2011. [3]
In 2003, Youssef published her doctoral study "Polysemy in the Quran" which adopts a linguistic approach in its analysis of the Quranic text to come to the poststructuralist conclusion that meaning is inevitably multiple. Generally, Youssef claims that although certain dogmas have always been taken for granted throughout the long history of Islam, there is no proof in the Quran that makes them unquestionable rules. [4]
Such ideas are expressed, for instance, in her book The Confusion of a Muslim Woman: On Inheritance, Marriage and Homosexuality (2008). After reading such a book, conservatives concluded that Youssef insinuates that homosexuality is not illicit in Islam, that a girl is not necessarily supposed to inherit half of her brother's part from their parents, and that a man does not necessarily have the right to be polygamous. The book led to controversies and court suits. [5]
Youssef wrote The Dramatic Discourse of Mahmoud Messadi's The Dam [6] [7] and co-authored The Dramatic Discourse of Mahmoud Messadi's The Dam (1994) and published Women in Quran and Sunnah (1997), The Quran at the Risk of Psychoanalysis (2007), Bereft of Reason and Religion (2003), and Yearning (2010) among other books. [7]
Habib Bourguiba was a Tunisian lawyer, nationalist leader and statesman who led the country from 1956 to 1957 as the prime minister of the Kingdom of Tunisia (1956–1957) then as the first president of Tunisia (1957–1987). Prior to his presidency, he led the nation to independence from France, ending the 75-year-old protectorate and earning the title of "Supreme Combatant".
Tunisian culture is a product of more than three thousand years of history and an important multi-ethnic influx. Ancient Tunisia was a major civilization crossing through history; different cultures, civilizations and multiple successive dynasties contributed to the culture of the country over centuries with varying degrees of influence. Among these cultures were the Carthaginian – their native civilization, Roman, Vandal, Jewish, Christian, Arab, Islamic, Turkish, and French, in addition to native Amazigh. This unique mixture of cultures made Tunisia, with its strategic geographical location in the Mediterranean, the core of several civilizations of Mare Nostrum.
Muhammad VII al-Munsif, commonly known as Moncef Bey was the Bey of Tunis between 19 June 1942 and 14 May 1943. He was the penultimate ruler of the Husainid dynasty.
Sbeitla or Sufetula is a small town in west-central Tunisia. Nearby are the Byzantine ruins of Sufetula, containing the best preserved Byzantine forum temples in Tunisia. It was the entry point of the Muslim conquest of North Africa.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Tunisia face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female kinds of same-sex sexual activity are illegal in the country. According to the United States Department of State's 2018 report on human rights in Tunisia, "authorities occasionally use [the anti-sodomy law] to detain and question persons about their sexual activities and orientation, reportedly at times based on appearance alone."
Abdelaziz Thâalbi was a Tunisian politician. He was one of the founding members of the Destour party.
Tahar Haddad was a Tunisian author, trade unionist, socialist, scholar and reformer.
Tunisian literature exists primarily in Arabic and in French. Arabic literature in Tunisia dates to the 7th century, with the arrival of Arab civilization in the region. Arabic literature is more important than francophone literature—which followed the introduction of the French protectorate in 1881—both in volume and value. The national bibliography lists 1,249 non-academic books published in 2002 in Tunisia, of which 885 titles are in Arabic. Nearly a third of these books are intended for children.
Youssef Seddik is a noted Tunisian philosopher and anthropologist specializing in Ancient Greece and the anthropology of the Qur'an.
Ahmad ibn Abi Diyaf, known colloquially as Bin Diyaf, was the author of a chronicle of Tunisian history. He was also a long-time and trusted official in the Beylical government of Tunisia. His multi-volume history, while it begins with the 7th-century arrival of the Arabs, devotes the most attention to details of the Husainid dynasty (1705–1957), during the 18th and 19th centuries. His writing is informed by his experience as chancellery secretary during the reigns of five Beys in succession. Bin Diyaf himself eventually favored the reform view, which was current then in Tunisian politics. His letter in reply to questions about Tunisian women has also attracted the interest of scholars of history.
The Tunisian national movement was a sociopolitical movement, born at the beginning of the 20th century, which led to the fight against the French protectorate of Tunisia and gained Tunisian independence in 1956. Inspired by the ideology of the Young Turks and Tunisian political reforms in the latter half of the 19th century, the group of traditionalists—lawyers, doctors and journalists—gradually gave way to a well-structured political organisation of the new French-educated elite. The organisation could mobilise supporters to confront the authorities of the protectorate in order to advance the demands that it made of the French government. The movement's strategy alternated between negotiations and armed confrontations over the years. Support from the powerful trade unions and the feminist movement, along with an intellectual and musical cultural revival, contributed to a strong assertion of national identity which was reinforced by the educational and political systems after independence.
The Turks in Tunisia, also known as Turco-Tunisians and Tunisian Turks, are ethnic Turks who constitute one of the minority groups in Tunisia.
Mahmoud Messadi was a Tunisian author and intellectual who also served as Minister of Education and Minister of Culture. He is one of the most prominent Tunisian novelists of the 20th century.
Bchira Ben Mrad was a Tunisian women's rights activist. She founded and chaired the Muslim Union of Tunisian Women (UMFT) from 1936 to 1956.
Souq Al Bchamkiya is a former souk of the medina of Tunis, specialized in bechmak trading.
Youssef Chahed is a Tunisian politician who served as the 14th Prime Minister of Tunisia from 27 August 2016 to 27 February 2020. Prime Minister Youssef Chahed was the Republic of Tunisia's youngest-ever chosen head of government. He served as Secretary of State for Fisheries and Minister of Local Affairs in the past. Since the revolution in January 2011, Prime Minister Chahed has fought for press freedom, speech freedom, and the preservation of civil rights in Tunisia. He successfully oversaw a campaign against terrorist organizations including Al Qaeda and ISIS during his mandate. In the Arab world, he was a leader in the struggle against mafia barons, smugglers, and corruption. He was able to address Tunisia's public budget challenges in spite of a challenging economic environment by utilizing a program that Tunisia had signed with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
Dorra Bouzid was a Tunisian journalist, art critic, and feminist.
Dalenda Bouzgarrou-Larguèche, better known as Dalenda Larguèche, is a Tunisian historian specializing in the early modern period and women in Islamic societies. She is also a longtime political activist, particularly focused on the rights of women and other marginalized people.
Amira Charfeddine is a Tunisian novelist. Her first novel, Wild Fadhīla, was written in Tunisian Arabic and is the first major Tunisian novel to feature a gay protagonist. The novel was commercially successful, selling 2,000 copies within a month of its release in April 2019. It was awarded the Ali Douagi prize from the Derja Association for best work written in Tunisian Arabic in 2019.
Hussein Khodja was a Tunisian politician and a mamluk who rose to become Prime Minister of Tunisia.
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