Naguib Mahfouz Abdelaziz Ibrahim Ahmed Al-Basha was an Egyptian writer who won the 1988 Nobel Prize for Literature. Mahfouz is regarded as one of the first contemporary writers of Arabic literature, along with Taha Hussein, to explore themes of existentialism. He is the only Egyptian to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. He published 35 novels, over 350 short stories, 26 movie scripts, hundreds of op-ed columns for Egyptian newspapers, and seven plays over a 70-year career, from the 1930s until 2004. All of his novels take place in Egypt, and always mentions the lane, which equals the world. His most famous works include The Trilogy and Children of Gebelawi. Many of Mahfouz's works have been made into Egyptian and foreign films; no Arab writer exceeds Mahfouz in number of works that have been adapted for cinema and television. While Mahfouz's literature is classified as realist literature, existential themes appear in it.
Denys Johnson-Davies was an eminent Arabic-to-English literary translator who translated, inter alia, several works by Nobel Prize-winning Egyptian author Naguib Mahfouz, Sudanese author Tayeb Salih, Palestinian poet Mahmud Darwish and Syrian author Zakaria Tamer.
Magdi Wahba (1925–1991) was an Egyptian university professor, Johnsonian scholar, and lexicographer.
Egyptian literature traces its beginnings to ancient Egypt and is some of the earliest known literature. Ancient Egyptians were the first to develop written literature, as inscriptions or in collections of papyrus, precursors to the modern book.
Sasson Somekh was an Israeli academic, writer and translator. He was professor emeritus of Modern Arab Literature at Tel Aviv University.
The American University in Cairo Press is the leading English-language publisher in the Middle East.
Humphrey T. Davies was a British translator of Arabic fiction, historical and classical texts. Born in Great Britain, he studied Arabic in college and graduate school. He has worked for decades in the Arab world and been based in Cairo since the late 20th century. He has translated at least 18 Arabic works into English, including contemporary literature. He is a two-time winner of the Banipal Prize.
Peter Christopher Sebastian Theroux is an American translator and writer. The younger brother of writers Alexander Theroux and Paul Theroux, during college Peter studied for a year at the University of Cairo. He became interested in Arabic literature and has made it his life's work. He has translated numerous works of both historic and chiefly contemporary fiction by Egyptian, Iraqi and Lebanese authors. In addition, he has written articles and published a travel book, Sandstorms (1990), about his extensive travels in the Middle East.
William Maynard Hutchins is an American academic, author and translator of contemporary Arabic literature. He was formerly a professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina.
Khufu's Wisdom is an early novel by the Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz. It was originally published in Arabic in 1939 under the name "Mockery of the Fates". An English translation by Raymond Stock appeared in 2003. The novel is one of several that Mahfouz wrote at the beginning of his career, with Pharaonic Egypt as their setting. Others in this series of novels include Rhadopis of Nubia (1943) and Thebes at War (1944). All have been translated into English and appeared in one volume under the title Three Novels of Ancient Egypt.
Rhadopis of Nubia is an early novel by the Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz. It was originally published in Arabic in 1943. An English translation by Anthony Calderbank appeared in 2003 published by American University in Cairo Press. The novel is one of several that Mahfouz wrote at the beginning of his career, with Pharaonic Egypt as their setting. Others in this series of novels include Khufu's Wisdom (1939) and Thebes at War (1944). All have been translated into English and appeared in one volume under the title Three Novels of Ancient Egypt.
Thebes at War is an early novel by the Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz. It was originally published in Arabic in 1944. An English translation by Humphrey Davies appeared in 2003. The novel is one of several that Mahfouz wrote at the beginning of his career, with Pharaonic Egypt as their setting. Others in this series of novels include Khufu's Wisdom (1939) and Rhadopis of Nubia (1943). All have been translated into English and appeared in one volume under the title Three Novels of Ancient Egypt.
John Verlenden is an American academic, writer and award-winning translator of Arabic literature. He obtained a BA in English literature from Rhodes College in 1986 followed by an MFA in Creative Writing from Louisiana State University in 1988. He has taught at a number of universities in the USA and the Middle East, and currently works at the American University in Cairo.
The Project of Translation from Arabic is an academic project initiated by Dr Salma Khadra Jayyusi in 1980 in order to translate, and publish, works of Arabic literature into the English language. The stated goal of PROTA is "the dissemination of Arabic culture and literature abroad." The project had its genesis in the late 1970s when Columbia University Press invited Jayyusi to prepare a large anthology of modern Arabic literature. Funding came from the Iraqi Ministry of Information and Culture. Two major anthologies came out of this early endeavour: Modern Arabic Poetry (1987) and The Literature of Modern Arabia (1988).
Roger Allen is an English scholar of Arabic literature. He was the first student at Oxford University to obtain a PhD degree in modern Arabic literature, which he did under the supervision of Muhammad Mustafa Badawi. His doctoral thesis was on Muhammad al-Muwaylihi’s narrative Hadith Isa ibn Hisham, and was later published as a book titled A Period of Time. At the request of Dr Gaber Asfour, the Director-General of the Supreme Council for Culture in Egypt, he later prepared an edition of the complete works of Muhammad al-Muwaylihi (2002), and that of his father, Ibrahim al-Muwaylihi (2007).
Valeriya Nikolaevna Kirpichenko was a Russian orientalist, translator, and philologist, specialising in Arabic literature.
Qismati and Nasibi is a short story written by a Nobel Prize winner, the Egyptian author Naguib Mahfouz. It was included in the short story collection Ra’aytu fima yara al-na’im published in 1982. It was included in a collection of short stories written in Arabic Modern Arabic Short Stories: A Bilingual Reader, edited/translated into English by Ronak Husni and Daniel Newman. The title in Arabic means "My Fate and My Destiny." It is frequently interpreted to be an allegory of the Palestinian-Israeli situation.
Ibrahim Fathi was an Egyptian writer, intellectual and critic of the ‘60s. He was called the dean of leftist intellectuals; he has numerous articles and papers published in various Arabic and foreign periodicals. In addition, Fathi was briefly a part of HADETU. Fathi was honored in 2018 at the Supreme Council of Culture of Egypt for his intellectual output and role in enriching the intellectual life. In addition, Najib Mahfouz praised his writing by criticizing his works.
Fatma Moussa Mahmoud, is an Egyptian Academic, translator, and literary critic.
Makarem Elghamry Former Dean languages Faculty at Ain Shams University was born in Faiyum on November 1, 1947. She has made important contributions in the fields of translation and literature, and in the development of language education in Egypt. She was selected among the personalities of the National Encyclopedia of Eminent Egyptian Personalities.
