Ali Ahmad Said Esber, also known by the pen name Adonis or Adunis, is a Syrian poet, essayist and translator who is considered one of the most influential and dominant Arab poets of the modern era. He led a modernist revolution in the second half of the 20th century, "exerting a seismic influence" on Arabic poetry comparable to T.S. Eliot's in the anglophone world.
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 a 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 some great civilizations of Mare Nostrum.
Tunisian Arabic, or simply Tunisian, is a set of dialects of Maghrebi Arabic spoken in Tunisia. It is known among its over 11 million speakers as Tounsi or Derja to distinguish it from Modern Standard Arabic, the official language of Tunisia.
Tunisian people or Tunisians, are a Maghrebi ethnic group and nation native to Northwestern Africa, primarily Tunisia, who speak Tunisian (Derja) and share a common Tunisian culture and identity. In addition, a Tunisian diaspora has been established with modern migration, particularly in Western Europe, namely France, Italy and Germany.
Youssef Rzouga is a Tunisian poet, born on March 21, 1957 in Zorda, Tunisia. He began writing in 1967. His first published text was "Something called need," a short story in the magazine Radio et Télévision (1973).
Mohammed Bennis in Arabic محمد بنيس is a Moroccan poet and one of the most prominent writers of modern Arabic poetry. Since the 1970s, he has enjoyed a particular status within Arab culture. Muhsin J al-Musawi states that "Bennis’ articulations tend to validate his poetry in the first place, to encapsulate the overlapping and contestation of genres in a dialectic, that takes into account power politics whose tropes are special. As a discursive threshold between Arab East and the Moroccan West, tradition and modernity, and also a site of contestation and configuration, Muhammad Bennis' self-justifications may reveal another poetic predilection, too."
Judeo-Tunisian Arabic, also known as Djerbian Arabic, is a variety of Tunisian Arabic mainly spoken by Jews living or formerly living in Tunisia. Speakers are older adults, and the younger generation has only a passive knowledge of the language.
Amina Said, also spelled Amina Saïd is a francophone Tunisian author.
Youssef Seddik is a noted Tunisian philosopher and anthropologist specializing in Ancient Greece and the anthropology of the Qur'an.
Abdelwahab Meddeb was a French-language poet, novelist, essayist, translator, editor, cultural critic, political commentator, radio producer, public intellectual and professor of comparative literature at the University of Paris X-Nanterre.
Kamel Omrane was a Tunisian scholar of Islam and politician. He was the Tunisian Minister of Religious Affairs.
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 interest.
Ali Douagi, or Ali el-Du'aji, was a Tunisian literary and cultural icon who is considered to be one of the pioneers of modern Tunisian literature. He is best remembered as "the father of the modern Tunisian short story". Douagi was also known for his versatility as a sketch artist, songwriter, playwright, and journalist.
Abdelhamid ben Hadouga or Abdelhamid Benhedouga was an Algerian writer, born in 1925 in Mansourah near Bordj Bou Arréridj to an Arab Algerian father and a Berber mother. He wrote more than fifteen novels in Arabic as well as short stories and plays. He has been described as one of the most important Algerian writers in Arabic of his time.. He also worked for cultural programming in a number of radio stations in Paris, Tunisia and Algeria. Between 1957 and 1974, he wrote tens of theatrical pieces and sketches for the BBC Arabic Service, Tunisian radio and TéléDiffusion d'Algérie. His novel Vent du Sud was adapted to a feature film. many of his books were translated to French. Ben Hadouga died in 1996.
Amor Ben Salem is a Tunisian Arabic writer.
Abdeljelil Temimi, also transliterated as Abdoljalil Tamimi, is a Tunisian historian. He is specialized in cultural and architectonic influences of the Ottomans and Moriscos in the Arab world.
Shukri Mabkhout, also transcribed Choukri Mabkhout, is a Tunisian academic, critic and novelist.
Hassouna Mosbahi is an award-winning Tunisian author, literary critic and freelance journalist.
