Category: Arts, Culture & Entertainment

AlAnoud Al Sharekh – First Kuwaiti Woman to Receive France’s Ordre National du Merite : 2016

Dr. AlAnoud Al Sharekh. Researcher. Academic. Author. Women’s Rights Activist.

Presently, Research Associate, The Chatham House and ‘The Arab Gulf Institute, Washington

Activity :

  • Founding Member – Abolish 153 (aka) Abolish Article 153
  • Founding Member – Mudhawi’s List
  • Director – Ibtkar Strategic Consulting

Awards:

  • First Kuwaiti Woman to receive France’s ‘Ordre National du Merite’ (National Order of Merit)
  • Listed among BBC’s 100 Women of 2019
  • Arab Prize – Best Publication in a Foreign Journal (2013-2014) by The Doha Institute (2014)
  • Voices of Success Kuwait Award (2018)

Education:

  • BA – Bachelor’s Degree – English, Kings College, London (1996)
  • MA – Masters Degree – Applied Linguistics and English-Arabic Language and Translation – School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), London
  • Ph.D – Doctorate – Near and Middle Eastern Studies, Comparative Literature and Feminism

Books:

  • Challenging Limitations: The Redefinition of Rules for Women in the GCC (2005)
  • Angry Words Softly Spoken: A Comparitive Study of English and Arabic Women Writers (2006)
  • The Gulf Family : Kinship Policies and Modernity (2007)
  • Popular Culture and Political Identity in the Arab Gulf States (2008)

http://www.alanoudalsharekh.com

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pix: alanoudalsharekh.com

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KUWAIT

Nisreen Krimed – UAE based Fashion Designer and Entrepreneur

Nisreen Krimed. Entrepreneur. Fashion Designer.

Founder of hand made womens’ wear fashion label – Canava Designs which specialises in stories created with Arabic Calligraphy and Cartography.

Education:

  • Alumnus – Esmod Fashion Institute, Dubai
  • B.A – Faculty of Fine Arts, Damascus, Syria – Design and Visual Communications (1995-1999)

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Canava Design blends fashion and graphic design. (Supplied) / pix: arabnews.com

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PALESTINE / SYRIA / UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (U.A.E.)

Egyptian Ballet Dancer Luca Abdel Nour Wins 2nd Rank at International Ballet Competition Prix de Lausanne, Switzerland : February 2021

Luca Abdel Nour – Ballet Dancer claimed the second rank for classical ballet at the international ballet competition Prix de Lausanne in Switzerland which was held from January 31 to February 6.

Abdel Nour also won the “Best Swiss Candidate” award and the “Audience Favorite” Award.

78 dancers participated in this year’s competition. They were selected based on audition videos. 

source: egypttoday.com

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pix: egypttoday.com

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EGYPT

Sony World Photography Awards 2021 – Regional Winners.

The National Awards program is an initiative set up by the World Photography Organisation and Sony to support local photographic communities around the world, with 53 countries taking part this year.

A National Winners – of the 2021 Sony World Photography Award of the Region are:

  • Photographer Abdelhamid Tahoun (Egypt)
  • Photographer Naser Alomari (Kuwait)
  • Photographer Abdulla Al-Mushaifri (Qatar)
  • Photographer Naif Al-Bugami (Saudi Arabia) – winning picture below
  • Photographer – Mireia Vilaplana (based in Dubai, UAE)

Over 330,000 images from 220 territories were submitted to the Sony World Photography Awards 2021 and over 165,000 were entered to the Open competition (from which the National Awards winner was selected).

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Photograph of Naif Al-Bugami, Saudi Arabia / pix: eyeofriyadh.com

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EGYPT /KUWAIT / QATAR / SAUDI ARABIA / U.A.E

Abeer Balubaid. First Saudi Female Pianist

Abeer Balubaid. Pianist. Composer.

Balubaid has also composed and performed two original pieces ‘Tempo’ and ‘Mystery’ with Saudi Jazz Band, Alfarbai at the King Abdulaziz Center For World Culture (Ithra) on September 23 on the occasion of 90th Saudi National Day.

She is also a Member of the Music Committee of Saudi Arabian Society for Culture and the Arts (SASCA).

Education:

  • B.E. : Bachelors degree in Architecture, Effat University, Saudi Arabia

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pix: abouther.com

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SAUDI ARABIA

A New Museum Dedicated to the Life of the Prophet (pbuh) inaugrated : February 02nd, 2021

The opening ceremony of the International Exhibition and Museum of the Life of the Prophet and Islamic Civilization took place in Madinah on February 02nd.

The International Exhibition and Museum of the Life of the Prophet and Islamic Civilization was launched under the supervision of the Muslim World League (MWL) and is the first in a series of Islamic museums scheduled to be constructed around the world under the organization’s umbrella.

Located next to the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah, the museum is open 24 hours a day, and is dedicated to the history of the Islamic world and the life of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

The exhibition features dozens of paintings and interactive displays. At the moment, there are seven languages available to visitors — Arabic, English, Spanish, Urdu, French, Turkish and Indonesian. It also includes a 4DX theater, which screens a series of films about the Prophet’s life.

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FASTFACTS

The International Exhibition and Museum of the Life of the Prophet and Islamic Civilization

• Size: 5,000 square meters

• Location: Next to the Prophet’s Mosque, Madinah

• Number of floors: Two

• Exhibit and pavilion displays: 25 main pavilions

• 500 antique items from the Prophet’s era

• A main screen to feature the masterpieces found in the Qur’an and the Sunnah

• A movie theater showing a film about the Prophet’s life

• Virtual reality shows

• A special presentation of the Constitution of Madinah and the Makkah Document

• A presentation of the efforts of Saudi Arabia in serving the Qur’an and the Sunnah

• Languages: French, English, Urdu, Spanish, Turkish, Indonesian, Arabic

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source: arabnews.com

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pix: arabnews.com

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Madinah , SAUDI ARABIA

Feb. 04 th – Birth Anniversary of Egyptian Geographer Gamal Hamdan

Gamal Hamdan was a scholar, writer, researcher and one of the pioneering Egyptian geographers.

He was a prolific author and published over 29 books both in Arabic and English and 79 research papers.

Education:

  • B.A. – Cairo, Egypt
  • M.A – University of Reading, U.K.
  • Ph.D – University of Reading, U.K.

Books :

In Arabic

  • Studies on the Arab World, Cairo, 1958.
  • Patterns of Environments, Cairo, 1958.
  • Study on Urban Geography, Cairo 1958.
  • The Arab City, Cairo 1964.
  • Arabs’Oil, Cairo, 1964.
  • Colonisation and Liberation in the Arab World, Cairo, 1964.
  • Anthropology of Jews, Dar el-Helal Publications, Cairo, 1967.
  • Egypt’s Identity, Dar el-Helal Publications, Cairo, 1967.
  • The Strategy of Colonisation and Liberation, Cairo, 1978.
  • Introduction to “Cairo” by Desmond Stewart, translated by Yehya Haqqi, 1969.
  • The Contemporary Islamic World, Cairo, 1971.
  • Between Europe and Aisa, A Study in the Geographic Counterparts, Cairo, 1972.
  • The Arab Republic of Libya, A Study in Geopolitics, Cairo 1973.
  • 6 October War in the International Strategy, Cairo, 1974.
  • The Suez Canal, Cairo, 1975.
  • New Africa, Cairo, 1975.
  • Egypt’s Identity, A Study in the Genius of the Place, four volumes, Cairo, 1975-84.

In English :

  • Population of the Nile Mid-Delta, Past and Present, Reading University, June 1953, 2 volumes.
  • Khartoum : Study of a City, Geog. Review, 1956.
  • Studies in Egyptian Urbanism, Cairo, 1960.
  • Evolution of Irrigation and Agriculture in Egypt. A History of Land Use in Arid Regions, Ed. L.
  • Dubley Stamp UNESCO, Paris, 1961.
  • Egypt : the Land and the People, A Guide Book to Geology, 1962.
  • Pattern of Medieval Urbanism in Arab World, Geog. Review, April 1962.
  • A Political Map of the New Africa, Geog. Review October 1963.
  • The Four Dimensions of Egypt
  • ‘The Personality of Egypt: A study of the ingenuity of the place (1967)
  • Jews Anthropology (1986)
  • Studies of the Arab World
  • The Contemporary Islamic World Geography

Awards:

  • State Encouragement Award in Social Sciences (1986)
  • Scientific Progress Award from Kuwait (1992)
  • Science Medal of First Class for his book ‘The Personality of Egypt’ (1988)

Born February 04th, 1928. Laid to rest on April 17th, 1993

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pix: egypttoday.com

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EGYPT

Ibrahim Ishag. Novelist. Academic.

Ibrahim Ishag . Novelist. Short Story Writer. Narrator. Academic.

Taught English language both in Omdurman (Sudan) and Saudi Arabia.

Other Honours :

  • Chairperson – Sudanese Writers Union
  • Served as Jury Member – Tayeb Saleh Prize for Novelists

Novels:

  • An Event in the Village (1969), Night and Town Acts (1971), The Old School Festival (1976), and News about the Girl Miyakaya (1980), and The Scandal of the Norein Family (2004).

Short Stories:Short Stories :

  • Short stories collection People from Kafa (2006) published by Abdelkarim Mirghani Culture Centre

Passed away in January 2021

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pix: dabangasudan.org/en

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SUDAN

Palestinian Library – ‘Khalidi Library’ known as ‘Al-Maktaba Al-Khalidiya’ is now Restored in Jerusalem’s Old City – 2021

Founder Hajj Raghib Al-Khalidi preserved the rich collection of books and manuscripts his family had assembled over many generations.

The original building was built in 1389.

The library, known in Arabic as Al-Maktaba Al-Khalidiyya, was established in the Old City of Jerusalem in Tariq Bab Al-Silsilah near the Bab Al-Silsilah, one of the main gates to Al-Haram Al-Sharif — also known as Temple Mount — home of Al-Aqsa Mosque.

It contains one of the world’s biggest private collections of Arabic manuscripts (approximately 1,200 titles), the oldest of which is about 1,000 years old. Among them are about 200 extremely rare Islamic texts, many of them intricately decorated with geometric motifs in colored ink.

The Khalidis claim to trace their ancestry to the early Muslim conqueror Khalid ibn Al-Walid, who died in 642. A family called Khalidi was documented in Jerusalem in the 11th century. The best attested family lineage, however, dates back to the 14th and 15th centuries during the Mamluk Empire.

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KHALIDI LIBRARY MILESTONES

  • 1389 – The Mamluk-era building is constructed.
  • 1900 – Raghib Al-Khalidi establishes library.
  • 1967 – East Jerusalem is annexed by Israel.
  • 1989 – Friends of the Khalidi Library is incorporated.

source: Arab News (arabnews.com)

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The Khalidi Library in Jerusalem’s Old City. (Photos by Robert Dawson and Khalidi Library) / pix: arabnews.com

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JERUSALEM, Old City

Soad Hosny – Egyptian Cinema’s Sweetheart : Birthdate – January 26th, 1942

Soad Hosny, Egyptian Cinema Superstar Sweetheart ,dubbed by her fans as ‘Egyptian Cindrella’.

Her most prominent roles include her roles in “Al- Ashqya’ al-Thalatha” (Three Naughty Boys) (1962), directed by Hossam Eddine Mostafa; “Be’r el-herman” (The Well of Deprivation) (1969), directed by Kamal el-Sheikh; “Khaly Balak Men Zouzou” (Take Care of Zouzou) (1974), written by the exceptional poet Salah Jaheen and directed by Niazi Mostafa, and “Sagheera ‘Al Hob” (Too Young to Fall in Love) (1966), which was also directed by Niazi Mostafa. 

Hosny used her outstanding talent to call for gender equality in the TV series “Hekayat Hwa we Heyain” (1985) that achieved booming success.

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pix: egypttoday.com

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EGYPT