Arabic language
All topics-
Youssef Ziedan's Novel ''Azazeel''
In Case of Doubt, Choose Doubt
Youssef Ziedan's "Azazeel" was awarded the renowned Arab Booker Prize in 2009. Our reviewer Andreas Pflitsch says that this historical novel is a plea against religiously motivated violence
-
Mansoura ez-Eldin's ''Beyond Paradise''
Dark Family Secrets on the Nile
A book by the Egyptian writer Mansoura ez-Eldin has been published in German for the first time. In it, the novelist relates a family saga set in the landscape of the Nile Delta. But as a work that first appeared in pre-revolutionary 2009, does it have any relevance now? Axel von Ernst finds out
-
The Cultural Scene in Iraq
Returning to Something Like Normality
In the wake of the long years of terror, a vibrant cultural scene is once more flourishing in Iraq. But people still have come to terms with the fact that culture in the 'New Iraq' is becoming more and more privatised. Birgit Svensson reports from Baghdad
-
Stand-up Comedy in Dubai
Clean Humour for the Arab World
Stand-up comedians have a reputation for using provocative and often political jokes. Not to be daunted by this apparent obstacle to success, an American and an Emirati are trying to create a stand-up scene in the conservative Arab Gulf states. Through their Dubai comedy school, they promote a clean brand of humour. Christoph Dreyer reports
-
The Arab Spring and Demography
The Revolutionary Power of Youth
"Look here, I've got a university degree, but this society doesn't give me a chance: no wonder I'm a rebel." The unrest in the Arab world may have taken most people by surprise, but demographers knew it was coming. According to Jéronimo Louis Samuel Barbin, this unrest is the sound of the voice of young people who have long been at home in the modern world
-
Obituary for Fuad Rifka
The Advocate of Lyrical Attentiveness
The renowned Lebanese poet Fuad Rifka died last Saturday at the age of 80. Alongside Adonis and Mahmud Darwish he was one of the great revivers of Arabic poetry, yet among those of his own generation he remained unique until the end. An obituary by Stefan Weidner
-
Rethinking World Literature
The Arabic Novel in Non-Western Eyes
Anthologies of "world literature" have often used the term to market a largely Western canon. But isn't western literature still implicitly regarded as the measure of all things? And are we not overlooking other literary values out of sheer ignorance? By Fakhri Saleh
-
Arabic in Latin Script
Lost in Arabic
Arabic was never easy. But if the language spoken by some 240 million people with its convoluted verb forms and guttural phonology suddenly starts appearing in Latin script, then things get really complicated. And at the same time very straightforward. Details from Mona Sarkis
-
Interview with Hans Magnus Enzensberger
"Europe Has No Copyright on the Enlightenment"
At the invitation of Sheikh Al Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, a number of eminent German and Arab intellectuals recently met for a "cultural dialogue". Hans Magnus Enzensberger was among their number, addressing in his speech the question of whether the Arab world needs a new Enlightenment. Loay Mudhoon spoke to the author