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Sabah Fakhri: Loss of the Last Giant

By Sami Asmar
On 2 November 2021, the world lost a legendary singer at the age of 88 years. A Syrian who sang specifically the repertoire of his hometown of Aleppo and became popular worldwide in a rare occurrence due to his exceptional talent, charisma, perseverance, and specialization in a genre suiting his tenor voice and cultural background. 
 
Born Sabahudine (or Sabah al-Din) Abu Qaws in 1933, when he committed to a career in the arts as a teenager, his family and teachers felt Abu Qaws did not have a musical ring to it. In honor of Fakhri al-Barudi, a Syrian national figure who also founded the conservatory of Damascus and was one of his earliest sponsors, he adopted the stage name Sabah Fakhri.
Essays and Features

Arab Publishing Industry Drowning in Tsunami of Economic, Social Crises

By Naomi Pham with Elie Chalala
There is an old saying: Cairo writes, Beirut prints, and Baghdad reads. Books have played essential roles in the Arab world’s intellectual scene, and bookshops in Syria and Lebanon flourished in the 1960s and 70s. However, readers’ relationships with books have changed in modern times; scholars and intellectuals no longer flock to bookstores as they did in the past. Instead, book publishing worldwide — particularly their physical print and sale — appear to be a dying trade in the digital age.
 
Essays and Features

Founded in Egypt by Lebanese Immigrants, Legendary Al Ahram Newspaper Marks 145th Anniversary

By Elie Chalala and Naomi Pham

Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, Lebanese and Syrian immigrants took the Arab journalistic world by storm, leaving numerous literary and cultural achievements in their wake. These immigrants established newspapers and professional literary publications of renown. Overseas, some two dozen Arabic-language newspapers sprung in the United States alone, headed by writers like Ilya Abu Maadi, Mikhail Naimy, and Amin Rihani. In the Arab world, two Lebanese Christian brothers landed on the shores of Egypt and established one of the most prominent household publications in Egypt — Al Ahram Newspaper.

Essays and Features

Despite Spending by Local Arab Media, Foreign-Owned Media Platforms Continue to Win Struggle for Trust of Audience

By Elie Chalala

The rise in popularity of Arabic-speaking foreign-owned media outlets over the years has generated the misconception that money and technology can buy credibility. These foreign-owned news platforms, which early on boasted prime influence, have receded alongside the idea of neutrality in reporting, according to a recent article in the London-based Al Arab newspaper. Despite this decline, however, they still maintain a sizable viewership when compared to local Arab media outlets like MTV, LBCI, Al Jadeed, Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya.

Essays and Features

The Roots of Ego: Is Arab Literature Ready For Real Autobiography?

By Naomi Pham

Studies of autobiography in literature, especially in Western scholarship, typically favor a Western definition of the genre that denies the possibility of a "true" autobiography in Arab literature. Most associated with the ideas of Franz Rosenthal, the argument follows the claim of the "superiority of the "Western self"' and its "perceived capacity for individualism and self-awareness necessary to produce an autobiography, a capacity they believed was lacking in Arab culture," according to the late Issa Boullata’s review of "Interpreting the Self: Autobiography in the Arabic Literary Tradition" by Dwight Reynolds (For the review, see Al Jadid Vol. 7, No. 37, Fall 2001). Moroccan researcher Mohamed al-Wardi's recent book, "The Beginnings of Autobiography Among the Arabs: Customs, Types, and Objectives" (Seliki Brothers, 2021), combats this notion and synthesizes much of what is known about Arab autobiography into a new understanding of the genre. 

Books

Poet, Publisher, Painter, and Patron of the Arts: Remembering the Extraordinary Etel Adnan (1925-2021)

By 
Elie Chalala
 
Lebanese-American writer Etel Adnan, beloved by many for her ‘meditative’ voice and colorful language in writing, passed away on November 14 in Paris at 96, leaving behind an evocative legacy of poetry, novels, and art that vividly depicted war, history, and nature.

Egyptian Belly Dance Losing Touch with Roots as Cultural Phenomenon

By 
Naomi Pham

Belly dance in Egypt has undergone major cultural and social transformations since the mid-20th century. Dancers often perform at live gatherings and across social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. However, belly dancing as an art form has become redefined in today’s age. It has increasingly been the target of criticism, the latest being a claim by Abdel Halim in Al Araby that the dance has deteriorated further under neoliberalism.

Beauty Before Age Remains Dominant Casting Trend in Arab Film

By 
Naomi Pham

The presence of women on the Arab silver screen has historically suffered under patriarchy. Though the “male gaze” is not exclusive to Arab cinema and television, the marginalization of women on the screen has increasingly affected Arab discourse. Hiyam Bannout’s article “Masculinity Dominates Arab Drama and Marginalizes Women” in Independent Arabia explores the lack of veteran and older actresses occupying major roles in film. Arab actresses are “dramatically marginalized” once they turn 40, brushed aside in favor of young actresses at the expense of limited talent and experience, according to Bannout.

A Multifaceted Diaspora: New History Explores the Many Reasons for 20th Century Exodus of Egyptian Jewry

By 
Al Jadid Staff
 
Once home to as many as 75,000 Jews, today’s Egypt has a sparse population, with only nine Jewish Egyptians living in the country in 2021, according to the Jewish Virtual Library. Dr. Muhammad Abu al-Ghar’s new book, “The Jews of Egypt in the Twentieth Century: How They Lived and Why They Left” (Dar al-Shorouk, 2021, 476 pp) addresses the departure of Jews from the country from the early to mid-19th century to the present.

The State of Arab Journalism: Emile Menhem’s Dynamic Blend of Text and Visual Aesthetics Modernizes the Arab Newsroom

By 
Naomi Pham

Graphic design played a significant role in the evolution of Arab newsprint. Arab graphic design historians locate this art’s roots deep in the region’s visual heritage, drawing from its history of calligraphy, geometric compositions, motifs, and colors. However, the field itself is relatively new, emerging as a discipline only in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Graphic design now plays a widespread role in everyday life, whether in public architecture or the design of everyday items. 


Emile Menhem: Invigorating Arab Journalism Through Graphic Design
By Lara Balaa
Khatt Books, 2019

Jabbour Douaihy (1949-2021): His Literary Legacy a ‘Memory Lane’ of Lebanese Life

By 
Elie Chalala

Despite his battle against leukemia, Jabbour Douaihy's death at age 72 on July 23 came suddenly, a surprise to even some of his acquaintances. Douaihy wrote several novels throughout his life, and though he never intended this role, critics and friends regarded him as the narrator of Lebanese life. He wrote about aspects of Lebanese life that history books could only dream of capturing, detailing Lebanon throughout its various historical moments to its current state of dystopian ruin and collapse, a world seen vividly in his last novel, "Poison in the Air.”

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