Asmaa Azaizeh’s ‘Dragonflies’ in Three Languages
“Every time we stopped in the shade of a tree, / one of us would shout: ‘Here we are!’ / A fantasy mightier than mountains.”
“Every time we stopped in the shade of a tree, / one of us would shout: ‘Here we are!’ / A fantasy mightier than mountains.”
Every time we stopped in the shade of a tree,
one of us would shout: “Here we are!”
A fantasy mightier than mountains.
“The project brings together ten poets from the Arab world, Spain and Catalonia, selected by a committee of experts from the Arab world and Spain, and invites them to compose works on a specified theme. These are then translated by a team of professional translators in a workshop that is held in Barcelona.”
Last Thursday, Banipal magazine and the Mosaic Rooms in London hosted an evening of Palestinian poetry with readings by Asma’a Azaizeh and Marwan Makhoul in Arabic and English followed by a discussion, where the poets were asked about reading their work in Israel, their relationship to their work, and more. ArabLit’s Amira Abd El-Khalek was there: … Continue reading Palestinian Poets Asma’a Azaizeh and Marwan Makhoul on Reading Their Work in Israel, Irony, and Fighting With the Poem
On Thursday, January 24 at 6:30 p.m. (for a 7 p.m. start), Banipal magazine and The Mosaic Rooms are inviting Londoners to an evening of “poetry and discussion” with poets Asma’a Azaizeh and Marwan Makhoul: The event will be introduced by Banipal editor Samuel Shimon and chaired by Omar al-Qattan. Talks will be followed by a Q&A, reception, and book … Continue reading If You’re in London: A Q&A with Palestinian Poets Asma’a Azaizeh and Marwan Makhoul
It is the ArabLit tradition to share a curated list of poems on Christmas Day.
“The winners and runners-up live in Nigeria, Lebanon, the US, Russia, the UK, Egypt, Palestine, and the UAE, with further origins in Pakistan, Syria, Palestine, and beyond. The youngest winner is 15-year-old Batool Abu Akleen, a student in Gaza.”
“We are in such a critical situation that we are inverting the role of theater: instead of having that art form as a tool to reflect on society, to convey social order, to incite rebellion or revolution, and most of all justice in times of crisis, what we are striving for at the moment is to gather the dismantled pieces of a very vivid theatrical scene in Lebanon. It is our particular role now to keep theater and theatermakers alive and dignified.”
For those who might have missed some of our 2020 Women in Translation Month (#WiTMonth) coverage, a look back.
“There is very little Arabic poetry by women translated to English; for Women in Translation Month (#WiTMonth), we offer a brief look at ten poets. Of the women writers listed — an eclectic list of personal favorites and by no means canon — only one, Iman Mersal, has a collection traditionally published in English translation”
The Barjeel Art Foundation today launches the Barjeel Poetry Prize, an international two-language ekphrastic poetry competition that invites writers to respond to twenty works of Arab art from the 20th century.
To mark the day, we have a list of 21 poems by Arab women, translated to English, starting with the sixth century and ending with work published in 2020.