Golden Wreath of Struga Poetry Evenings
1 appearances
-
Edition 32 (1997) Winner
Adonis (Ali Ahmad Said Esber)
アドニス（アリ・アフマド・サイード・エスベール）
Adonis (Ali Ahmad Said Esber)
Pen Names:
Adonis（Pen name used for his poetry and literary work）,
Adunis（Variant transliteration used in some English-language sources）
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1930-01-01 （Al Qassabin (near Latakia), Alawite State, Mandatory Syria）
- Nationality
- Syrian
- Languages
- Arabic, French, English (in translations/interviews)
- Religion
- Non-religious / pagan-mystic tendency
- Residence History
- Al Qassabin (near Latakia), Syria → Beirut, Lebanon → Paris, France
Career
- Occupations
- poet, essayist, literary critic, editor, translator, university professor
- Active Years
- 1950-
- Affiliations
- Lebanese University (faculty), University of Damascus (visiting professor), Sorbonne / University of Paris (taught), Georgetown University (visiting), Princeton University (visiting)
- Memberships
- Académie Stéphane Mallarmé (member), Académie Universelle des Cultures (member)
- Influenced By
- Classical Arabic poetry and Qur'anic recitation traditions, Saint-John Perse (influence and translated into Arabic), Yves Bonnefoy (influence and translated into Arabic)
- Influenced
- Generations of contemporary Arabic poets (e.g., Mahmoud Darwish and others), The modernist movement in Arabic poetry
- Nominations
- Nobel Prize in Literature (nominated repeatedly since 1988)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Damascus University | — | Department of Philosophy | BA（哲学） | 1950–1954 | Syria |
| Saint Joseph University (Beirut) | — | Arabic Literature | 博士号（アラビア文学） | 1960年代–1973 | Lebanon |
Damascus University
Department of Philosophy
Degree:
BA（哲学）
Period:
1950–1954
Year of Graduation:
1954
Country:
Syria
BA in Philosophy
Saint Joseph University (Beirut)
Arabic Literature
Degree:
博士号（アラビア文学）
Period:
1960年代–1973
Year of Graduation:
1973
Country:
Lebanon
PhD-level research in Arabic literature
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Bjørnson Prize | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 2011 | Goethe Prize | lifetime achievement / body of work | — | Goethe Foundation / awarding body | 受賞 |
| 2017 | PEN/Nabokov Award for Achievement in International Literature | lifetime achievement | — | PEN America | 受賞 |
| 1997 | Golden Wreath of Struga Poetry Evenings | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 1999 | Nonino Poetry Award | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 1995 | International Nazim Hikmet Poetry Award | — | — | — | 受賞（初代受賞者） |
| 2015 | Asan Viswa Puraskaram (Kumaranasan World Prize for Poetry) | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 2016 | Stig Dagerman Prize | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 2022 | Izmir International Homer Award | — | — | — | 受賞 |
| 2011 | Griffin Poetry Prize (shortlisted, translation) | Adonis: Selected Poems (translation by Khaled Mattawa) | 翻訳（ノミネート/候補） | Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry | 候補（最終候補） |
Bjørnson Prize
2007
Result:
受賞
Goethe Prize
2011
Work:
lifetime achievement / body of work
Organization:
Goethe Foundation / awarding body
Result:
受賞
PEN/Nabokov Award for Achievement in International Literature
2017
Work:
lifetime achievement
Organization:
PEN America
Result:
受賞
Golden Wreath of Struga Poetry Evenings
1997
Result:
受賞
Nonino Poetry Award
1999
Result:
受賞
International Nazim Hikmet Poetry Award
1995
Result:
受賞（初代受賞者）
Asan Viswa Puraskaram (Kumaranasan World Prize for Poetry)
2015
Result:
受賞
Stig Dagerman Prize
2016
Result:
受賞
Izmir International Homer Award
2022
Result:
受賞
Griffin Poetry Prize (shortlisted, translation)
2011
Work:
Adonis: Selected Poems (translation by Khaled Mattawa)
Category:
翻訳（ノミネート/候補）
Organization:
Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry
Result:
候補（最終候補）
Awards & Nominations
America Award in Literature
1 appearances
-
Edition 10 (2003) Winner
Goethe Prize of the City of Frankfurt
1 appearances
-
Edition 44 (2011) Winner
Works
Major Works
The Songs of Mihyar the Damascene
1961 Poetry (lyric, experimental) 160 pagesA sequence of mostly short lyrics that transposes an early medieval figure into contemporary Damascus; a landmark collection that renewed Arabic lyrical language and form.
linguistic innovationdialogue between history and presentindividual vs collective
Translations
- English translations (e.g., Mihyar of Damascus: His Songs)
Al-Kitāb (The Book)
1995 Epic / long poetic mosaic 1900 pagesA three-volume long work (1995–2003) traversing Arab history, culture and politics in a poetic-lyrical epic.
civilizational historymemory and identityreligion and politics
Translations
- French translation (partial/full) and translations into multiple languages
A Time Between Ashes and Roses
1970 Poetry (long poems) 200 pagesA collection including several long poems written in response to the crises in Arab society following the 1967 Six-Day War.
defeat and renewalhistorical memorypoetry and politics
Translations
- English translation (e.g., Syracuse University Press edition)
Bibliography
- 1957: First Poems (Qaṣāʾid ʾūlā)
- 1961: The Songs of Mihyar the Damascene
- 1974–1978: The Static and the Dynamic (Al-Thābit wa al-Mutahawwil), 4 vols.
- 1995–2003: Al-Kitāb (The Book), 3 vols.
- 2002: Arabic translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses (first complete Arabic translation)
Translations by Author
- Saint-John Perse (French → Arabic)
- Yves Bonnefoy (French → Arabic)
- Ovid (Latin → Arabic, complete Metamorphoses)
Translations of Works
- English: Adonis: Selected Poems (translated by Khaled Mattawa, 2011)
- English: Mihyar of Damascus: His Songs (Adnan Haydar & Michael Beard, 2008)
- French: Le Livre (translated by Houria Abdel-Wahed et al.)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- modernismavant-gardesurrealistic elementsexperimental free verseneo-Sufi symbolism
- Recurring Motifs
- exile and movementidentity and memorymyth and classical reinterpretationlanguage and its limitshistory and the individual
Legacy
Adonis is regarded as one of the most influential Arab poets since the mid-20th century; through linguistic and formal innovation he became a leading figure of Arab modernism and served as a cultural bridge as critic and translator.
Academic Societies
- Académie Stéphane Mallarmé (member)
- Académie Universelle des Cultures (member)
In Popular Culture
- A wall poem by Adonis displayed in Leiden (Wall Poems project)
- Readings and lectures at international poetry festivals and literary events
Quotes
-
Religion is an ideology, it is an answer whereas poetry remains always a question.
Source: Interview on the occasion of the French release of Adoniada (2012) -
What does progress mean in poetry? For me, progress in poetry affirms difference, elation, movement, and variety.
Source: The Static and the Dynamic (Al-Thābit wa al-Mutahawwil) (1974)
Trivia
- Born Ali Ahmad Said Esber.
- Adopted the pen name 'Adonis' at age 17.
- Perennial Nobel Prize in Literature contender since 1988.
- Published the first complete Arabic translation of Ovid's Metamorphoses in 2002.
- Has lived primarily in Paris since 1975.