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Mahmoud Darwish

マフムード・ダルウィーシュ

Mahmoud Darwish

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1941-03-13 （Al-Birwa, Acre Subdistrict, Mandatory Palestine）
Died
2008-08-09 （Houston, Texas, U.S.） age 67
Nationality
Palestinian
Languages
Arabic, English, French, Hebrew
Residence History
Al-Birwa (birthplace) → Deir al-Asad (within Israel) → Haifa, Israel → Moscow, USSR (study) → Cairo, Egypt → Beirut, Lebanon → Ramallah, West Bank → Houston, Texas, U.S.

Career

Occupations
Poet, Writer, Editor
Active Years
1964-2008
Affiliations
Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee, Editor for literary periodicals in Israel (e.g. Al Jadid)
Memberships
Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)
Influenced By
Abd al-Wahhab Al-Bayati, Badr Shakir al-Sayyab, Arthur Rimbaud, Allen Ginsberg, Yehuda Amichai (Hebrew poet)
Influenced
Contemporary Palestinian poets, Writers and poets across the Arab world

Education

Lomonosov Moscow State University
Period: 1970–1971（在籍約1年）
Country: USSR
Attended for approximately one year; formal degree status unclear.

Awards

Lotus Prize for Literature
1969
Organization: Afro-Asian Writers' Association
Result: 受賞
Lenin Peace Prize
1983
Organization: USSR
Result: 受賞
Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters
1993
Organization: French Ministry of Culture
Result: 受賞
Lannan Foundation Cultural Freedom Prize
2001
Organization: Lannan Foundation
Result: 受賞
Al Owais Award
2002
Organization: Al Owais Foundation
Result: 受賞
Prince Claus Awards
2004
Organization: Prince Claus Fund
Result: 受賞
Golden Wreath of Struga Poetry Evenings
2007
Organization: Struga Poetry Evenings
Result: 受賞
Argana International Poetry Prize
2008
Organization: Argana International Poetry Prize (Morocco)
Result: 受賞（没後）
International Forum for Arabic Poetry Prize
2007
Organization: International Forum for Arabic Poetry
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Wingless Birds (Asafir bila ajniha)

1960 Poetry

An early collection addressing exile, loss and longing for homeland.

ExileLossHomeland
Translations
  • Available in English translation

Leaves of Olives (Awraq Al-Zaytun)

1964 Poetry

An early influential collection including poems such as 'Identity Card'.

IdentityPoliticsResistance
Translations
  • Translated into English and many other languages

Identity Card (Bitaqat huwiyya)

1964 Poetry (single poem/collection)

Famous poem repeating 'Write down: I am an Arab', expressing Palestinian identity and anger.

IdentityResistanceAssertion
Adaptations
  • [Music] I Am An Arab (song adaptation) (1976)
Translations
  • Numerous translations including English and Hebrew

Mural (Jidariyya)

2000 Poetry

A major long-form poem/collection dealing with memory, history and loss.

MemoryHistoryLoss
Translations
  • Available in English translation

Bibliography

  • Wingless Birds (1960)
  • Leaves of Olives (1964)
  • Identity Card (1964)
  • Mural (2000)
  • Memory for Forgetfulness (1987)

Adaptations

  • Write Down, I Am an Arab (film subject)
  • Appearance in Jean-Luc Godard's Notre Musique (2004)

Translations of Works

  • Works translated into English, French, Hebrew and many other languages

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Early works followed classical Arabic meter and monorhyme; moved to free verse in the 1970sCombination of political engagement and personal lyricism, heavy use of metaphor
Recurring Motifs
Watan (homeland)Exile and returnLoss and memoryIdentity

Health

  • Heart disease (history of heart attacks/operations)
    1984, 1998（手術）および2008（最終手術）
    Underwent heart surgeries in 1984 and 1998; died following heart surgery in 2008.

Legacy

Mahmoud Darwish is regarded as the leading voice of modern Palestinian poetry; his work on homeland, exile and memory has had wide influence, translated and studied globally, and he is seen as a Palestinian cultural symbol.

Museums

  • Mahmoud Darwish Foundation (museum/exhibition) Ramallah area, Palestine

Academic Societies

  • Mahmoud Darwish Foundation research and awards
  • Subject of study in Middle East literary and poetry scholarship worldwide

Archives

  • Mahmoud Darwish archives (foundation / university holdings)

In Popular Culture

  • Poems continue to be adapted into music, theatre and film (e.g. Marcel Khalife settings)
  • Worldwide memorial readings and events

Quotes

  • Write down: I am an Arab.
    Source: Poem 'Identity Card' (1964)

Trivia

  • 'Identity Card' (1964) became an iconic poem widely cited across the Arab world.
  • He wrote the Palestinian Declaration of Independence manifesto in 1988.
  • Underwent multiple heart operations and died after surgery in 2008.