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Nuruddin Farah

ヌールアディーン・ファーラフ

Nuruddin Farah

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1945-11-24 （Baidoa, Italian Somaliland）
Nationality
Somali
Languages
Somali, English, Arabic, Amharic
Residence History
Minneapolis, United States → Cape Town, South Africa → Berlin, Germany → Chandigarh, India → London, United Kingdom → Sweden → Sudan → Uganda → Nigeria → Italy

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Essayist, Playwright, Professor
Active Years
1965-
Affiliations
International Advisory Board, Bildhaan: An International Journal of Somali Studies

Education

Panjab University, Chandigarh
Philosophy, Literature, Sociology
Degree: BA
Period: 1966–1970
Year of Graduation: 1970
Country: India
Undergraduate studies; began writing in English while at university
University of London
Period: 1974–1975
Year of Graduation: 1975
Country: United Kingdom
Attended 1974–75; degree information unclear
University of Essex
Theatre
Degree: MA
Period: 1975–1976
Year of Graduation: 1976
Country: United Kingdom
Completed master's studies in theatre

Awards

English-Speaking Union Literary Award
1980
Work: Sweet and Sour Milk
Organization: English-Speaking Union
Result: winner
Kurt Tucholsky Prize
1991
Organization: Kurt Tucholsky Foundation
Result: winner
Best Novel Award, Zimbabwe
1993
Work: Gifts
Organization: Unknown
Result: winner
Premio Cavour
1994
Work: Close Sesame (Italian translation)
Organization: Italian translation prize
Result: winner
Neustadt International Prize for Literature
1998
Organization: Neustadt Prize Committee
Result: winner
St. Malo Literature Festival Prize
1998
Work: Gifts (French edition)
Organization: St. Malo Literature Festival
Result: winner
Lettre Ulysses Award
Organization: Lettre Ulysses
Result: winner
Royal Society of Literature International Writer
2024
Organization: Royal Society of Literature
Result: honor

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

From a Crooked Rib

1970 Novel

The story of a nomadic girl who flees an arranged marriage to an older man; addresses gender, power and individual freedom in Somali society.

women's rightstradition vs changeindividual freedom
Translations
  • Translated into multiple languages

Sweet and Sour Milk

1979 Novel

Part of the 'Variations on the Theme of an African Dictatorship' trilogy; explores power and the individual under authoritarian rule.

dictatorshippolitics and the individualsocial oppression

Maps

1986 Novel

Set during the 1977 Ogaden conflict, uses second-person narration to explore cultural identity and memory; first volume of the 'Blood in the Sun' trilogy.

identitywar and memoryremembrance

Gifts

1993 Novel

Second novel of the 'Blood in the Sun' trilogy; examines family, exile, and the responsibilities of memory toward one's country.

exilefamilymemory
Translations
  • French edition (award-winning)
  • Translated into other languages

Secrets

1998 Novel

Final volume of the 'Blood in the Sun' trilogy; portrays the intersection of personal secrets and public history.

secretshistory and the individualsearch for truth

Hiding in Plain Sight

2014 Novel

A recent novel addressing migration, life in exile, fragmented memories, and family relationships.

migrationfamilymemory

North of Dawn

2018 Novel

A recent novel that has been praised for articulating the grief and aftermath experienced by families affected by terrorism and violence.

terrorismlosstrauma

Bibliography

  • From a Crooked Rib (1970)
  • A Naked Needle (1976)
  • Sweet and Sour Milk (1979)
  • Sardines (1981)
  • Close Sesame (1983)
  • Maps (1986)
  • Gifts (1993)
  • Secrets (1998)
  • Links (2003)
  • Knots (2007)
  • Crossbones (2011)
  • Hiding in Plain Sight (2014)
  • North of Dawn (2018)

Translations of Works

  • French edition of Gifts (award-winning)
  • Italian translation of Close Sesame (Premio Cavour)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
political and social realismexperimental narration (e.g. second-person)polyphonic narration and intersecting cultural perspectives
Recurring Motifs
exile and returntension between state and individualfamily relationships and memorywomen and gender issues

Legacy

Nuruddin Farah is regarded as one of the most important contemporary writers, internationally recognized as a leading voice in Somali and African literature. His works on politics, exile and gender have been widely translated and are the subject of sustained academic interest.

Academic Societies

  • International Advisory Board, Bildhaan
  • Royal Society of Literature (International Writer recognition)

Quotes

  • I try to keep my country alive by writing about it.
    Source: Various interviews and profiles (e.g. The Guardian profile) (2012)

Trivia

  • Began writing in English in the late 1960s; debut novel published in 1970.
  • Lived in self-imposed exile for about 22 years after warnings from the Somali government.
  • Many novels (including trilogies) address the Ogaden conflict and Somali history.
  • Often mentioned as a perennial nominee for the Nobel Prize in Literature.