World Literary Awards

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Samah Selim

サマ・セリム

Samah Selim

Profile

Gender
Female
Nationality
Egyptian
Languages
Arabic, English
Residence History
Rutgers University, New Jersey, USA → New York (Columbia University, Barnard College) → Aix-en-Provence (University of Provence), France

Career

Occupations
scholar, translator, university professor, author
Active Years
1997-
Affiliations
Rutgers University, Columbia University (visitor/adjunct), Princeton University (visitor/adjunct), University of Provence (Aix-en-Provence)

Education

Barnard College
English Literature (undergraduate) / Department of English
Country: United States
Reported to have studied English literature at the undergraduate level; exact graduation year not specified.
Columbia University
Graduate School (PhD program) / Related to English/Comparative Literature
Degree: PhD
Year of Graduation: 1997
Country: United States
Received PhD in 1997.

Awards

Banipal Prize (for Arabic Literary Translation)
2009
Work: The Collar and the Bracelet (by Yahya Taher Abdullah; translated by Samah Selim)
Category: 翻訳
Organization: Banipal (UK magazine of modern Arab literature)
Result: 受賞
Arkansas Arabic Translation Award
2011
Work: Shajarat al-Durr (novel by Jurji Zaydan; translated by Samah Selim)
Category: 翻訳
Organization: University of Arkansas Press
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Novel and the Rural Imaginary in Egypt, 1880-1985

2004 Literary criticism / scholarship

A scholarly study examining rural representations in modern Egyptian novels (1880–1985), analyzing how rurality shapes narrative and its relations with urban and national discourse.

rural vs. urbanmodern Egyptian literaturenarrative and society

The Collar and the Bracelet (translation)

2009 Translation (Arabic novel into English)

An English translation of a novel by Yahya Taher Abdullah, bringing to Anglo-American readers a work depicting Egyptian social life and individual struggles.

social historyfamily and tradition

Bibliography

  • The Novel and the Rural Imaginary in Egypt, 1880-1985 (2004)
  • Yahya Taher Abdullah, The Collar and the Bracelet (trans. Samah Selim; Banipal Prize winner, 2009)
  • Jurji Zaydan, Shajarat al-Durr (trans. Samah Selim; Arkansas Translation Award, 2011)
  • Khaled Ziadeh, Neighborhood and Boulevard: Reading through the Modern Arab City (trans. Samah Selim)
  • Mohamed Makhzangi, Memories of a Meltdown: An Egyptian Between Moscow and Chernobyl (trans. Samah Selim)
  • Miral al-Tahawy, Brooklyn Heights (trans. Samah Selim; forthcoming at time of source)
  • Arwa Saleh, The Stillborn: Notebooks of a Woman from the Student-Movement Generation in Egypt (trans. Samah Selim)

Translations by Author

  • Yahya Taher Abdullah, The Collar and the Bracelet — English translation
  • Jurji Zaydan, Shajarat al-Durr — English translation
  • Khaled Ziadeh, Neighborhood and Boulevard — English translation
  • Mohamed Makhzangi, Memories of a Meltdown — English translation
  • Miral al-Tahawy, Brooklyn Heights — English translation (forthcoming)
  • Arwa Saleh, The Stillborn — English translation

Style & Themes

Literary Style
scholarly and precise prosetranslation approach that prioritizes fidelity to the source and cultural annotation
Recurring Motifs
rural/urban contrastintersection of history and societycross-cultural dialogue through translation

Legacy

Samah Selim has played an important role in introducing modern Arabic literature to English-speaking audiences as both a translator and a scholar. She is recognized for contributions to literary scholarship and for being the first person to win both the Banipal and Arkansas translation awards.

Trivia

  • First person to win both the Banipal Prize (2009) and the Arkansas Arabic Translation Award (2011).