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Sinan Antoon

シナン・アントーン

Sinan Antoon

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1967-01-01 （Baghdad）
Nationality
Iraqi
Languages
Arabic, English
Religion
Christianity
Residence History
Iraq (Baghdad) → United States (New York)

Career

Occupations
Associate Professor, Novelist, Poet, Translator
Active Years
1990-
Affiliations
Gallatin School, New York University (Associate Professor)
Influenced By
Mahmoud Darwish
Nominations
Ya Maryam (Ave Maria) - Shortlisted for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction (2013), Fihris (Index) - Longlisted for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction (2017)

Education

University of Baghdad
College of Arts / Department of English
Degree: B.A.
Period: 1986–1990
Year of Graduation: 1990
Country: Iraq
BA in English with minors in Arabic and Translation
Georgetown University
Graduate School / Arab Studies
Degree: M.A.
Period: 1993–1995
Year of Graduation: 1995
Country: United States
M.A. in Arab Studies
Harvard University
Graduate School / Arabic and Islamic Studies
Degree: Ph.D.
Period: 2002–2006
Year of Graduation: 2006
Country: United States
Doctoral dissertation on the 10th-century poet Ibn al-Hajjaj and the sukhf genre

Awards

Prix de la Littérature Arabe
2017
Work: The Corpse Washer (French translation: Seul le Grenadier)
Organization: Actes Sud (translator/publisher involved)
Result: 受賞
Saif Ghobash Banipal Prize for Literary Translation
2014
Work: The Corpse Washer (self-translation)
Organization: Banipal Trust
Result: 受賞
Arab American Book Award
2014
Work: The Corpse Washer
Organization: Arab American Book Award
Result: 受賞
National Translation Award
2012
Work: Translation of Mahmoud Darwish's In the Presence of Absence
Organization: American Literary Translators Association (ALTA)
Result: 受賞
Berlin Prize
2013
Organization: American Academy in Berlin
Result: フェローシップ受賞
Lannan Residency
2014
Organization: Lannan Foundation
Result: 選出
Mellon Fellowship
2002
Work: Fellowship for dissertation research
Organization: Andrew W. Mellon Foundation
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

I'jaam: An Iraqi Rhapsody

2002 Novel

An experimental novel addressing trauma caused by war and violence; widely acclaimed in the Arab world.

WarTraumaMemory
Translations
  • English translation: I'jaam: An Iraqi Rhapsody (translated by Rebecca Johnson and the author)

The Corpse Washer

2010 Novel

A novel that depicts violence and loss in Iraq through the lens of a man who washes the dead; widely praised in translation.

DeathLossEveryday violence
Translations
  • English translation: The Corpse Washer (self-translation/co-translated by the author)
  • French translation: Seul le Grenadier

The Baghdad Eucharist

2012 Novel

A novel exploring faith, identity, and communities fractured along religious and ethnic lines.

FaithCommunityDivision
Translations
  • English translation: The Baghdad Eucharist (translated by Maia Tabet)
  • Spanish translation: Fragmentos de Bagdad (translated by María Luz Comendador)

The Book of Collateral Damage

2016 Novel

A fragmented account of war and its aftermath, and how collateral damage shapes individuals and societies.

Aftermath of warDocumentationMorality
Translations
  • English translation: The Book of Collateral Damage (translated by Jonathan Wright)

The Baghdad Blues

2006 Poetry

A collection of poems in English reflecting on Baghdad and exile.

NostalgiaExileThe city

The Poetics of the Obscene: Ibn al-Hajjaj and Sukhf

2006 Scholarly work

A scholarly study based on his doctoral research on the 10th-century poet Ibn al-Hajjaj and the sukhf genre.

Classical Arabic poetryStylistics

Bibliography

  • The Poetics of the Obscene: Ibn al-Hajjaj and Sukhf (2006)
  • The Baghdad Blues (2007)
  • I'jaam (2002) / I'jaam: An Iraqi Rhapsody (English translation)
  • Ya Maryam (Ave Maria) (2012)
  • The Corpse Washer (2013 English translation and others)
  • The Baghdad Eucharist (2017 English translation)
  • The Book of Collateral Damage (2019 English translation)
  • Khuzama (Lavender) (2023)

Adaptations

  • Documentary film 'About Baghdad' (co-director and co-producer)

Translations by Author

  • Translation of Mahmoud Darwish's In the Presence of Absence

Translations of Works

  • The Corpse Washer → French translation Seul le Grenadier, and other translations
  • I'jaam → English translation I'jaam: An Iraqi Rhapsody, and other translations

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Concise, restrained prosePoetic proseBlend of realism and experimental techniques
Recurring Motifs
War and violenceExile and homelandLoss and memoryReligion and ritual

Legacy

Sinan Antoon is regarded as one of the leading contemporary Arab writers and translators; his works on war and exile have been widely translated and internationally acclaimed.

Quotes

  • "One of the great fiction writers of our time."
    Source: Alberto Manguel (critic)

Trivia

  • Co-founder and co-editor of the e-zine Jadaliyya.
  • One of the first self-translated works to win the Saif Ghobash Banipal Prize (self-translation of The Corpse Washer).