Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature
1 appearances
-
Edition 8 (2001) Winner
Somaya Yehia Ramadan
ソマヤ・イェヒア・ラマダン
Somaya Yehia Ramadan
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1951 （Cairo, Egypt）
- Died
- 2024-08-19 （Egypt (details unconfirmed)） age 73
- Nationality
- Egyptian
- Languages
- Arabic, English
- Religion
- Baháʼí Faith
- Residence History
- Cairo, Egypt → Ireland (study/residence)
Career
- Occupations
- academic, translator, writer
- Active Years
- 1995-2024
- Affiliations
- Women and Memory Forum (founding member), National Academy of Arts, Cairo (lecturer)
- Influenced By
- Virginia Woolf, Modernist writers (general)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cairo University | Faculty of Arts | Department of English Literature | — | — | Egypt |
| Trinity College, Dublin | Faculty of Arts | English/English Literature | PhD | — | Ireland |
Cairo University
Faculty of Arts
/ Department of English Literature
Country:
Egypt
Studied English literature
Trinity College, Dublin
Faculty of Arts
/ English/English Literature
Degree:
PhD
Year of Graduation:
1983
Country:
Ireland
Earned PhD in English in 1983
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature | Leaves of Narcissus (Awraq al-Nargis) | — | The American University in Cairo (associated) | winner |
Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature
2001
Work:
Leaves of Narcissus (Awraq al-Nargis)
Organization:
The American University in Cairo (associated)
Result:
winner
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Khashab wa-nuḥās (Wood and Brass)
1995 Short story collectionAn early collection of short stories blending everyday life with symbolic elements.
everyday lifesymbolism
Manāzil al-Qamar (Phases of the Moon)
1999 Short story collectionA collection of short stories that shifts between perspectives and time frames, many focusing on women's experiences and memory.
memorywomen's experiences
Awraq al-Nargis (Leaves of Narcissus)
2001 Novel (modernist techniques)A novel set largely in Ireland that explores exile, identity and liminal existence using experimental modernist techniques.
exileidentityliminality
Translations
- English translation by Marilyn Booth, AUC Press, 2006
- French translation (Feuilles de Narcisse, 2006)
Ṭarīq al-mustaqbal: ruʼyah Bahāʼīyah (Path of the Future: Baha'i Faith)
Non-fictionA non-fiction work aiming to clarify common misunderstandings about the Baháʼí Faith and present its basic tenets.
religionBaháʼí Faith
Bibliography
- Khashab wa-nuḥās (Wood and Brass), 1995
- Manāzil al-Qamar (Phases of the Moon), 1999
- Awraq al-Nargis (Leaves of Narcissus), 2001
- Ṭarīq al-mustaqbal: ruʼyah Bahāʼīyah (Path of the Future: Baha'i Faith), year unknown
Translations by Author
- Arabic translation of Virginia Woolf's 'A Room of One's Own'
Translations of Works
- Leaves of Narcissus, English translation by Marilyn Booth, AUC Press, 2006
- Leaves of Narcissus, French translation (Feuilles de Narcisse, 2006)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- modernist techniquesstream-of-consciousness-like narrationliminal narration
- Recurring Motifs
- exilememoryfemininity and identity
Legacy
Somaya Ramadan is best known for her experimental modernist novel 'Leaves of Narcissus', its translations into English and French, and for her translations of Virginia Woolf into Arabic. Her work on memory, exile and women's experience marks her as an important figure in contemporary Egyptian literature.
Quotes
-
The novel is supremely complex, with modernist techniques pushed to the utmost, and thus maintaining all along a superb and vibrant creative tension. Marked by a hallucinating and captivating narration, this is liminal writing par excellence.
Source: Jury comment for the Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature (2001)
Trivia
- Translated Virginia Woolf's 'A Room of One's Own' into Arabic.
- Founding member of the Women and Memory Forum.
- Won the Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature for 'Leaves of Narcissus'.
- Died on 19 August 2024 at age 73.