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Book/Printed Material History of Arab Literature.

About this Item

Title

  • History of Arab Literature.

Summary

  • Jirjī Zaydān was born in Beirut, Lebanon, into a Syrian Orthodox family of modest means. After a mediocre experience at local schools, he moved to Egypt to study at al-Qaṣr al-ʻAynī medical college, but he abandoned medicine in favor of a literary and publishing career. He founded Dar al-Hilal printing and publishing house and in 1892 brought out the weekly al-Hilal magazine, which continues publication to this day. Al-Ahram newspaper and al-Hilal became the most long-lived and influential media advocates for Egyptian national causes and modernizing progress based on Western models. Zaydān was one of the most influential media figures of his generation. With Zaydān as editor, publisher, and contributor, al-Hilal reached a wide regional audience. His commitment to national pride, intellectual curiosity, and energetic entrepreneurship derived from the book Self-Help by the Scottish author Samuel Smiles, which had been translated into Arabic in 1886. Zaydān did not limit himself to popular journals. His History of Arabic Literature consists of four volumes, of which the first two volumes are presented here bound together and covering the pre-Islamic period to the 11th century. In his support for modernization, Zaydān ran afoul of some contemporaries who claimed he was a Mason. The work is illustrated with graphics from European sources. Each volume has a table of contents and a price list of Zaydān's books available for sale, in person or by mail order. These up-to-date features of bookmaking give this work a modern feel quite different from the manuscript tradition or the early works of the Bulaq Press.

Names

  • Zaydān, Jirjī, 1861-1914 Author.

Created / Published

  • Al-Faggala, Egypt : Dar al-Hilal Printing House, [1911 to 1912]

Headings

  • -  Egypt
  • -  Lebanon
  • -  300 to 1000
  • -  Arabic literature
  • -  Criticism

Notes

  • -  Title devised, in English, by Library staff.
  • -  Original resource extent: 1 book containing volumes 1 and 2 ; 24 centimeters.
  • -  Reference extracted from World Digital Library: "Jirji Zaydan and Masonry," http://www.djelfa.info/vb/showthread.php?t=83751.|Donald External M. Reid, "Syrian Christians, the Rags-to-Riches Story, and Free Enterprise," International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies 1, number 4, October 1970.
  • -  Original resource at: Qatar National Library.
  • -  Content in Arabic.
  • -  Description based on data extracted from World Digital Library, which may be extracted from partner institutions.

Medium

  • 1 online resource.

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 2021666234

Online Format

  • compressed data
  • pdf
  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

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Credit Line: [Original Source citation], World Digital Library

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Zaydān, Jirjī, Author. History of Arab Literature. [Al-Faggala, Egypt: Dar al-Hilal Printing House, to 1912, 1911] Pdf. https://www.loc.gov/item/2021666234/.

APA citation style:

Zaydān, J. (1911) History of Arab Literature. [Al-Faggala, Egypt: Dar al-Hilal Printing House, to 1912] [Pdf] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2021666234/.

MLA citation style:

Zaydān, Jirjī, Author. History of Arab Literature. [Al-Faggala, Egypt: Dar al-Hilal Printing House, to 1912, 1911] Pdf. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2021666234/>.