ABU DHABI, May 29 / WAM / His Excellency Dr. Hassan Nazim, Minister of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities of Iraq, during his tour of the 31st edition of the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, valued the great and pivotal role of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award, which is considered one of the most prominent Arab literary awards, in establishing the pillars of Arab culture. and promoting creatives at the regional and global levels.
In the forefront of the future guest and his accompanying delegation were Her Excellency Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, Minister of Culture and Youth, His Excellency Mubarak Al Nakhi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Culture and Youth, His Excellency Dr. Ali bin Tamim, President of the Abu Dhabi Center for the Arabic Language, and Saeed Hamdan Al Tunaiji, Acting Director of the Abu Dhabi Language Center , Director of the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, and a number of official figures, intellectuals and media professionals.
His Excellency toured accompanied by His Excellency Noura Al Kaabi and His Excellency Dr. Ali bin Tamim and the accompanying delegations in the corridors of the 31st edition of the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, which concludes today, where they inspected the participating pavilions.
His Excellency enriched many literary sessions and seminars, most notably his participation in a research paper in the session celebrating the Dean of Arabic Literature, Taha Hussein, the central figure of this year’s exhibition, through which he shed light on many important aspects in the life and biography of the writer.
His Excellency praised the efforts of the Abu Dhabi Center for the Arabic Language and the Sheikh Zayed Book Award, which serve Arab culture, contribute to the advancement of publishing and translation, and sponsor intellectuals and creators, explaining that celebrating creators and their projects is a celebration of Arab and human identity.
His Excellency congratulated the winners of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award in its various branches and Dr. Abdullah Al-Ghathami for being named Cultural Personality of the Year within the Sheikh Zayed Book Award, stressing that he is a great literary and critical stature that has contributed since the mid-1980s to addressing many valuable topics in the field of criticism.
His Excellency explained that the efforts and writings of Al-Ghadami played an important and effective role in bringing regarding a qualitative shift in the Arab critical discourse, and that it greatly affected the methods of modern literary criticism, translation and application, and made it possible to clearly confirm the presence of the clear academic Arab critical discourse.
His Excellency the Minister also congratulated Dr. Mohsen Al-Moussawi, Professor of Arabic and Comparative Studies at Columbia University – New York, who won the award in the category “Arabic Culture in Other Languages”. Other cultures affirm the authenticity of our cultural and creative heritage, pointing out that the award’s appreciation of these exceptional cultural projects indicates the extent of their comprehensiveness, depth and interest in building a bridge of knowledge and human communication between the peoples of the world.
His Excellency stressed that the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair is an ideal opportunity to enhance the cultural movement in the Arab region. After three decades, it has become a platform that mobilizes the elites of Arab and foreign intellectuals to meet on the basis of common awareness and awareness, pointing out that the exhibition re-advanced the continuity of the publishing sector, and strengthened its presence following A season of hiatus that will restore the brilliance of the book and knowledge.
He also made it clear that choosing the Dean of Arabic Literature, Taha Hussein, as a central figure, deservedly honored this high literary stature, instilling interest in Arab culture in the hearts of future generations.
Her Excellency Noura bint Mohammed Al Kaabi, Minister of Culture and Youth, emphasized the exhibition’s role in encouraging the publishing industry and enhancing the position of writers in light of technological development and the spread of digital content. She appreciated the great effort made in preparing for the Sheikh Zayed Book Award and its role in enhancing the contribution of culture makers, thinkers, creators and publishers. Especially the youth and their support to move forward to enrich the cultural and literary life in the Arab region, in an award bearing the name of the first patron of culture, the late founding father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God rest his soul.
Her Excellency praised the great diversity that characterized the current session of the Abu Dhabi Book Fair, in addition to the accompanying events such as direct seminars, black box cinema, and others, noting that the Abu Dhabi Fair was and still is one of the most important cultural events in the country and the region, offering new and distinctive not only from different titles. It is distinguished in its cultural diversity, but rather goes beyond it to present ideas and renewable methods of interacting with the audience of the exhibition.
Her Excellency thanked the Iraqi Minister of Culture for his influential participation in the current session of the exhibition, and also extended her thanks and appreciation to the organizers of the exhibition, especially the Abu Dhabi Center for the Arabic Language, headed by His Excellency Dr. Ali bin Tamim, and all the staff.
His Excellency Dr. Ali bin Tamim welcomed the visit of the Minister and his presence, who enriched the exhibition through his participation in many sessions and seminars and his meeting with intellectuals, stressing that His Excellency the Minister is not a foreign figure in the cultural movement, but rather a prominent figure with many important contributions in the field of translation, and His Excellency has a group of Works published within the “Kalima” translation project, which seeks to revive the translation movement in the Arab world.
He explained that His Excellency Dr. Hassan Nazim was one of the first participants in the Abu Dhabi International Conference on Translation in its first edition in 2012, where the conference aims to enhance the role of translation in building bridges between civilizations and nations, and discuss ways to develop the capabilities of young translators, and support the next generation to continue the process of transferring culture and science and arts to and from the Arabic language, as well as preparing trained translators in various fields.
His Excellency participated in many dialogue sessions, presented research papers and recorded important interventions that affected the cultural agenda of the exhibition. He also celebrated the writers of the UAE and the Arab world and met with cultural figures and figures, in addition to visiting many pavilions and Iraqi publishing houses participating in the exhibition.