Afra Atiq (
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
:
عفراء عتيق) is an Emirati
spoken word poet
Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics of ...
who was born in the
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...
to an Emirati father and a Japanese-American mother. Atiq holds a PhD in Media and Creative Industries from the
United Arab Emirates University
United Arab Emirates University (UAEU; ar, جامعة الإمارات العربية المتحدة) is a public research university located in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates. It is the oldest university in the United Arab Emirates. It was esta ...
and is the co-founder of the Untitled Chapters, a collective of female Emirati writers.
Now, she works as a full-time poet. In 2015, She was named the "Best Performer" by Rooftop Rhythms and won the Abu Dhabi Music and Art Foundation Creativity award for her poem "''An Open Letter to Cancer"'' in 2017.
Education and career
Afra Atiq was born and raised in the city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. She studied at United Arab Emirates University, where she obtained her master's degree in International Relations and Diplomacy, and more recently her PhD in Media and Creative Industries.
In 2017, Atiq published her study in the International Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Sciences. She also conducted a number of social research on literature and education. At a young age, Afra Atiq started writing poems in different languages such as Arabic, English, and French.
In her poems, she highlights different topics including self-acceptance, grief, identity, and heritage. Over the past few years, Atiq has presented her work on various regional and international platforms including the Emirates Airline Literature Festival, STEP Music Festival, Sheraa Sharjah, TED-X Fujairah, and the Art Center of New York University in Abu Dhabi.
Afra Atiq has shared the stage with a number of brilliant poets including
Carol Ann Duffy
Dame Carol Ann Duffy (born 23 December 1955) is a Scottish poet and playwright. She is a professor of contemporary poetry at Manchester Metropolitan University, and was appointed Poet Laureate in May 2009, resigning in 2019. She was the first ...
(Poet Laureate), Imitiaz Dhaker,
Farah Chamma, and the youngest Poetry World Slam Champion (in 2012),
Harry Baker. In 2017, her poem "An Open Letter to Cancer" won the Abu Dhabi Music and Art Foundation Creativity award, making her the first Emirati poet to win this award since its establishment in 1996. She is also the first Emirati to perform at Nuyorican Poet's Cafe in New York, the Bowery Poetry Club, and has won the PoetsNY poetry slam in New York.
Poetry collections
* I Wrote Poems
* A Good Punch
* Numbers
* 2 AM
* An Open Letter to Cancer
* A Love Letter
* Cher Moi
* Not Your Typical
Awards
* 2018: Won the Special Achievement Award at Arab Women Awards.
* 2017: Won the Abu Dhabi Music and Art Foundation Creativity Award.
* 2015–2016: Named as the "Best Performer" by Rooftop Rhythms.
See also
*
Eman Al Yousuf
Eman Al Yousuf (Arabic: :ar: إيمان اليوسف, إيمان اليوسف) is an Emirati writer who was born in the United Arab Emirates in 1987. She has published three novels "''the Window Which Saw", "Guard the Sun", "The Resurrection of ...
*
Dubai Abulhoul
*
Nadia Al Najjar
References
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Living people
21st-century English poets
Spoken word artists
21st-century Emirati poets
Emirati women poets
Year of birth missing (living people)
Emirati people of American descent
Emirati people of Japanese descent