Ahmed Tawfik Taymour Pasha (1871–1930) was an Egyptian writer and historian. Taymour Pasha was born on 6 November 1871 in

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

to a family of the Egyptian elite, his father Isma'il Taymur being of

Kurdish Kurdish may refer to: *Kurds or Kurdish people *Kurdish languages *Kurdish alphabets *Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes: **Southern Kurdistan **Eastern Kurdistan **Northern Kurdistan **Western Kurdistan See also * Kurd (dis ...

origin and his mother of

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

descent.

Biography

Isma'il Taymur was a member of the royal entourage of the Muhammad Ali dynasty, which was of Albanian origin. The family's Turco- Circassian background was common among the Egyptian elite. Ahmed was educated by his elder sister,

Aisha Taymur Aisha E'ismat Taymur ( ar, عائشة عصمت تيمور‎ or 'A'isha al-Taymuriyya ; 1840–1902) was an Egyptian social activist,

and

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

, active in the field of

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

and her husband Muhammad Tawfiq. For some years, he was a student at the French School, but did not finish it with a degree. He stead home, where he learned Turkish and Persian. Before he reached his 20th birthday, he began his career as a writer. His house became a meeting place for many cultured men of his time who discussed literature, modern sciences and politics. He was widowed early when his wife died of

measles Measles is a highly contagious infectious disease caused by measles virus. Symptoms usually develop 10–12 days after exposure to an infected person and last 7–10 days. Initial symptoms typically include fever, often greater than , cough, ...

, and he left his family's house in Cairo to the nearby countryside. He focused on the education of his two sons, Muhammad and

Mahmud Taymur Mahmud Taymur (16 June 1894–25 August 1973) was a Fiction, fiction writer. He contributed to several publications. Biography He was born in Cairo on 16 June 1894. into a family famous for literature. His father, Ahmed Taymour (1871-1930) was a ...

who gained fame as a playwright and as a novelist, respectively. As a wealthy scholar and bibliophile Ahmed encouraged their literary pursuits. Aisha had been influenced by the Ottoman age notion of 'pure

aesthetics Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, often expressed thr ...

'. Ahmed's outlook was more on the search of a renewed Arab Golden Age, which was common among Egyptian intellectuals after the 1882 British Rule in Egypt. He however as a man of "many letters" pioneered the study of folklore and folkart, including the

shadow play Shadow play, also known as shadow puppetry, is an ancient form of storytelling and entertainment which uses flat articulated cut-out figures (shadow puppets) which are held between a source of light and a translucent screen or scrim. The cut-ou ...

tradition, that had spread during the Ottoman period. In the 1920s he collaborated with Syrian journalist

Muhib Al Din Al Khatib Muhib Al Din Al Khatib (1886–1969) was a Syrian journalist and politician who established various publications in Hejaz and Egypt, including ''Al Qibla'' and '' Al Fath''. Early life and education Born in Damascus in July 1886 Al Khatib was t ...

and funded his magazines, ''Al Zahra'' and '' Al Fath''. Taymour Pasha wrote among others, the following six books in Arabic: * A'lam al-muhandisin fi 'l-Islam –Eminent Geometers, (Architects and Artists) in Islam (أعلام المهندسين في الإسلام) * al-Amthal al-'ammiyya – Colloquial Proverbs (الأمثال العامية) * al-Athar an-nabawiyya – The Prophet's Traces (الآثار النبوية) * al-Hubb 'inda 'l-'Arab – Love among Arabs (الحب عند العرب) * Dabt al-a'lam – Survey of Eminent Personalities (ضبط الأعلام) * La'b al-'Arab – Games of the Arabs (لعب العرب)

Heritage and honors

He spent his large inherited fortune mostly on books and scripts. He bequeathed his library of more than 20,000 books to public use to the Egyptian National Library. It contains rare Arabic masterpieces.''Encyclopedia of Arabic Literature'', Band 2, Julie Scott Meisami, Paul Starkey, Taylor & Francis, 1998, p.761 He was well versed in literature, linguistics and

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

history and a member of the prestigious

Arab Academy of Damascus Arab Academy of Damascus ( ar, مجمع اللغة العربية بدمشق) is the oldest academy regulating the Arabic language, established in 1918 during the reign of Faisal I of Syria. It is based in al-Adiliyah Madrasa and is modeled on the ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taymur, Aisha Folklorists Egyptian novelists Egyptian male poets 1871 births 1930 deaths Egyptian people of Kurdish descent Egyptian people of Turkish descent 19th-century Egyptian historians 20th-century Egyptian historians