Laila al-Atrash (

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 ...

: ليلى الأطرش; died 17 October 2021) was a Palestinian and Jordanian writer and journalist. She was the author of half a dozen novels, one of which (''A Woman of Five Seasons'') was translated into English by

Nura Nuwayhid Halwani Nura may refer to: Places * Nura (river), a river in Kazakhstan * Nura District, a district in Kazakhstan * Nura, Kyrgyzstan, a village in Kyrgyzstan * Nursu, or Nura, a village in Azerbaijan * Nura, Kazakhstan, a number of villages in Kazakh ...

and

Christopher Tingley Christopher Tingley is an English academic and translator of Arabic literature. He was born in Brighton and read English at the University of London ( MPhil 1973) and at Leeds University, for many years lecturing in English and linguistics at vari ...

. Atrash was also noted for her journalism, especially her documentaries on leading figures of

Arabic culture Arab culture is the culture of the Arabs, from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the east, and from the Mediterranean Sea in the north to the Horn of Africa and the Indian Ocean in the southeast. The various religions the Arab ...

. She served as the President of PEN Jordan. She started her media career as a journalist and press reporter, then as producer and presenter of radio programs. In the seventies she entered the broadcasting field as a TV news editor, anchor and program producer. Her TV programs covered a range of cultural and social themes and were broadcast by a large number of Arab TV channels and stations. Notable in her TV production was a series of investigative and in-depth programs and interviews with a host of Arab intellectuals, writers and artists, as well as with other symbols of modern Arab culture in various fields in countries like Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, Jordan, Syria, Mauritania, Lebanon, Yemen, and Tunisia. Those won numerous Golden, Silver and special recognition awards at television award ceremonies across the Middle East. Laila al-Atrash, held a degree in Arabic literature, a degree in Law and a Diploma in French. Her published works include: “Sunrise from the West” (a novel, 1988); “A Woman of Five Seasons” (a novel, 1990); “A Day Like Any Other” (a collection of short stories, 1991); “Two Nights and the Shadow of a Woman” (a novel, 1997); “The Neighing of Distances” (a novel, 1999); “Illusive Anchors” (a novel, 2005); and "Women at Crossroads" (travel memoirs 2009), "Desires of that Autumn" (a novel, 2010). Critics endorsed and heralded her bold and creative role in portraying the distinct context of the experience of Arab women and in articulating the political, social, and religious dimensions of their striving for human rights and self-fulfillment. Her last novel ''Hymns of Temptation'' has been nominated for the 2016

Arabic Booker Prize The International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) ( ar, الجائزة العالمية للرواية العربية) is the most prestigious and important literary prize in the Arab world. Its aim is to reward excellence in contemporary Arabic ...

References

1948 births 2021 deaths Jordanian writers Palestinian writers Palestinian emigrants to Jordan People from Beit Sahour Jordanian women writers Palestinian women writers {{Palestine-writer-stub