Martin Orwin (born 1963) is a British

linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...

, scholar and writer, specializing in the languages and cultures of the

Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...

Biography

Orwin studied

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 ...

and

Amharic Amharic ( or ; (Amharic: ), ', ) is an Ethiopian Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amharas, and also serves as a lingua franca for all oth ...

and has a PhD in the

phonology Phonology is the branch of linguistics that studies how languages or dialects systematically organize their sounds or, for sign languages, their constituent parts of signs. The term can also refer specifically to the sound or sign system of a ...

of the

Somali language Somali (Latin script: ; Wadaad writing, Wadaad: ; Osmanya: 𐒖𐒍 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘 ) is an Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language belonging to the Cushitic languages, Cushitic branch. It is spoken as a mother tongue by Somalis in ...

. Since 1992, he has been a lecturer in Somali and Amharic at the

School of Oriental and African Studies SOAS University of London (; the School of Oriental and African Studies) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury ar ...

(SOAS) in London, England, where he teaches both

Afro-Asiatic The Afroasiatic languages (or Afro-Asiatic), also known as Hamito-Semitic, or Semito-Hamitic, and sometimes also as Afrasian, Erythraean or Lisramic, are a language family of about 300 languages that are spoken predominantly in the geographic su ...

languages. Since 2020, he also teaches both

and

Somali literature Somali literature is the literature used by the ethnic Somalis of Somalia, Somaliland, Djibouti, Yemen, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Kenya. Somali poetry Nation of Bards Due to the Somali people's passionate love for and facility with poetry, Somalia h ...

at the

Università degli Studi di Napoli "L'Orientale" University of Naples "L'Orientale" ( it, Università degli Studi di Napoli "L'Orientale") is a university located in Naples, Italy. Founded in 1732 by Matteo Ripa, it is organized in four Faculty (division), Faculties. The oldest school of Sinolo ...

(

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

, Italy). He has also published articles on Somali language and poetry and has conducted field research in the Horn of Africa. Orwin's ongoing research interests include language use in poetry, particularly in the metrics of Somali verse. In addition, he has translated a number of Somali poems, two of which were published in the ''Modern Poetry in Translation (No.17 Mother Tongues Special Edition 2001)'' compendium. Orwin has worked closely with a number of Somali poets, including

Gaarriye Mohamed Hashi Dhamac ( so, Maxamed Xaashi Dhamac, 1949 – 30 September 2012) better known as Gaarriye, was a Somali poet and political activist. He belonged to the Sa'ad Musa sub-division of the Habr Awal Isaaq clan. Biography Gaariye was born in ...

and

Hadraawi Mohamed Ibrahim Warsame (1943 – 18 August 2022), known by the pseudonym Hadrawi, was a Somali poet, philosopher and songwriter. Having written many notable protest works, Hadrawi has been likened by some to Shakespeare, and his poetry has been ...

, and is very involved with the

Poetry Translation Centre The Poetry Translation Centre (PTC) is an organization dedicated to translating poetry from Africa, Asia and Latin America. It is a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity. It was founded by the British poet Sarah Maguire in 2004. I ...

based in London. He is also the author of ''Colloquial Somali'', a popular book & CD instruction course on the Somali language. Additionally, Orwin is a member of the International Advisory Board of ''Bildhaan: An International Journal of Somali Studies'', published by

Macalester College Macalester College () is a private liberal arts college in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Founded in 1874, Macalester is exclusively an undergraduate four-year institution and enrolled 2,174 students in the fall of 2018 from 50 U.S. states, four U.S te ...

Major works

*Orwin, Martin, ''Colloquial Somali: A Complete Language Course'', (Routledge: 1995). *Orwin, Martin and Awde, N and Xaaji, Cabdulqaadir, ''Somali-English, English-Somali Dictionary and Phrasebook'', (Hippocrene Books: 1999).

Notes

References

Martin Orwin's homepage at SOASMartin Orwin's biography at Poetry Translation Centre

External links

Complete list of Martin Orwin's publications
{{DEFAULTSORT:Orwin, Martin 1963 births Living people English writers Academics of SOAS University of London Somalists Ethiopianists

Biography

Major works

See also

Notes

References

External links