Said Al-Ghazzi ( ar, سعيد الغزي; 11 June 1893 ‎ – 18 September 1967) was a

Syrian Syrians ( ar, سُورِيُّون, ''Sūriyyīn'') are an Eastern Mediterranean ethnic group indigenous to the Levant. They share common Levantine Semitic roots. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend of both indi ...

lawyer, politician and two time

prime minister of Syria The prime minister of Syria (Arabic: رئيس وزراء سوريا), formally titled the president of the Council of Ministers ( ar, رئيس مجلس الوزراء), is the head of government of the Syrian Arab Republic. Nomination The prime ...

. He was born in

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

Early life

Said belonged to the prominent al-Ghazzi family, which was established in Damascus since the 14th century and which historically provided the leadership of the

Shafi'i The Shafii ( ar, شَافِعِي, translit=Shāfiʿī, also spelled Shafei) school, also known as Madhhab al-Shāfiʿī, is one of the four major traditional schools of religious law (madhhab) in the Sunnī branch of Islam. It was founded by ...

madhhab A ( ar, مذهب ', , "way to act". pl. مَذَاهِب , ) is a school of thought within '' fiqh'' (Islamic jurisprudence). The major Sunni Mathhab are Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali. They emerged in the ninth and tenth centurie ...

(school of law) and produced dozens of noted scholars over the centuries. In the late 19th and early 20th century members of the family consistently held a seat in the municipal council and became increasingly involved in politics. Sa'id's great-grandfather Umar was the

mufti A Mufti (; ar, مفتي) is an Islamic jurist qualified to issue a nonbinding opinion (''fatwa'') on a point of Islamic law (''sharia''). The act of issuing fatwas is called ''iftāʾ''. Muftis and their ''fatwas'' played an important role ...

of the Shafi'is and was considered by a biographer to be the most preeminent of the notables of Damascus in his lifetime. He was implicated in the 1860 massacres of Christians in the city and imprisoned in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...

where he died the following year. Sa'id's eponymous grandfather voluntarily accompanied his father Umar but nothing more is heard of him. His son Abd al-Wahab was Sa'id's father.

Political career

A lawyer by occupation, Sa'id entered politics during

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

rule and following

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

's independence in 1946. He served as the justice minister in 1936, 1945 and 1947. In 1946 he was the finance minister and in 1947 he also served as the national economy minister. In 1954 he was prime minister. The following year he was foreign minister. In 1962 Sa'id served as the president of the

Speaker of the People's Assembly of Syria The Speaker of the People's Assembly of Syria (Arabic: رئيس مجلس الشعب السوري rayiys majlis alshaeb alsuwrii) represents the People's Assembly, Syria's legislature, signs documents and speaks on its behalf. Throughout its hist ...

. His daughter

Nadia al-Ghazzi Nadia al-Ghazzi ( ar, نادية الغزي, born in 1935) is a Syrian lawyer and writer. She is also a TV presenter and was one of the first women on Syrian Television. Early life and career Al-Ghazzi was born in Damascus, Syria, in 1935. Her f ...

is a lawyer, writer, and TV presenter, and his niece is the poet and artist

Huda Naamani Huda Naamani (also known as Houda Naamani, Hoda Naamani, or Houda K. Al-Naamani) (Arabic: هدى نعمانىِ) is a Damascus-born Arab feminist writer, poet, publisher, and artist. After moving to Beirut, Naamani wrote poetry that revolves arou ...

References

Bibliography

* * 1893 births 1967 deaths Prime Ministers of Syria Foreign ministers of Syria Syrian ministers of justice Syrian ministers of defense Syrian ministers of finance Syrian ministers of Awqaf Speakers of the People's Assembly of Syria Politicians from Damascus 20th-century Syrian lawyers 20th-century Syrian politicians Al-Ghazzi family Syrian Freemasons {{Syria-politician-stub