Dr. Anwar Ridhwan or Mohd Anwar Ridhwan (born 5 August 1949) is a widely known Malaysian novelist and writer.

A short Biography

Anwar Ridhwan was born in an agricultural based family who was then reside in Sungai Besar, Selangor

Selangor

Selangor also known by its Arabic honorific, Darul Ehsan, or "Abode of Sincerity") is one of the 13 states of Malaysia. It is on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and is bordered by Perak to the north, Pahang to the east, Negeri Sembilan to the south and the Strait of Malacca to the west...

, previously the family lived in the neighboring state of Perak

Perak

Perak , one of the 13 states of Malaysia, is the second largest state in the Peninsular Malaysia bordering Kedah and Yala Province of Thailand to the north, Penang to the northwest, Kelantan and Pahang to the east, Selangor the Strait of Malacca to the south and west.Perak means silver in Malay...

. He graduated from University Malaya with a Bachelor of Arts in 1973, then Masters of Arts in 1983 and finally finished his doctorate (Ph.D) in 1998. Soon he pursue his career in Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka

Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka

Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka is the government body responsible for coordinating the use of the Malay language in Malaysia and Brunei.-History:...

 (DBP) until resignation in 2005 as Production Director of DBP. On 11 August 2009, he was officially announced as the nation's 10th Sasterawan Negara by the Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin in his office in Putrajaya

Putrajaya

Putrajaya is a planned city, located 25km south of Kuala Lumpur, that serves as the federal administrative centre of Malaysia. The seat of government was shifted in 1999 from Kuala Lumpur to Putrajaya, due to the overcrowding and congestion in the Kuala Lumpur areas...

.

Writings

In writing, he is a well known novelist and a short story writer. His first novel, Hari-hari Terakhir Seorang Seniman won the Yayasan Sabah-GAPENA Novel Prize of 1979. Arus (1985) won the Malaysian Literary Prize of 1984/1985. Among his famous short stories are Perjalanan Terakhir (1971), Dunia adalah Sebuah Apartmen (1973), Sesudah Perang (1976) and Dari Kiev ke Moskova (1992). Naratif Ogonshoto won the Sastera Perdana Award of Malaysia 2000/2001 which was inspired and finally finished by Dr. Anwar Ridhwan in Japan. The novel with another title, "Bili i Nebili Ostrovov Ogonsoto" was published in Russian (translated by Victor Pogadaev) in 2006, Sanct-Petersburg (Paideia).

Achievements

1. Karya Sastera Prize of Malaysia (Hadiah Karya Sastera Malaysia) - Short Story "Perjalanan Terakhir (1971)
2. Karya Sastera Prize of Malaysia (Hadiah Karya Sastera Malaysia) - Short Story Dunia Adalah Sebuah Apartmen (1973)
3. Karya Sastera Prize of Malaysia (Hadiah Karya Sastera Malaysia) - Short Story Sesudah Perang (1976)
4. Karya Sastera Prize of Malaysia (Hadiah Karya Sastera Malaysia) - Short Story Sasaran,
5. Karya Sastera Prize of Malaysia (Hadiah Karya Sastera Malaysia) - Short Story Sahabat (1982)
6. Karya Sastera Prize of Malaysia (Hadiah Karya Sastera Malaysia) - Short Story Menjadi Tua (1983)
7. 1st Prize Novel Writing Competition by Yayasan Sabah dan GAPENA 1 Hari-hari Terakhir Seorang Seniman (1979)
8. Malaysian Literary Prize (Hadiah Sastera Malaysia) 1984/1985 with the novel Arus
9. Sastera Perdana Award (Anugerah Sastera Perdana) 2002
10. 10th National Laureate Award (Anugerah Sasterawan Negara ke-10) on 20 August 2009 by the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia, Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin.

External links

• NST National Laureate
• Singapore Writers Festival
• Arah dan Cabaran Penulis Muda
• http://www.sun2surf.com/article.cfm?id=38843 (A Man Of Letters The Sun)