Jurji Zaydan
Encyclopedia
Jurji Zaydan was a prolific Lebanese novelist, journalist, editor and teacher most noted for his creation of the journal al-Hilal, which he used to serialize his 23 historical novels.
His primary goal as a writer and intellectual during the Nahda was to imbue the common Arabic population with knowledge of their own history through the entertaining medium of the novel and enjoyed a widespread popularity that remains today.
to an Orthodox Christian family of limited means. His father owned a restaurant and, being illiterate and uneducated himself, placed little importance on education. Because of this, Zaydan dropped out of school after completing an elementary education to help his father run the business.
However he maintained a desire to educate himself by attending night classes in English until, in 1881, at the age of 20, he was admitted to the Syrian Presbyterian College as a medical student. Here, he developed an interest in concepts of individualism such as laissez-faire economics, the Freemason belief in a universal enlightenment, and social Darwinism. He was particularly influenced by Samuel Smile’s book, Self-Help
(published in 1859), which he felt he could relate to due to its emphasis on a rags-to-riches success story built upon hard work and perseverance. Furthermore, the book’s focus on individualism and the self, a relatively new concept in Arab intellectual thought, would be a common theme in Zaydan’s later historical novels.
He attended the university around the same time as Ya’qub Sarrouf (1852–1927), who first translated Self-Help into Arabic and would later found the magazine al-Muqtataf (1876), with whom he shared ideals of modernizing the Arab world and emphasis on individual success through hard work.
Cornelius Van Dyck (1818–1895), an American professor of pathology at the Syrian Protestant College known for his translation of the Bible into Arabic in 1847, first encouraged Sarrouf to translate Self-HelpA. He also influenced Zaydan’s worldview, leading him to adopt the idea that education was the most important factor for the progress and development of a people. Such widespread education could only be reached by widespread internal reform and modernization of all aspects of Arab government and daily life. Zaydan therefore became critical of contemporaries such as Mustafa Kamal and Ahmed Orabi, who were concerned solely with gaining independence from Western influence. Zaydan argued that reform must precede independence in order to ensure success.
In 1882, professor E. Lewis was fired from the Syrian Presbyterian College for lightly praising Charles Darwin
in a speech he made to students of the college. Because the concept of Darwinism
was highly controversial amongst the Presbyterian Church at the time, it had forbidden its inclusion in any curriculum. This led to mass protests amongst the students, many of whom left or were expelled for rebelling. Additionally, many of the European priests running the college were beginning to favor English over Arabic as the language of education. Zaydan was among those who left Syria for Cairo, where many Lebanese intellectuals and members of the Nahda had already relocated as a reaction to increased Ottoman
suppression.
After a short stint in the Medical School of ‘Ain ‘Sans and a military expedition with the British army to the Sudan, he turned his focus to developing his writing career.
A. Ya’qub Sarrouf began publishing al-Muqtataf in 1876 with help from Cornelius Van Dyck and his Syrian Presbyrerian College classmates Faris Namir and Shahin Makarius. The magazine was primarily concerned covering modern scientific advancements, the first to do so in the Arab world, and is particularly known for its controversial coverage of the theory of evolution and Darwinism in the early 1880s.
His first book was published in 1889 with Ta’rikh al-Masuniya al-Amm, in which he aimed to correct misconceptions about the Freemasons, of which he was a member for a brief period of time. The Freemason belief that universal knowledge existed and should be available to every person appealed to intellectuals like Zaydan and their quest to tap into this knowledge.
In 1890, he published al-Ta’rikh al-'Alamm (History of the World), a rather thin history of Asia and Africa with a focus on the Middle East. Still, it is cited as one of the first non-Islamic histories to be written in Arabic, marking a turning point in the development of modern Arab education. Before, the entirety of Arab history had been recorded by the ulama
, the religious scholars of the Caliphate. This was the first attempt at recording a non-religious version of Middle Eastern history.
During this time, he taught Arabic and opened a publishing house he named Dar al-Hilal (The Crescent). His professional and personal life took a turn in 1891 with his marriage to Maryam Matar and the publication of his first historical novel, al-Mamluk al-Shariid (The Fleeing Mamluk). The novel met with such broad success that he was able to quit his teaching job. He would continue to steadily produce roughly one novel a year until his death in 1914.
He began publishing his most influential project, the journal al-Hilal (The Crescent) in 1892. It originally contained five sections—a history of the most famous men and events; articles by him or other writers; the serialization of his historical novels; monthly events and world news of Egypt and Syria; and eulogies and criticism, mostly involving contemporary literature. With its focus on informing the public about Islamic history and new concepts within Western Civilization, the magazine often took on an encyclopedic tone.
His primary aim remained steady throughout his publication of al-Hilal and his historical novels. This was to provide the common Arabic people with an accurate sense of their own history in an accessible, entertaining way. Because of this, historical accuracy took firm precedence over plot and character development in each of his novels, and was often critical of Western writers who bent historical fact to fit their literature, claiming such liberties misled the general public.
The scholar’s accuracy with which he approached each novel is further demonstrated by his frequent inclusion of documented sources, frequent footnotes and introductory chapters that provided historic, cultural, and geographic context to the historic event of choice The entertainment aspect came in with a love story between fictitious characters and a mystery of some sort to maintain reader interest. His plots were often weak, relying mostly on convenient coincidences between characters to drive the love story and mystery, with almost all of his novels ending in a happily ever after.
His characters were often one-dimensional, with no insight given on their skills, background or their view of the time, institutions or society they were a part of. Because he would present all character traits and personalities within the first mention of each character, character development was never present. These static characters, coupled with his straightforward, journalistic style were ideal for relating an objective and accurate history in the clearest way possible to the broad Arab public.
Along with providing the general population with education, he also aimed to develop the “philosophy of language,” which has the explicit purpose of informing, educating and enlightening. He was critical of writing that was accessible to only a small group of people, especially the esoteric language in religious scholarship. Because of the 10% literacy rate among men and .05% among women of the time, such gilded language was largely inaccessible to the general public. The introduction of the novel, especially one written in simple, clear language, is particularly noted for shifting the act of reading from the scholarly elite to the individual.
Leaving behind a legacy that includes 23 published novels, numerous scholarly works, and a magazine then circulated in Persia, India, Japan, Western Africa, Zanzibar, Australia, New Zealand, the West Indies, and North and South America, he was one of the most prolific and renowned Arab writers of the time. His impact left a lasting impression on the general Arab population as well as such literary giants as Taha Hussein, Najib Muhfuz and poet Fadwa Tuqan.
Beyond the amount of work he produced in his lifetime though is the shift in thinking he brought to the Nahda and those who followed it. Because the Arabic novel was written in an accessible language, individualized education took a huge step away from the religious elite and towards the general population. His printing press greatly aided in this attempt to spread new knowledge and ideas to people of all backgrounds. With the creation of a population that is thinking and speaking for itself, came the creation of a dialogue, and with that, the desire of the population to point out what is unsatisfactory in society and to come up with an idea on how to change it.
Also in 2011, the translator Samah Selim
translated Zaydan's novel Shajarat al-Durr into English. The book won the Arkansas Arabic Translation Award
.
His primary goal as a writer and intellectual during the Nahda was to imbue the common Arabic population with knowledge of their own history through the entertaining medium of the novel and enjoyed a widespread popularity that remains today.
Early life
Zaydan was born December 14, 1861 in BeirutBeirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
to an Orthodox Christian family of limited means. His father owned a restaurant and, being illiterate and uneducated himself, placed little importance on education. Because of this, Zaydan dropped out of school after completing an elementary education to help his father run the business.
However he maintained a desire to educate himself by attending night classes in English until, in 1881, at the age of 20, he was admitted to the Syrian Presbyterian College as a medical student. Here, he developed an interest in concepts of individualism such as laissez-faire economics, the Freemason belief in a universal enlightenment, and social Darwinism. He was particularly influenced by Samuel Smile’s book, Self-Help
Self-Help (book)
Self-Help; with Illustrations of Character and Conduct was a book published in 1859 by Samuel Smiles. The second edition of 1866 added Perseverance to the subtitle. It has been called "the bible of mid-Victorian liberalism"....
(published in 1859), which he felt he could relate to due to its emphasis on a rags-to-riches success story built upon hard work and perseverance. Furthermore, the book’s focus on individualism and the self, a relatively new concept in Arab intellectual thought, would be a common theme in Zaydan’s later historical novels.
He attended the university around the same time as Ya’qub Sarrouf (1852–1927), who first translated Self-Help into Arabic and would later found the magazine al-Muqtataf (1876), with whom he shared ideals of modernizing the Arab world and emphasis on individual success through hard work.
Cornelius Van Dyck (1818–1895), an American professor of pathology at the Syrian Protestant College known for his translation of the Bible into Arabic in 1847, first encouraged Sarrouf to translate Self-HelpA. He also influenced Zaydan’s worldview, leading him to adopt the idea that education was the most important factor for the progress and development of a people. Such widespread education could only be reached by widespread internal reform and modernization of all aspects of Arab government and daily life. Zaydan therefore became critical of contemporaries such as Mustafa Kamal and Ahmed Orabi, who were concerned solely with gaining independence from Western influence. Zaydan argued that reform must precede independence in order to ensure success.
In 1882, professor E. Lewis was fired from the Syrian Presbyterian College for lightly praising Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
in a speech he made to students of the college. Because the concept of Darwinism
Darwinism
Darwinism is a set of movements and concepts related to ideas of transmutation of species or of evolution, including some ideas with no connection to the work of Charles Darwin....
was highly controversial amongst the Presbyterian Church at the time, it had forbidden its inclusion in any curriculum. This led to mass protests amongst the students, many of whom left or were expelled for rebelling. Additionally, many of the European priests running the college were beginning to favor English over Arabic as the language of education. Zaydan was among those who left Syria for Cairo, where many Lebanese intellectuals and members of the Nahda had already relocated as a reaction to increased Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
suppression.
After a short stint in the Medical School of ‘Ain ‘Sans and a military expedition with the British army to the Sudan, he turned his focus to developing his writing career.
A. Ya’qub Sarrouf began publishing al-Muqtataf in 1876 with help from Cornelius Van Dyck and his Syrian Presbyrerian College classmates Faris Namir and Shahin Makarius. The magazine was primarily concerned covering modern scientific advancements, the first to do so in the Arab world, and is particularly known for its controversial coverage of the theory of evolution and Darwinism in the early 1880s.
Career
After briefly serving as assistant editor for al-Muqtataf, Zaydan began producing scholarly works on various historical topics. This interest in history propelled him to travel to London to research Arabic history in the library of the British Museum.His first book was published in 1889 with Ta’rikh al-Masuniya al-Amm, in which he aimed to correct misconceptions about the Freemasons, of which he was a member for a brief period of time. The Freemason belief that universal knowledge existed and should be available to every person appealed to intellectuals like Zaydan and their quest to tap into this knowledge.
In 1890, he published al-Ta’rikh al-'Alamm (History of the World), a rather thin history of Asia and Africa with a focus on the Middle East. Still, it is cited as one of the first non-Islamic histories to be written in Arabic, marking a turning point in the development of modern Arab education. Before, the entirety of Arab history had been recorded by the ulama
Ulama
-In Islam:* Ulema, also transliterated "ulama", a community of legal scholars of Islam and its laws . See:**Nahdlatul Ulama **Darul-uloom Nadwatul Ulama **Jamiatul Ulama Transvaal**Jamiat ul-Ulama -Other:...
, the religious scholars of the Caliphate. This was the first attempt at recording a non-religious version of Middle Eastern history.
During this time, he taught Arabic and opened a publishing house he named Dar al-Hilal (The Crescent). His professional and personal life took a turn in 1891 with his marriage to Maryam Matar and the publication of his first historical novel, al-Mamluk al-Shariid (The Fleeing Mamluk). The novel met with such broad success that he was able to quit his teaching job. He would continue to steadily produce roughly one novel a year until his death in 1914.
He began publishing his most influential project, the journal al-Hilal (The Crescent) in 1892. It originally contained five sections—a history of the most famous men and events; articles by him or other writers; the serialization of his historical novels; monthly events and world news of Egypt and Syria; and eulogies and criticism, mostly involving contemporary literature. With its focus on informing the public about Islamic history and new concepts within Western Civilization, the magazine often took on an encyclopedic tone.
His primary aim remained steady throughout his publication of al-Hilal and his historical novels. This was to provide the common Arabic people with an accurate sense of their own history in an accessible, entertaining way. Because of this, historical accuracy took firm precedence over plot and character development in each of his novels, and was often critical of Western writers who bent historical fact to fit their literature, claiming such liberties misled the general public.
The Historical Novel
Zaydan would typically write his annual novel during the summer months when al-Hilal wasn’t published in order to begin its serialization in the fall. Every novel with the exception of one had an almost identical frame. He would begin each one by picking a historical topic—though his novels did not follow a logical timeline, they were all centered on some aspect of Islamic history. Next, he would read all available sources on the topic in order to gain the most thorough understanding possible. From this he would build a skeleton outline based entirely on historical fact. Finally, he would dream up characters and a romance through which he would relate the history.The scholar’s accuracy with which he approached each novel is further demonstrated by his frequent inclusion of documented sources, frequent footnotes and introductory chapters that provided historic, cultural, and geographic context to the historic event of choice The entertainment aspect came in with a love story between fictitious characters and a mystery of some sort to maintain reader interest. His plots were often weak, relying mostly on convenient coincidences between characters to drive the love story and mystery, with almost all of his novels ending in a happily ever after.
His characters were often one-dimensional, with no insight given on their skills, background or their view of the time, institutions or society they were a part of. Because he would present all character traits and personalities within the first mention of each character, character development was never present. These static characters, coupled with his straightforward, journalistic style were ideal for relating an objective and accurate history in the clearest way possible to the broad Arab public.
Along with providing the general population with education, he also aimed to develop the “philosophy of language,” which has the explicit purpose of informing, educating and enlightening. He was critical of writing that was accessible to only a small group of people, especially the esoteric language in religious scholarship. Because of the 10% literacy rate among men and .05% among women of the time, such gilded language was largely inaccessible to the general public. The introduction of the novel, especially one written in simple, clear language, is particularly noted for shifting the act of reading from the scholarly elite to the individual.
Death and Impact
In 1910, the newly openend Egyptian University offered Zaydan a professorship in Islamic History, which Zaydan was hesitant to accept due to his unpopularity amongst conservative Muslims. He did accept the position, but was dismissed before beginning in response to significant outcry from the Muslim public, who objected to his Christian origins and secular leanings. Zaydan’s secular take on history was particularly controversial in Tarikh al-Tamaddun al-Islam (The History of the Islamic Civilization, 1901–1906), in which he offers a critical secular reading of Islamic history in no less than five volumes. The experience embittered him until his unexpected death in 1914.Leaving behind a legacy that includes 23 published novels, numerous scholarly works, and a magazine then circulated in Persia, India, Japan, Western Africa, Zanzibar, Australia, New Zealand, the West Indies, and North and South America, he was one of the most prolific and renowned Arab writers of the time. His impact left a lasting impression on the general Arab population as well as such literary giants as Taha Hussein, Najib Muhfuz and poet Fadwa Tuqan.
Beyond the amount of work he produced in his lifetime though is the shift in thinking he brought to the Nahda and those who followed it. Because the Arabic novel was written in an accessible language, individualized education took a huge step away from the religious elite and towards the general population. His printing press greatly aided in this attempt to spread new knowledge and ideas to people of all backgrounds. With the creation of a population that is thinking and speaking for itself, came the creation of a dialogue, and with that, the desire of the population to point out what is unsatisfactory in society and to come up with an idea on how to change it.
Works on History
- 1889: Ta’rih al-masuniya al-amm (History of the Freemasons)
- 1890: al-Ta’rih al-‘Amm (The History of the World)
- 1899: Ta’rih al-yunan wa A’r-ruman
- 1901-1906: Ta’rih al-Tamaddun al-Islamii 5 vols. (History of Islamic Civilization)
- 1907: al-‘Arab qabla l-Islam
- 1910-1913: Ta’rih adab al-luga al-‘arabiya 4 vols. (The History of Arabic Literature
Novels
- 1891: al-Mamluk al-Sariid (The Fleeing Mamluk)
- 1892: Asir al-Mutamahdi (The Captive of the Mahdi Pretender)
- 1893: Istibad al-Mamalik (Despotism of the Mamluks)
- 1893: Gihad al-Muhibbin
- 1896: Armansura al-Misriyya (Egyptian Armanusa)
- 1897/98: Fatat Gassan
- 1899: ‘Adra Qurais
- 1900: 17 Ramadan
- 1901: Gadat Karbala
- 1902: al-Haggag ibn Yusuf
- 1903: Fath al-Andalus
- 1904: Sarl wa-‘abd al-Rahman
- 1905: Abu muslim al-Hurasani
- 1906: al-‘Abbasa ucht al-Rasid
- 1907: al-Amin wa ‘l-ma’mun
- 1908: ‘Arus fargana
- 1909: Ahmad ibn Tulun
- 1910: ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Nasir
- 1911: al-Inqilab al-‘uthmani
- 1912: Fatat al-Qairawan
- 1913: Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi
- 1914: Sagar al-Durr
Translations
Until recently, Zaydan's works were not available in English, although they have been translated in a dozen other languages. The Zaidan Foundation, set up by his grandson Dr George Zaidan in order to promote Arab culture, has commissioned translations of five of his twenty-two historical novels. The work began in 2009 and the books are due to be released in 2011-12. The books are:- The Conquest of Andalusia (Fath al-Andalus). Translation by Professor Roger AllenRoger AllenRoger Allen may refer to:*Roger MacBride Allen , American science fiction author*Roger Allen , former territorial level politician from Northwest Territories, Canada...
(UPenn). October 2011. - The Battle of Poitiers (or Charles Martel and 'Abd al- Rahman). Translated by Professor William GranaraWilliam GranaraWilliam Granara is an American author, translator and scholar of of Arabic language and literature. He studied at Georgetown University and the University of Pennsylvania, obtaining his PhD from the latter in Arabic and Islamic studies. He has worked for the American University in Cairo and for the...
(Harvard). December 2011. - The Caliph's Sister — Harun al-Rashid and the Fall of the Persians (al-Abbasa Ukht al-Rashid). Translated by Professor Issa J. BoullataIssa J. BoullataIssa J. Boullata is a Palestinian scholar, writer, and translator of Arabic literature. He was born in Jerusalem on 25 February 1929 during the British Mandate of Palestine. He obtained a First Class BA in Arabic and Islamic studies in 1964 followed by a PhD in Arabic literature in 1969, both...
(McGillMcGill UniversityMohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
). February 2012. - The Caliph's Heirs — Brothers at War: the Fall of Baghdad (al-Amin wal-Ma'mun). Translated by Professor Michael CoopersonMichael CoopersonMichael Cooperson is an American scholar and translator of Arabic literature. He is currently associate professor of Arabic at UCLA. He has written two book: Classical Arabic Biography: The Heirs of the Prophets in the Age of al-Ma'mun and Al-Mamun . He is also the translator of a number of works...
(UCLA). February 2012. - Saladin and the Assassins (Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi). Translated by Professor Paul StarkeyPaul StarkeyPaul Starkey is a British scholar and translator of Arabic literature. He received his doctorate from Oxford University; the subject of his dissertation was the works of the Egyptian writer Tawfiq Hakim. He is currently the head of the Arabic department at the University of Durham...
(Durham UniversityDurham UniversityThe University of Durham, commonly known as Durham University, is a university in Durham, England. It was founded by Act of Parliament in 1832 and granted a Royal Charter in 1837...
). April 2012.
Also in 2011, the translator Samah Selim
Samah Selim
Samah Selim is an Egyptian scholar and translator of Arabic literature. She studied English literature at Barnard College, and obtained her PhD from Columbia University in 1997. At present she is an assistant professor at Rutgers University...
translated Zaydan's novel Shajarat al-Durr into English. The book won the Arkansas Arabic Translation Award
Arkansas Arabic Translation Award
The Arkansas Arabic Translation Award is a prize given for a notable English translation of a book-length literary work originally written in the Arabic language. The award is administered by the King Fahd Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies at the University of Arkansas...
.
Sources
- Cachia, Pierre. "Literature: Arabic." Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. 2nd ed. Vol. 3. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2004. 1418-422. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale, Cengage Learning, 2004. Web.
- Moosa, Matti. The Origins of Modern Arabic Fiction. Washington, D.C.: Three Continents, 1983. Print.
- Philipp, Thomas, and Jirji Zaydan. Gurgi Zaidan: His Life and Thought. Beirut: Orient-Institut, 1979. Print.
- Reid, Donald M. "Syrian Christians, the Rags-to-Riches Story, and Free Enterprise." International Journal of Middle East Studies 1.4 (1970): 358-67. JSTOR. Cambridge University Press. Web.
- Sheehi, Stephen. "Doubleness and Duality: Jurji Zaydan's Al-Mamluk Al-Sharid and Allegories of Becoming." Journal of Arabic Literature 30.I (1999): 90-105. Index Islamicus. Academic Search Complete. Web.
- Ware, L. B. "Women's Emancipation in the Middle East: Jurji Zaydan's View." Journal of South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies 2.Iv (1979): 38-55. Index Islamicus. Web.