Al-Rābiṭah al-Qalamiyah (The Pen League), also known as al-Mahjar ("emigrant"), was the first Arab-American literary society

Literary society

A literary society is a group of people interested in literature. In the modern sense, this refers to a society that wants to promote one genre of literature or a specific writer. Modern literary societies typically promote research about their chosen author or genre, publish newsletters, and hold...

, formed initially by Nasib Arida

Nasib Arida

Nasib Arida was a Syrian-born poet and writer and a founding member of the New York Pen League.-Personal life:Arida was born in Homs where he received his education until his emigration to the United States in 1905. In New York, he married Najeeba Haddad, the sister of fellow Homs-born writers...

 and Abdul Massih Haddad in 1915 or 1916, and subsequently re-formed in 1920 by a group of Arab writers in New York

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 led by Khalil Gibran

Khalil Gibran

Khalil Gibran Jubrān Khalīl Jubrān,Jibrān Khalīl Jibrān, or Jibrān Xalīl Jibrān; Arabic , January 6, 1883 – April 10, 1931) also known as Kahlil Gibran, was a Lebanese American artist, poet, and writer...

, from a group of writers who has been working closely since 1911. The league dissolved following Gibran's death in 1931 and Mikhail Naimy's return to Lebanon

Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...

 in 1932.

The primary goals of al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah were, in Naimy's words as Secretary, "To lift Arabic literature from the quagmire of stagnation and imitation, and to infuse a new life into its veins so as to make of it an active force in the building up of the Arab nations", and to promote a new generation of Arab writers. As Naimy expressed in the by-laws he drew up for the group:

The tendency to keep our language and literature within the narrow bounds of aping the ancients in form and substance is a most pernicious tendency; if left unopposed, it will soon lead to decay and disintegration... To imitate them is a deadly shame... We must be true to ourselves if we would be true to our ancestors.

Literary historian Nadeem Naimy assesses the group's importance as having shifted the criteria of aesthetic merit in Arabic literature:

Focusing on Man rather than on language, on the human rather than on the law and on the spirit rather than on the letter, the Mahjar (emigrant) School is said to have ushered Arabic literature from its age old classicism into the modern era.

Musicians such as Russell Bunai were also associated with the group.

Members

• Nasib Arida
  Nasib Arida
  Nasib Arida was a Syrian-born poet and writer and a founding member of the New York Pen League.-Personal life:Arida was born in Homs where he received his education until his emigration to the United States in 1905. In New York, he married Najeeba Haddad, the sister of fellow Homs-born writers...
  
  
• Raschid Ayoub (or Ayyūb)
• Wadi Bahout
• William Catzeflis (or Katsiflis)
• Khalil Gibran
  Khalil Gibran
  Khalil Gibran Jubrān Khalīl Jubrān,Jibrān Khalīl Jibrān, or Jibrān Xalīl Jibrān; Arabic , January 6, 1883 – April 10, 1931) also known as Kahlil Gibran, was a Lebanese American artist, poet, and writer...
  
   (President)
• Abdul Massih Haddad
• Nudra Haddad
• Elia Abu Madi
  Elia Abu Madi
  Elia Abu Madi was a Lebanese-American poet.-Life and career:Abu Madi was born in the village of Al-Muhaydithah, now part of Bikfaya, Lebanon, in 1889 or 1890...
  
  
• Mikhail Naimy (Secretary)
• Ameen Rihani