Sinan Antoon
Encyclopedia
Sinan Antoon is an Iraqi poet
and novelist, he also featured in the film About Baghdad
and Voices in Wartime.
Antoon was born in Baghdad to an Iraqi
father and American
mother. After emigrating to the United States after the Gulf war
, he studied English literature
at Baghdad University, and received a PhD from Harvard University
. His works include poetry in Arabic and English (some collected in Baghdad Blues) and a novel, I'jaam: An Iraqi Rhapsody. His translations of the Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish
were nominated for the PEN Translation Prize in 2004. Antoon has also directed and co-produced two plays at Middlebury College both in 1998 and 1999; The King is the King and The Elephant. He is now an assistant professor at New York University
working on his dissertation on the 10th-century Arab Sukhf (ribald) poet Ibn al-Hajjaj.
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
and novelist, he also featured in the film About Baghdad
About Baghdad
About Baghdad is a documentary film shot in Baghdad, Iraq in 2003. It is the first documentary film to have been made in Iraq following the fall of the Baath regime. The film features the artist Sinan Antoon as he returns to his native Baghdad...
and Voices in Wartime.
Antoon was born in Baghdad to an Iraqi
Iraqi people
The Iraqi people or Mesopotamian people are natives or inhabitants of the country of Iraq, known since antiquity as Mesopotamia , with a large diaspora throughout the Arab World, Europe, the Americas, and...
father and American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
mother. After emigrating to the United States after the Gulf war
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, he studied English literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
at Baghdad University, and received a PhD from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. His works include poetry in Arabic and English (some collected in Baghdad Blues) and a novel, I'jaam: An Iraqi Rhapsody. His translations of the Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish
Mahmoud Darwish
Mahmoud Darwish was a Palestinian poet and author who won numerous awards for his literary output and was regarded as the Palestinian national poet...
were nominated for the PEN Translation Prize in 2004. Antoon has also directed and co-produced two plays at Middlebury College both in 1998 and 1999; The King is the King and The Elephant. He is now an assistant professor at New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
working on his dissertation on the 10th-century Arab Sukhf (ribald) poet Ibn al-Hajjaj.
External links
- About Baghdad official website
- Dina Omar, Sinan Antoon: "I think of myself as a global citizen" The Electronic Intifada, 7 April 2010.