Profile of Abbas Beydoun

Beydoun is considered one of the most significant contemporary Arabic poets and has been a trailblazer for the younger generation. His lyric oeuvre, which comprises nine volumes, is marked by plain, minimal language and by complex and many-layered images and metaphors.

Abbas Beydoun was born in southern Lebanon in 1945. He studied Arabic Literature at the Lebanese University in Beirut and Islamic Studies at the Sorbonne. Following his return from France he worked as culture section editor for various Lebanese newspapers.

Beydoun most recently published his first novel, Tahlil damm. He has worked as Features Editor of the Lebanese daily as-Safir since 1997.

• Weblinks
• Interview, “We need honest answers”, Qantara
• Extracts of his work
• Text, “The Portraits of Gilbert Hage and a Discourse on Difficult Identities”, Heinrich Boell Foundation