Mohammed Hussein Heikal ( ar, محمد حسين هيكل ; August 20, 1888 – December 8, 1956) was an Egyptian writer, journalist, politician. He held several cabinet posts, including minister of education.

Life

Haekal was born in Kafr Ghannam,

Mansoura Mansoura (' , rural: ) is a city in Egypt, with a population of 960,423. It is the capital of the Dakahlia Governorate. Etymology ''Mansoura'' in Arabic means "victorious". The city is named after the El Mansoura Battle against Louis IX of Fr ...

Ad Daqahliyah Dakahlia Governorate ( ar, محافظة الدقهلية ', ) is an Egyptian governorate lying northeast of Cairo. Its area is approximately 3,500 km2. Although the capital of the governorate is Mansoura, it got its name from the ancient tow ...

in 1888. He obtained a B.A. in Law in 1909 and a PhD from the

Sorbonne University Sorbonne University (french: Sorbonne Université; la Sorbonne: 'the Sorbonne') is a public research university located in Paris, France. The institution's legacy reaches back to 1257 when Sorbonne College was established by Robert de Sor ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

in 1912. While a student in Paris, he composed what is considered the first authentic Egyptian novel, '' Zaynab''. After returning to Egypt, he worked as a lawyer for 10 years, then as a

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalis ...

. He published articles in ''

Al Jarida ''Al Jarida'' ( ar, الجريدة, lit=The Newspaper) was a liberal newspaper which was published in Cairo, Egypt, from 1907 to 1915. The paper was the official organ of the Umma Party. It was one of the publications that shaped the Egyptian na ...

''. He was the cofounder of ''

Al Siyasa ''Al Siyasa'' (Arabic: ''The Politics'') was an Egyptian newspaper which was the official media outlet of the now-defunct Liberal Constitutional Party. The paper was in circulation from 1922 to 1951. History and profile ''Al Siyasa'' was launch ...

'' newspaper, the organ of the Liberal Constitutionalist party for which he was also an adviser and was also elected as its

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

. In 1937, he was appointed as minister of state for the interior ministry in the

Muhammad Mahmoud Pasha Mohamed Mahmoud Pasha (1877 – 1941) ( ar, محمد محمود باشا), also knowns as Mohamed Mahmoud Khalil Pasha, was Prime Minister of Egypt twice. Mahmoud was Minister of Finance from 1927 to 1928. He first became Prime Minister fro ...

's second government. In November 1940 he was appointed minister of education to the

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

led by

Hussein Sirri Pasha Hussein, Hussain, Hossein, Hossain, Huseyn, Husayn, Husein or Husain (; ar, حُسَيْن ), coming from the triconsonantal root Ḥ-S-i-N ( ar, ح س ی ن, link=no), is an Arabic name which is the diminutive of Hassan, meaning "good", " ...

. In this post he introduced several reforms, including decentralization, by establishing educational zones and making programs and curricula nationally oriented. He was greatly influenced and inspired by the comprehensive reforms of

Mohammad Abduh ; "The Theology of Unity") , alma_mater = Al-Azhar University , office1 = Grand Mufti of Egypt , term1 = 1899 – 1905 , Sufi_order = Shadhiliyya , disciple_of = , awards = , inf ...

Ahmed Lutfi el-Sayed Ahmed Lutfi el-Sayed or Aḥmad Luṭfī Sayyid Pasha () (15 January 1872 – 5 March 1963) was a prominent Egyptian nationalist, intellectual, anti-colonial activist and the first director of Cairo University. He was an influential person in th ...

and

Qasim Amin Qasim Amin (, arz, قاسم أمين; 1 December 1863, in AlexandriaPolitical and diplomatic history of the Arab world, 1900-1967, Menahem Mansoor – April 22, 1908 in Cairo) was an Egyptian jurist, Islamic Modernist and one of the founders ...

. One of his

protégé Mentorship is the influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the personal and p ...

s was the historian Husayn Fawzi al-Najjar. Heikal is the father of seven children: Ateya, Taheya, Hussein, Hedeya, Bahiga, Fayza Haikal, and Ahmad. Fayza teaches

Egyptology Egyptology (from ''Egypt'' and Greek , '' -logia''; ar, علم المصريات) is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, architecture and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native relig ...

at the

American University in Cairo The American University in Cairo (AUC; ar, الجامعة الأمريكية بالقاهرة, Al-Jāmi‘a al-’Amrīkiyya bi-l-Qāhira) is a private research university in Cairo, Egypt. The university offers American-style learning progra ...

Works

His works include: *'' Zeinab'', 1913; the first modern Egyptian novel.(زينب) *''Biographies of Egyptian and Western Personalities'', 1929. *''The Life of The Noble Prophet Muhammad'', 1933(حياة محمد) *''In the House of Revelation'', 1939.(فى منزل الوحى) *"Ten days in the Sudan"(عشرة أيام فى السودان) *Sayyidina '' Al Farouq Omar'',1944/45. *''Memories on Egyptian politics'', 1951-53.(مذكرات فى السياسة المصرية) *''Thus Was I Created'',1955. *''Faith, Knowledge and Philosophy'', published in 1964. *''The Islamic Empire and sacred places'', published in 1964 . *''Egyptian short stories'', published in 1967. *Sayyidina '' Uthman Ibn Affan'', published in 1968. *''Mehraj-ud-din beigh'', Arabic master

Notes

References

Heykal
from Egypt state information service.

External links

English translation. {{DEFAULTSORT:Heikal, Mohammed Hussein 1888 births 1956 deaths Egyptian newspaper founders Egyptian novelists Education Ministers of Egypt Egyptian pashas People from Mansoura, Egypt 20th-century novelists 20th-century journalists

Life

Works

Further reading

Notes

References

External links