Denys Johnson-Davies (Arabic: دنيس جونسون ديڤيز) (also known as Abdul Wadud) was an eminent

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

-to- English literary translator who translated, ''inter alia,'' several works by

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; ; ) are awards administered by the Nobel Foundation and granted in accordance with the principle of "for the greatest benefit to humankind". The prizes were first awarded in 1901, marking the fifth anniversary of Alfred N ...

-winning

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

ian author

Naguib Mahfouz Naguib Mahfouz Abdelaziz Ibrahim Ahmed Al-Basha (, ; 11 December 1911 – 30 August 2006) was an Egyptian writer who won the 1988 Nobel Prize in Literature. In awarding the prize, the Swedish Academy described him as a writer "who, through wo ...

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

ese author

Tayeb Salih Tayeb Salih (; 12 July 1929 – 18 February 2009) was a Sudanese writer, novelist, cultural journalist for the BBC Arabic programme as well as for Arabic journals, and a staff member of UNESCO. He is best known for his novel ''Season of Migration ...

Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...

poet Mahmud Darwish, and

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

n author Zakaria Tamer. Johnson-Davies, referred to as "the leading Arabic-English translator of our time" by

Edward Said Edward Wadie Said (1 November 1935 – 24 September 2003) was a Palestinian-American academic, literary critic, and political activist. As a professor of literature at Columbia University, he was among the founders of Postcolonialism, post-co ...

, translated more than twenty-five volumes of

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

s, and

poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

, and was the first to translate the work of Nobel laureate Naguib Mahfouz. He was also interested in

Islamic studies Islamic studies is the academic study of Islam, which is analogous to related fields such as Jewish studies and Quranic studies. Islamic studies seeks to understand the past and the potential future of the Islamic world. In this multidiscipli ...

and was co-translator of three volumes of Prophetic

Hadith Hadith is the Arabic word for a 'report' or an 'account f an event and refers to the Islamic oral tradition of anecdotes containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his immediate circle ...

. He wrote a number of children’s books adapted from traditional Arabic sources, including a collection of his own short stories, ''Fate of a Prisoner'', which was published in 1999. Born in 1922 in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, British Columbia, Canada of English parentage, Johnson-Davies spent his childhood in

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

, and

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

, and then was sent to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

at age 12. Johnson-Davies studied Oriental languages at

St Catharine's College, Cambridge St Catharine's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. Founded in 1473 as Katharine Hall, it adopted its current name in 1860. The college is nicknamed "Catz". The colle ...

, and lectured on translation and English literature at several universities across the Arab World. In 2006, he published his memoirs. In 2007, he was awarded the

Sheikh Zayed Book Award The Sheikh Zayed Book Award is a literary award presented yearly to writers, intellectuals, publishers whose writings and scholarly publications contributed to Arab cultural, literary and social life. The award has been described as “the Arab ...

"Cultural Personality of the Year", valued at about $300,000. In his latter years he lived between

Marrakesh Marrakesh or Marrakech (; , ) is the fourth-largest city in Morocco. It is one of the four imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakesh–Safi Regions of Morocco, region. The city lies west of the foothills of the Atlas Mounta ...

and

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

. Denys Johnson-Davies died in Egypt on 22 May 2017.

Bibliography

Selected Translations *'' The Wedding of Zein and Other Stories'' by

and illustrated by Ibrahim Salahi, 1968, Heinemann

African Writers Series The African Writers Series (AWS) is a collection of books written by African novelists, poets and politicians. Published by Heinemann (publisher), Heinemann, 359 books appeared in the series between 1962 and 2003. The series has provided an int ...

*''

Season of Migration to the North ''Season of Migration to the North'' ( ) is novel by the Sudanese writer Tayeb Salih, first published serially in the Beirut journal '' Hiwâr'' in 1966. It became Salih's best known work and is considered a classic of postcolonial literature. T ...

'' by

, 1969, Heinemann

*''The Smell of It & Other Stories'' by

Sonallah Ibrahim Son'allah Ibrahim ( ''Ṣunʻ Allāh Ibrāhīm'') (born 1937) is an Egyptian novelist and short story writer and one of the " Sixties Generation" who is known for his leftist views which are expressed rather directly in his work. His novels, es ...

, 1971, Heinemann African Writers Series *''Fate of a Cockroach and Other Plays'' by

Tawfiq al-Hakim Tawfiq al-Hakim or Tawfik el-Hakim (, ; October 9, 1898 – July 26, 1987) was an Egyptian writer. He is one of the pioneers of the Arabic novel and drama. The triumphs and failures that are represented by the reception of his enormous output ...

, 1973, Heinemann Arab Authors Series *''The Music of Human Flesh'', by

Mahmoud Darwish Mahmoud Darwish (; 13 March 1941 – 9 August 2008) was a Palestinians, Palestinian poet and author who was regarded as Palestine's national poet. In 1988 Darwish wrote the Palestinian Declaration of Independence, which was the formal declarat ...

, 1980, Heinemann Arab Authors Series *''Distant View of a Minaret'' by Alifa Rifaat, 1983, Quartet Books *''Tigers on the Tenth Day and Other Stories'' by Zakaria Tamer, 1985, Quartet Books *''The Slave's Dream and Other Stories'' by Nabil Naoum Gorgy, 1991, Quartet Books *''The Time and the Place'' by

, 1992,

American University in Cairo Press The American University in Cairo Press (AUCP, AUC Press) is the leading English-language publisher in the Middle East. The largest translator of Arabic literature in the world, AUC Press has a reputation for carefully selecting and translating t ...

*''The Wiles of Men and Other Stories'' by

Salwa Bakr Salwa Bakr (; born 1949) is an Egyptian critic, novelist and author. Profile of the Egyptian Writer Salwa Bakr She is the author of seven volumes of short stories (including ''The Wiles of Men'', AUC Press, 1997), seven novels, and a play. Her wor ...

, 1992, Quartet Books *''A Last Glass of Tea and Other Stories'' by Mohamed el-Bisatie, 1994, Three Continents Press *''Bandarshah'' by

, 1996,

Routledge Routledge ( ) is a British multinational corporation, multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, academic journals, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanit ...

Books & Keegan Paul International *''Houses Behind the Trees'' by Mohamed el-Bisatie, 1997,

*''The Hill of Gypsies and Other Stories'' by Said Al–kafrawi, 1999,

*''Final Nights'' by Buthaina Al-Nasiri, 2008,

*''Hunger'' by Mohamed el-Bisatie, 2008,

''Anthologies'' *''Modern Arabic Short Stories'', selected and translated by Denys Johnson-Davies, 1976, Heinemann Arab Authors Series *''Egyptian One-Act Plays'', selected, edited and translated by Denys Johnson-Davies, 1976, Heinemann Arab Authors Series featuring plays by

, Alfred Farag, Farid Kamal, Ali Salem and Abdel-Moneim Selim *''Egyptian Short Stories'', selected, edited and translated by Denys Johnson-Davies, 1978, Three Continent Press including "House of Flesh" by

Yusuf Idris Yusuf Idris, also spelled Yusof Idris (; May 19, 1927 – August 1, 1991) was an Egyptian writer of plays, short stories, and novels. Biography Idris was born in Faqous. He originally trained to be a doctor, studying at Cairo University. He ...

, "Grandad Hasan" by Yahya Taher Abdullah, "Within The Walls" by Edwar El-Kharrat, "The Performer" by Ibrahim Aslan, "The Whistle" by Abdul Hakim Kassem, "Suddenly It Rained" by Bahaa Taher, "The Man Who Saw The Sole Of His Left Foot In A Cracked Mirror" by Lutfi Al-Khouli, "A Conversation From The Third Floor" by Mohamed El-Bisatie, "Yusuf Murad Morcos" by Nabil Gorgy, "The Conjurer Made Off With The Dish" by

, "The Accusation" by Suleiman Fayyad, "A Place Under The Dome" by Abdul Rahman Fahmy, "The Country Boy" by

Yusuf Sibai Yusuf Mohamed Mohamed Abdel Wahab Al-Sibai (; June 17, 1917 – February 18, 1978) was an Egyptians, Egyptian writer, soldier, and politician. Early life and education Sibai was born in 1919. He graduated at the Egyptian Military Academy in 19 ...

, "The Snake" by

, "The Crush Of Life" by Yusuf Sharouni, "A Story From Prison" by Yahya Haqqi and "The Child And The King" by Gamil Atia Ibrahim. *''The AUC Press Book of Modern Arabic Literature'', edited by Denys Johnson-Davies, 2006,

*''The Essential Naguib Mahfouz: Novels, Short Stories, Autobiography'', edited by Denys Johnson-Davies, 2011,

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson-Davies, Denys Arabic–English translators 1922 births 2017 deaths Alumni of St Catharine's College, Cambridge Writers from Vancouver Translators of Mahmoud Darwish 20th-century Canadian translators British expatriates in Canada British expatriates in Sudan British expatriates in Uganda British expatriates in Kenya British expatriates in Egypt British expatriates in Morocco