Faris Nimr (; 1856–1951), was a pioneer Lebanese journalist and intellectual. He cofounded ''
Al Muqattam
''Al Muqattam'' () was a newspaper which was published in Cairo, Egypt, between 1888 and 1952. It was one of the leading papers until its closure by the Egyptian government in 1954. The title of the paper was a reference to a range of hills outs ...
'', an Arabic, Cairo-based newspaper.
Early life and education
Nimr was born in 1856 in
Hasbaya
Hasbaya or Hasbeiya () is a municipality in Lebanon, situated at the foot of Mount Hermon, overlooking a deep amphitheatre from which a brook flows to the Hasbani River. In 1911, the population was about 5,000.
The town was a traditional seat of ...
,
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
. He hailed from a
Protestant
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
Beirut
Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
, then to
Jerusalem
Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
. They returned to Hasbaya in 1868.
Nimr graduated from the Syrian College in Beirut in 1874, and worked at the newly created Lee Observatory under Doctor
Cornelius Van Dyck
Cornelius Van Alen Van Dyck, M.D. (August 13, 1818 – November 13, 1895) was an American missionary physician, teacher and translator of the Protestant Bible into Arabic. In 1890 he graduated with a doctorate in philosophy from
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...
.
Career and activities
Following his graduation Nimr worked at the American College in Beirut as a lecturer. There he taught chemistry, and one of his pupils was Ilyas Matar. he was a member of the free mason organization. In 1876, he founded the monthly Arabic
popular science
Popular science (also called pop-science or popsci) is an interpretation of science intended for a general audience. While science journalism focuses on recent scientific developments, popular science is more broad ranging. It may be written ...
magazine '' Al Muqtataf'' with Yaqub Sarruf in Beirut. They both moved to Cairo in late 1884 where they continued publishing ''Al-Muqtataf'' with great success. They managed to restart the magazine after they were permitted to resume its publication by the British authorities in Egypt.
In 1889, Nimr founded ''Al Muqattam'', an Arabic, Cairo-based daily newspaper with Yaacoub Sarrouf and Shahin Makaryus. He became member of the Egyptian Senate. As of 1918 Nimr was a member of the Syrian Welfare Committee of which other members included Suleiman Nasif, Haqqi al-Azm,
Rafiq al-Azm
Rafīq Bey ibn Mahmūd al-ʿAzm (, 1865-1925) was a Syrian intellectual, author, and politician. 'Azm served as the president of the Ottoman Party for Administrative Decentralization and was a key figure in the intellectual formation of Arabism. ...
and Fawzi al-Bakri.
Personal life and death
One of Nimr's daughters, Katie, married
George Antonius
George Habib Antonius, Order of the British Empire, CBE (hon.) (; October 19, 1891May 21, 1942) was a Lebanese people, Lebanese author and diplomat who settled in Jerusalem. He was one of the first historians of Arab nationalism. Born in Deir a ...
, an author and historian. British diplomat Sir Walter Smart married his another daughter, Amy. Nimr's sister, Maryam, married Shahin Makariyus who was a merchant and the founder of a magazine entitled '' Al Lataif''.
Nimr died in 1951.