Laila al-Atrash (

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 ...

: ليلى الأطرش; died 17 October 2021) was a Palestinian and Jordanian writer and journalist. She was the author of half a dozen novels, one of which (''A Woman of Five Seasons'') was translated into English by Nura Nuwayhid Halwani and

Christopher Tingley Christopher Tingley is an English academic and translator of Arabic literature. He was born in Brighton and read English at the University of London (MPhil 1973) and at Leeds University, for many years lecturing in English and linguistics at vari ...

. Atrash was also noted for her journalism, especially her documentaries on leading figures of

Arabic culture Arab culture is the culture of the Arabs, from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the east, in a region of the Middle East and North Africa known as the Arab world. The various religions the Arabs have adopted throughout their ...

. She served as the President of PEN Jordan. She started her media career as a journalist and press reporter, then as producer and presenter of radio programs. In the seventies she entered the broadcasting field as a TV news editor, anchor and program producer. Her TV programs covered a range of cultural and social themes. Notable in her TV production was a series of investigative and in-depth programs and interviews with a host of Arab intellectuals, writers and artists, as well as with other symbols of modern Arab culture in various fields. Laila al-Atrash, held a degree in Arabic literature, a degree in Law and a Diploma in French. Her published works include: “Sunrise from the West” (a novel, 1988); “A Woman of Five Seasons” (a novel, 1990); “A Day Like Any Other” (a collection of short stories, 1991); “Two Nights and the Shadow of a Woman” (a novel, 1997); “The Neighing of Distances” (a novel, 1999); “Illusive Anchors” (a novel, 2005); and "Women at Crossroads" (travel memoirs 2009), "Desires of that Autumn" (a novel, 2010). Her last novel ''Hymns of Temptation'' was nominated for the 2016

Arabic Booker Prize The International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) (), also known as "the Arabic Booker", is regarded as the most prestigious and important literary prize in the Arab world. Its aim is to reward excellence in contemporary Arabic creative writing ...

References

1948 births 2021 deaths Palestinian emigrants to Jordan People from Beit Sahour Jordanian women novelists 20th-century Palestinian women writers 21st-century Palestinian women writers 21st-century Palestinian journalists 20th-century women journalists 21st-century women journalists Women television presenters Women television journalists Palestinian novelists Women short story writers Palestinian short story writers Palestinian memoirists Women memoirists

Laila Leila (, , ) is a feminine given name primarily found in the Middle East, including all Arab countries, as well as Iran, Turkey, and Israel. In the Latin alphabet, the name is commonly spelled in multiple ways, including Leila, Layla, Laylah, ...

20th-century Palestinian journalists {{Palestine-writer-stub