Layyah Faris Anton Alkazin Barakat (circa 1858— December 4, 1940) was a Lebanese-born Christian missionary, writer, temperance activist, and prison reformer, based after 1882 in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. She was the first

Lebanese American Lebanese Americans () are Americans of Lebanese descent. This includes both those who are native to the United States of America, as well as immigrants from Lebanon and Latin America. Lebanese Americans comprise 0.79% of the American populatio ...

woman to write and publish her autobiography, when ''A Message from Mount Lebanon'' was published in 1912.

Early life

Layyah Faris Anton Alkazin was born in Abeih in the

Double Qaim-Maqamate of Mount Lebanon The Double Qaim-Maqamate of Mount Lebanon (1843–1861, , or simply, ; ''Al-Qāʾim maqāmiyyatayn,'' ) was one of the Ottoman Empire's subdivisions following the abolishment of the Mount Lebanon Emirate. After 1843, there existed an autonomous ...

. Her father died in the

1860 Mount Lebanon civil war The 1860 civil conflict in Mount Lebanon and Damascus, also known as the 1860 Christian–Druze war, was a civil conflict in Mount Lebanon during Ottoman rule in 1860–1861 fought mainly between the local Druze and Christians. Following decisiv ...

. She was educated by German missionaries, and at an American girls' school in Beirut.

Career

In Beirut 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 ...

, Layya Alkazin Barakat worked with Presbyterian missionaries as a teacher. She escaped the

‘Urabi revolt The ʻUrabi revolt, also known as the ʻUrabi Revolution (), was a nationalism, nationalist uprising in the Khedivate of Egypt from 1879 to 1882. It was led by and named for Colonel Ahmed Urabi and sought to depose the khedive, Tewfik Pasha, and e ...

in 1882 and immigrated to the United States that year, with her daughter, her husband, his brother, and other family members.Muhanna Eisa Barakat
''A Thrilling Experience of Rev. M.E. Barakat, B.A.: The First and as Yet the Only Minister Preaching in this Country from Damascus''
(Swedish Publishing Company 1896): 23. A message from Lebanon 1912

In the United States Layyah Barakat took an interest in reform work, especially prison reform and temperance. She served on committees of the Pennsylvania Prison Society, touring and inspecting prisons with other concerned men and women. She was a delegate to the fourth world conference of the

Woman's Christian Temperance Union The Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) is an international temperance organization. It was among the first organizations of women devoted to social reform with a program that "linked the religious and the secular through concerted and far ...

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

in 1897. She was "a delightful public speaker... much in demand" for women's church groups, where she was admired for her "sweet face and simple story", but also for her "fervent eloquence". Layyah Barakat's autobiography, ''A Message from Mount Lebanon'' (1912), is believed to be the first autobiography by an Arab-American woman to be published. In 1919 she carried donated food and clothing to Syria. In 1922, a small orphanage for girls in Abeih was opened by Protestant missionaries and named after Layyah Barakat, in recognition of her fundraising work. She traveled back to her hometown to attend the opening.

Personal life

Layyah Alkazin married Elias Barakat, a fellow Christian missionary in Egypt; they had three children. Elias Barakat died in 1909. Layyah Barakat died in 1940, aged 81 years."Mrs. Elias Barakat"
''New York Times'' (December 6, 1940): 25.

References

External links

A photograph of Layyah Alkazin Barakat as a younger woman
in the Wylie House image collection, Indiana University Libraries, Bloomington.
A photograph of Layyah Alkazin Barakat later in life
in the Faris and Yamna Naff Arab American Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution. 1857 births 1940 deaths Presbyterian missionaries in the United States Lebanese Christian missionaries Lebanese emigrants to the United States Female Christian missionaries People from Aley District Activists from Philadelphia Woman's Christian Temperance Union people {{authority control