Anniversary of Mahdi Allam, prominent linguist and intellectual
Egypt, People, 10/3/2000

Dr. Muhammad Mahdi Allam stands out as one of the literay and intellectural landmarks in our contemporary life. In addition to his outstanding position as a great Arabic linguist, devoted to indepth research into the rich treasures of Arabic, he was equally experinced in languages, literature and culture of the West. His superb command of both Arabic and English languages and literatures was indeed unparalleled.

Birth and Education:

Born in Cairo on October 3, 1900, Allam completed his primary education and then joined a school of religious education where he studied for five years.

Later he joined the School of Dar El-Oloum (a graduate college of Arabic language and Islamic studies). Upon the outbreak of the 1919 Revolution he was elected to represent his college in the Colleges Committee. He acted as a liaison officer between the student leaderships and the Nationalist Movement led by Sa'd Zaghloul. His main task was to write and distribute political bulletins to enlighten the public on political Conditions. He wrote the Revolution's anthem, which was widely chanted by millions of Egyptians during the popular uprising at that time.

Birth and Education:

* He graduated in Dar El-Oloum College (1922).

* Travelled to England, where he studeid eductaion and Enghish literature (1922-25).

* Travelled to England, where he obtained a scholarship to study Hebrew and Persian at London University (1925-27).

* Obtained Ph.D from the University of Manchester (1945).

* Back to Egypt, he was appointed chief inspector of Arabic.

* Professor and Head of Arabic Department, Ein Shams University (1950-61).

* In addition to the above post, he headed the English Department, at the same University (1951-58).

* Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Egyptian Organization for Authorship, Translation, Printing and Publishing (1961-63).

* Advisor to the Ministry of Culture and National Guidance (1963).

* Member of the Supreme Council for Arts, Letters and Social Science and rapporteur of the Publishing Committee.

* Member of the Islamic Research Academy.

* Represented his country in several literary and political (Afro-Asian) conferences and visited most Arab countries and a number of European ones.

His Works: * Philosophy of Penalty.

* Philosophy of Lying.

* Al Motanabbi's Philosophy.

* Al Motanabbi: His Psychology and Poetry.

* The Origin of the Art of Maqsoura in Arabic Literature .

* Verification of Maqsoura by Hazem al-Cartagenni.

* Hifni Nassef's Prose (co-author).

* The Theory of Amnesty in the Holy Qur'an (in Arabic and English).

* The Theory of Moderation between Greek and Muslim Philosophers.

* Islamic Theory of Alms.

* Tagore .

* Criticism and Rhetoric,( co-author).

* Revolutionary Spirit in Bernard Shaw's writings.

His Biographies

* Aisha, Mother of Believers.

* Ahmad Hassan al-Zayyat.

* Rifa'ah al-Tahtawi.

* Arabic Language Academy in Thirty Years.

His Awards:

* Order of the Republic, Third Class,( 1956).

* State Incentive Award, (1965).

* State Merit Award, (1976).

* Order of the Republic, Second Class, (1977).

* Order of Science and Arts, First Class, (1983).

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