• 16 Sep, 2021

Birth: • 1887, Homs, Syria Education: • Studied at the Russian school in Homs, then at the Russian Teachers’ College in Nazareth Migration: • Emigrated to the United States in 1905 (or 1913 according to another source) and settled in New York Journalistic and Cultural Work: • Worked as an editor in various Arab newspapers in the diaspora • Founded a printing press and issued the magazine Al-Funun in 1912 (or 1913), a pioneering literary and artistic magazine, funded mostly from his own money • Edited the daily newspapers Mir’at al-Gharb and Al-Huda • Appointed editor in the Arabic section of the U.S. Office of War Information during World War II The Pen League: • One of the early founders of the “Pen League” in New York in 1920, which included major diaspora writers such as: - Gibran Khalil Gibran (President) - Mikha’il Na‘ima - Elia Abu Madi - Rashid Ayyub • Known for his extensive knowledge of Arab heritage, earning him the nickname "The Arabic Encyclopedia in the American diaspora" by some critics Literary Works: • Poetry collection: The Confused Souls (published in New York in 1946, four days after his death) • Stories and prose: Diq al-Jinn al-Himsi, Al-Samsama, Secrets of the Russian Court (translated novel) • Famous poems expressing his longing for his homeland, including "Mother of the Black Stones," describing Homs Death: • March 25, 1946, New York, after suffering from heart and liver problems