Al-Arabi (magazine)

Al-Arabi
Editor Sulaiman Al-Askari
Categories Geography, Science, History, Nature
Frequency Monthly
First issue 1958 December 1[1]
Country  Kuwait
Language Arabic
Website

Al-Arabi (ar:العربي) is a monthly Arabic magazine that focuses mainly on the culture, literature, art, politics, society, and economics of the Arab world. The first edition was published in December 1958, seeking to propound the ideology of Pan-Arabism. The magazine encourages public participation, and makes use of photography and freelance work.

History

Al-Arabi was founded by the Government of Kuwait in an effort to establish a magazine that emphasizes Arabic literature. The monthly magazine has always been financially supported by the Kuwaiti Ministry of Information which is the main regulatory body of media in the country.[2] Dr Ahmad Zaki was selected as the first editor in chief of the magazine and the first publication of the magazine was issued December 1958.[3]

Since its first days, the magazine has addressed various important issues in both the Arabic and international communities dealing with all aspects of life. Many of the articles published were contributions from well-known authors, artists and poets; such as Abbas el-Akkad, Nizar Qabbani, Sa'id al-Afghani, Abdul Hadi Altazi, Ihsan Abbas, Yusuf Idris and Salah Abdel Sabour.

The magazine has been in publication continuously for over 50 years, and only stopped briefly for 7 months during the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait from August 1990 to February 1991.

The 1958 first edition of the magazine

List of Editors in Chief

Magazine Sections

Since its establishment, the magazine had witnessed a steady modernization in topics and sections, in line with the technological advancement of the day. Today the magazine is published on a monthly basis containing a variety of sections and topics:

  1. Idea A new article written by the Editor in Chief of the magazine.
  2. File of the Edition Addressing a specific topic in which many different writers share their ideas, views, and stand on the specific topic that is being addressed by the section.
  3. Literature Covering various topics and journals such as;
    1. Poet of the Edition Discussing the works of a select poet.
    2. Literature papers Discussing briefly recent issues and matters in literature.
    3. Live stories on the air A project that works on short stories in cooperation with the Arabic station of BBC in order to study, criticize, and review recent issues and matters.
  4. Futuristic Discussing new issues that affect the international community generally and the Arabic community in particular.
  5. Tourist Scout Covering visits and discussions about different cities and countries from all across the globe, to further enlighten readers about them. Moreover, at the beginning of the publication of this section the cities and the countries that were covered were limited to Arabic countries and cities. However, the scope was expanded when Dr Ahmad Bahaa became the Editor in Chief as he realigned the magazine's scope of interest from the local Arabic community to the worldwide community.
  6. Painting of the Edition Discussing and analyzing a selected painting.
  7. Art Conducting visits to recent and important artists in terms of their performances, contribution, and recent issues
  8. The Arabic House Discussing topics that are related to the Arabic families and the problems they face in general.
  9. Permanent sections These sections cover a variety of topics and are always provided in each edition, ranging from:
    1. My Dear Reader
    2. They Said
    3. Language is life
    4. Electronic literacy
    5. Man and the environment
    6. The beauty of Arabic
    7. Forums of discussion
    8. Educational contest
    9. Photographic contest
    10. Educational organizer
    11. My Dear Arabian
    12. Until we meet

References

  1. -
  2. : official web site of the Ministry of information of the State of Kuwait
  3. Al Arabi Magazine: the Idea and the Reality, at Al-Arabi's official website.