Samman, Ghada al-(1942–)
Samman, Ghada al-(1942–)
Syrian novelist and poet. Name variations: Ghada as-Samman; Ghada Samman. Born Ghada al-Samman in 1942 in Beirut, Lebanon (some sources cite al-Shamiya, Syria); dau. of the University of Damascus rector and minister of Education for Syria; graduate of University of Damascus; University of London, MA; also studied at American University in Beirut.
The best known woman writer in Arabic, worked as journalist, broadcaster and translator; began writing fiction (early 1960s); in order to prevent censorship, established Ghada al-Samman Publications to publish her own works; published short-story collection Your Eyes Are My Destiny (1962); moved to Paris after events in Beirut; wrote over 25 volumes of stories, verse, essays, drama and novels, including Beirut 1975 (1975), Beirut Nightmares (1976), The Incomplete Works of Gada al-Samman (1978), Love in the Veins (1980), and The Square Moon: Supernatural Tales (1999); poetry includes I Declare Love on You! (1976–83) and I Testify Against the Wind (1987); an outspoken woman in a culture where women are not heard often, challenged the oppression of women in Arabic society.