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Article: The silence of contemporary Syrian literature.
- Article from:
- World Literature Today
- Article date:
- March 22, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 University of Oklahoma. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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IS THERE A SYRIAN LITERATURE?
There is, of course, no such thing as Syrian literature. Certainly, citizens of the modern nation-state of Syria write literature, but to claim that "Syrian literature" exists in the same way that, say, Russian literature or German literature exists is misleading. First, it implies that there is a language called Syrian. Syrian literature is, for the most part, written in Arabic and is part of a literary family that includes all literature written in Arabic. Second, anyone familiar with the Middle East will be quick to point out that "Syria" itself is a complicated label. From ancient times until the early twentieth century, the term ...