30 June 2007
Dubai: Described by celebrated author Najeeb Mahfouz as the 'leading translator of modern Arabic writing', Denys Johnson-Davies is now working on a volume of short stories by Emirati writers.
One of the winners of the 2007 Shaikh Zayed Book Award, Johnson-Davies has exposed countless English readers to authors such as Nobel Prize winner Mahfouz and Palestinian Gassan Kanafani, over a career spanning 60 years.
Sitting in the lobby of a Dubai hotel, a bag filled with manuscripts at his side - "submissions I've received from Emirati writers", Johnson-Davies says he is keen to fulfill a long-held ambition to translate works from the UAE.
"I am planning to write a book of short stories by Emirati writers, mainly from the '70s, '80s and '90s," he said. Why short stories? According to Johnson-Davies they give readers a taste of a writer and "encourage them to look further."
Literary revival
Born in Canada in 1922, Johnson-Davies grew up in Sudan and East Africa before moving to the United Kingdom, where he read Arabic at Cambridge University. He now calls Cairo home, where he has lived most of his life.
While working for the BBC's Arabic service in London, Johnson-Davies became aware of a literary revival in the Arab world. Not wanting to remain at the BBC or in England, he moved to Cairo, where he met writers Taha Hussain and Yahya Hakki and was determined to translate some of their works.
Today, he is the author of over 25 volumes of translated Arabic novels, plays, poems and short stories. One of his original works is Memories in Translation - A Life between the Lines of Arabic Literature, published in 2006, which charts his life and friendships with various writers such as Mahfouz, Tayib Salih and Mohammad Al Murr, Chairman of the Dubai Cultural Council.
However, his work has not been restricted to prominent Arab writers; Johnson-Davies has also championed the lesser-known.
"The first book I ever translated - by Mahmoud Taimur - I financed myself, because we had trouble finding a publisher who was interested in translations of Arabic literature to English," Johnson-Davies told Gulf News.
First visit
Johnson-Davies' relationship with the UAE goes as far back as 1950 - when he first travelled to Dubai after the oil company he was working for sent him on assignment. "I remember that I couldn't fly into Dubai as only Sharjah had an airport at the time," he recalls.
Now he visits the UAE at least twice a year and says he has long been urging Al Murr to pen a novel about the country's incredible pace of change, from the perspective of different generations of a family.
"Among the themes tackled by Emirati writers are nostalgia for the past and the struggle to cope with the dramatic rate of change."
As a lifelong champion of Arabic literature, Johnson-Davies laments the lack of emphasis placed on reading and writing in the Arab world. There are now more writers than readers, he quips, adding that greater efforts are also needed in the distribution of books.
By Zoi Constantine
Gulf News 2007. All rights reserved.
