The ABC of MBC (Middle East Broadcasting Center) Posted by Hichem on May 24, 2012
Al Jazeera turned into a powerhouse name that nearly everyone knows today; some also know Al Arabiya—But how about the MBC, a.k.a. The Middle East Broadcasting Center, does it ring a bell? No, it is not yet another Arabic-language Satellite channel that just got off the ground… In fact, just last year, the MBC group celebrated its 20th anniversary. ♦ Who owns…
Egypt: Voting for a President Posted by Fisal on May 24, 2012
Today the Egyptians continue voting تصويت to choose a president from thirteen candidates in the first free presidential elections after the 25th January 2011 Revolution. The voting process عملية started yesterday and is considered a turning point inEgypt’s modern history. No one can predict who the winner will be. There are five frontrunners who…
The World Speaks to the Arab World—In Arabic! Posted by Hichem on May 23, 2012
Since the Arab world represents a highly strategic area, many foreign powers have launched their own Arabic-speaking TV channels to spread their views and outlook on major world events. In other words, الرَّأي العـــــــام (public opinion) of Arab nations has become, more than ever, المصلحــــة القوميـــــــة (the national interest) of many powers in the world. سكـــــــاي…
Who Runs the Two Most Successful Arabic-Language Channels? Posted by Hichem on May 22, 2012
There are quite literally hundreds of Arabic-language TV channels out there, broadcasting from within the Arab world and beyond. But only two names usually sound familiar to most ears: Al Jazeera and Al Arabiya. There’s no doubt that Al Jazeera is the most famous and still most successful Arabic-language channel out there. Its name “الجزيـــــــرة” means “island”…
Egyptian Proverbs (5) Posted by Fisal on May 19, 2012
Arabic proverbs reflect the beauty of the Arabic Language and the wisdom of the Arabs and their culture. In Egypt, these proverbs are part of everyone’s daily routine. There is no one single situation that would not have the perfect proverb tailored for it. Just for the sake of fun, I am going to…
Al-Mutanabbi: The Arabian Knightly Poet of Majestic Grandeur Posted by Hichem on May 18, 2012
What you are about to read in today’s post is an excerpt from one of the crown jewels of Arabic literature and poetry. The author is known as المُتَنَبِّـــــــــــــي (Al-Mutanabi.) He wrote those verses as a مــــــــــدح (praise) of one of the leaders of his time, Seyf al Dawla, whose name literally means in Arabic…
فـــــــــي القُـــــــــــــدس (In Jerusalem) Posted by Hichem on May 15, 2012
Today, May 15th, is to be remembered as يــــــوم النكبــــــــــــــة (“The Day of the Catastrophe”), a day commemorated by virtually everyone in the Arab world—in addition to an important number of Orthodox Jews who not only vigorously uphold the Palestinian cause, but who also, in the name of the Jewish faith which they dearly cherish and identify with, are uncompromisingly opposed to the apartheid ideology…