Faleeha Hassan
Faleeha Hassan (born 1967) is an Iraqi poet living in New Jersey.[1]
Early life and education[edit]
Hassan was born and raised in Najaf. She was a precocious reader as a child, but her schooling was interrupted in 1980 when her middle school was closed for the Iran–Iraq War.[1] She would eventually earn a masters in Arabic Literature from the University of Kufa in 2006.[1][2]
Career[edit]
Hassan began teaching high school in 1988.
In 1991, she became the first woman in Najaf to publish a book of poetry, I Am a Girl.[2] In 2012, she became the first woman in Iraq to publish a book of poetry for children " A Dream Guard " She fled Iraq after her name appeared on a militant group's death list in 2011.[2][3] She fled first to Eskişehir in Turkey, then to Afyonkarahisar, where she insisted her children be allowed to attend school in order to stay warm.[3] After working with the United Nations office in Ankara, She was accepted into the United States by a Roman Catholic charity.[2][3]
Awards and honours[edit]
- World Association of Arab Translators and Linguists (WATA)
- The Najafi Creative Festival for 2012
- The Prize of Naziq al-Malaika 2008
- The Prize of al-Mu'temar for poetry 2010
- The short-story prize of the Shaheed al-Mihrab Foundation
- Phoenix International Festival of Arts and Culture.
- The judges from Holland traveled to Iraq to award her the prize, 2010.
- Srbrun Poveilu “ silver medal“ from Mesopotamia cultural center Belgrade– Serbia 2018
- Pulitzer Prize Nomination 2018
- Pushcart Prize Nomination 2018
- Pushcart Prize Nomination 2019
Books[edit]
 |
- Because I Am a Girl (1991)
- A Visit to the Museum of the Shadows (1998)
- Five addresses for my friend the sea (2000)
- Even after while (2008)
- Splinters(2008)
- Lack of the Happiness Cells (2008)
- Mom's Poems(2010)
- Water Freckles (2010)
- A Dream guard (2012)
- I Hate My City (2013)
- Let's Strongly Celebrate My Day (2015)
- If Columbus did not discover America (2015)
- SWALLOW (2016)
- We grow up at speed of war (2016)
- Lipstick (2016)
- Mass Graves (2018)
- When I drink tea in a New Jersey (2018)
- Breakfast with Butterflies (2019)
- A Butterfly's Voice (2020)
- War and Me (2022)
References[edit]
- ^ a b c "Iraqi poet Faleeha Hassan: Forged in war, fueled by hope" by Graham Dudley. NonDoc. 6 June 2 2016. Accessed 27 May 2020.
- ^ a b c d "Faleeha Hassan, 'the Maya Angelou of Iraq,' Wields a Mighty Pen" by Kate Morgan. Oprah.com. Accessed 27 May 2020.
- ^ a b c "My Life as a Refugee" by Faleeha Hassan. Empty Mirror. Accessed 27 May 2020.
External links[edit]
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| National | |
