The Diplomat
The director of Casa Árabe, Irene Lozano, has announced the winner of the second edition of the Amistad Prize, which was awarded to Professor Waleed Saleh Alkhalifa, one of the great promoters of Arabic language and culture teaching in Spain over the last forty years.
The Amistad Prize thus recognizes his contribution to the dissemination of the Arabic language throughout his professional career with the publication, in addition, of numerous teaching materials that have served to bring the Arabic language closer. Since 1992 he has been a certified translator of Arabic, appointed by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, from which position he has translated into this language several works in Spanish, especially to Gabriel García Márquez.
On this occasion, the jury of the award also wanted to remember the figure of professor and translator Federico Arbós Ayuso, who died last October. Professor of Modern and Contemporary Arabic Literature at the Faculty of Philology of the Complutense University of Madrid, who until his retirement in 2013 was the author of a multitude of articles on Arabic literature and a particular scholar of the work of Al-QudsBayati, Mahmud Darwish, Mohammed Bennis and Adonis, translated into Spanish.
The “Amistad” Award of Casa Árabe aims to recognize the work of individuals and entities, public or private, national or international, who have contributed in a prominent way to the dissemination of the Arabic language, to innovate in it, to disseminate it or extend it to other activities that enhance its uniqueness, its heritage in the Spanish language and its vitality today.
With the creation of the “Amistad” prize, Casa Árabe wants to bring and spread the Arabic language, highlighting and rewarding those who contribute to its wealth and expansion through their work and dedication. Arabic is an increasingly present language in the scientific, cultural and economic landscape. Spain is a good example of this, with a great linguistic influence of Arabic in Spanish and a growing community of Arabic speakers.
