Ahlam MOSTEGHANEMI

Ahlam Mosteghanemi is an Arabic language writer She is the eldest sibling in a family engaged in the struggle for Algerian national independence. Her father, Mohamed El Cherif, fought against the French colonial presence and two of her brothers lost their lives in a demonstration against the colonial power in the 1940s. The family had to flee to Tunisia, but Ahlam grew up in a politicized environment, in contact with the Algerian resistance. At the same time she is exposed to literature and culture, through her father, a literature professor. Upon their return to Algeria in 1962, she completed secondary school and started working for a radio station. There she hosted a program, Hamsat, which created her literary reputation. Her first collection of poems appeared in 1973 under the title Ala Marfa ‘Al Ayam (In the haven of days). Later she moves to Paris, marries a Lebanese journalist, and while founding a family, writes a thesis with the support of Jacques Berque. Her works are popular in the Arabic-speaking world, in particular in Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates. Her book Dhakirat al-jasad (Memoirs of the Flesh) is ranked among the top hundred Arab novels. She has received the Naguib Mahfouz Prize and the Nour Prize for the best female work in Arabic.