Fawzia Al Ashmawi October 1940 – November 2022.
Dr Fawzia al-Ashmawi was an Egyptian academic, writer, and translator. She worked as a Professor of Arabic literature and Islamic civilization in the University of Geneva since 1979. She was also a member of the Supreme Islamic Affair Council, affiliated to Egypt’s Awqaf ministry, and a UNSECO adviser. She was also President of the Forum for European Muslim Women Geneva. She earned her PHD- University of Geneva, Geneva Switzerland, 1983 “ Aspects of the Evolution of Women Status & the Society in Contemporary Egypt”
Although she has left her country of origin a long time ago to settle in Geneva- Switzerland, Dr. Al-Ashmawi's literary work throbs with a passion for her city of birth, Alexandria, a port on the warm blue waters of the Mediterranean. It is to be noted that she always seemed involved in matters that focus on her Egyptian roots.
As an Islamic expert, she had an interest in modernizing religious address with a focus on women rights. She stressed that renewing religious discourse does not mean introducing changes to the Quran, saying the Quran has a text no word or letter of which can be altered but what can be reexamined is interpretation of the verses as they can be interpreted based on social, economic, political, medical and biological advancements. She said that here there are issues at work that have gone through changes over the past 14 centuries. This view is especially important in issues related to women.
PUBLICATIONS in French
- Mariage et Divorce dans l’Egypte Ancienne (Marriage and Divorce in Ancient Egypt) (translation from Arabic), Geuthner, Paris,2009
- Mohammad, Prophète de Dieu (The Prophet Mohammed), (translation from Arabic).
WICS Publications, Tripoli, 2005
- L’Islam dans les manuels scolaires en Europe (Islam in History Textbooks),
WICS Publications, Tripoli, 2003
- La Condition des Musulmans en Suisse(Muslims Status in Switzerland), CERA, Geneva,2001
- Etude Comparative des manuels scolaires des pays méditerranéens (Comparative Study of
History Textbooks in Mediterranean Countries), UNESCO, Paris, 1996
- L’Authenticité dans l’oeuvre romanesque de Naguib Mahfouz ( The Authenticity in Naguib
Mahfouz Novels, in Revue of Arts & Translation, No 1, Kaslik, Liban, 1995
- La tragédie de Voltaire:Mahomet ou le Fanatisme,( Mahomet,The Fanatism of Voltaire),
in Campus, Geneva, 1994)
- Miramar of Naguib Mahfuz (translation from Arabic), Denoël, Paris, 1990
- La Femme et l’Egypte Moderne dans l’oeuvre de Naguib Mahfouz (Women and Modern Egypt
in Naguib Mahfuz Novels,) Labor & Fides, Geneva, 1985.
PUBLICATIONS in English
- Learning about the Other, Guidebook for History Textbooks, Joint Project of UNESCO
and Arab League, Cairo, 2009
-The Image of The Other in History Textbooks: Jews and Christians in Islamic Books,
Istanbul, 2006
- The Arabic Language as an Official Language of The United Nations, Nitobe Symposium,
Berlin, 1999
- Human Rights in Islam, Panorama, Bern, 1999
- Muslim Voices in Switzerland, TSER Project, Brussels, 1999
- Comparative Study of Textbooks : The Image of the Other in Seven Mediterranean
Countries, UNESCO Publications, Newsletter No 5, 1996
Publications in Arabic
- Amwaj al-`umr (Waves of my life), Dar el-ain Publications, Cairo,2012
- Al-mara al-muslima fì al-`Ilam al –gharbi (Muslim Women in The Media in Occident),
Akhbar al-youm, Cairo, 2008
- Al-Qiyam al-Islamiyya wa al-Qiyam al-Insaniyya (Islamic Values and Humanitarian
Values, Doha Conference, Qatar, 2007
- Al-maraa fî adab Naguib Mahfuz ( Women in Naguîb Mahfouz Novels), 2003
General Egyptian Organization of book & Superior Council of Culture, Cairo,
- Al-Saba` Banât fî al-Iskandiriyya (The Seven Monks of Alexandria), Novel, Sharqiyyat,
- Cairo, 1998
- Al-Hub al-Awal wa al-Suhba ( The First Love) of Samuel Beckett), (translation from French), Superior Council of Culture, Cairo, 1998
- Alexandrie 60, Novel, Madbouly, Cairo, 1997
- Al-Ghurba fî al-watan, ( Stranger in my Country), Short Stories, Madbouly, Cairo, 1995
- Al-Hub (Love), translation from French of the Novel of Marguerite Duras, General Organization of Culture, Cairo, 1995
- Al-Islam wa al-àwlama (Islam and Globalization) High Council of Islamic Affairs, Cairo, 1999
- Makanat al-mar’ a fi al-Islam (The Status of Muslim Women in Islam), Conference on Uprooted Muslim Women in Islam, Sharjeh, U.A.E., 1994
AWARDS
Golden Award in Sciences and Arts from Egypt in 2008 (Wissam Al-Istihqaq min Al-Daraja Al-Ula fi Al –`Ulum wa Al-Funun
