Bibliotheca Polyglotta

ʕĪsà ʕUbayd, Muqaddima (1921)

Complete text

III-§1.a

على أنّنا في إبّان نهضة كبيرة أوجدتها حركتنا الوطنية ،

ʕalà ʔanna-nā fī ʔibbānⁱ nahḍaẗⁱⁿ kabīraẗ ʔawǧadat-hā ḥarakatu-nā ’l-waṭaniyyaẗ,

However, we are living [now] through an era of a big awakening, induced by our national movement.

AR: nahḍaẗ, ḥarakaẗ, waṭaniyyaẗ
EN: era of a big awakening, national movement

ومن شأن النهضة أنْ تحدث عادة انقلاباً في العادات والتقاليد وتغيراً في الميول والأفكار ،

wa-min šaʔnⁱ ’l-nahḍaẗ ʔan tuḥdiṯ^a ʕādaẗ^an inqilāb^an fī ’l-ʕādāt wa’l-taqālīd wa-taġayyur^an fī ’l-muyūl wa’l-ʔafkār,

It is common for such an awakening that it brings about a reversal of customs and tradition and a change in orientations and thinking.

AR: nahḍaẗ, inqilab, taqālīd (taqlīd), taġayyur, mayl
EN: …

وقد ظهر أثر ذلك في كتابة كثيرٍ من كتّاب الناشئة الجديدة فقد تجلّوا لنا أنّهم من أنصار الجديد ،

wa-qad ẓahara ʔaṯar^u ḏālika fī kitābaẗ kaṯīrⁱⁿ min kuttāb al-nāšiʔaẗ al-ǧadīdaẗ fa-qad taǧallaw la-nā ʔanna-hum min ʔanṣār al-ǧadīd,

Such an influence has [already] appeared clearly in the writing of many of the writers of the new emerging generation: they’ve made it clear to us that they are followers of the new.

AR: ʔaṯar, kitābaẗ, kātib (kuttāb), nāšiʔaẗ (našʔaẗ, nušūʔ), ǧadīd
EN: …

وهم متّفقون معنا على ضئولة آدابنا الحالية وجمودها ومتطلّعون إلى آداب جديدة تضارع الآداب الغربية بالصفة العلمية والطريقة التحليلية والمرامي الفنّية ،

wa-hum muttafiqūn^a maʕa-nā ʕalà ḍuʔūlaẗ ʔādābi-nā ’l-ḥāliyyaẗ wa-ǧumūdi-hā wa-mutaṭalliʕūn^a ʔilà ʔādāb ǧadīdaẗ tuḍāriʕ^u ’l-ʔādāb al-ġarbiyyaẗ bi’l-ṣifaẗ al-ʕilmiyyaẗ wa’l-ṭarīqaẗ al-taḥlīliyyaẗ wa’l-marāmī al-fanniyyaẗ,

Like us, they are convinced that our current literature is weak and stagnating, and they are very much looking forward to seeing [the emergence of] a new literature that will be a [real] contemporary of Western literature – science-based, [psycho-] analytical, and with high aesthetic ambition.¹

1. bi’l-ṣifaẗ al-ʕilmiyyaẗ wa’l-ṭarīqaẗ al-taḥlīliyyaẗ wa’l-marāmī al-fanniyyaẗ. In the last adjective, the original meaning of fann as ‘technique’ is still very prominent. ʕUbayd is convinced that mastering storytelling technique has to play a key role when modern Egyptian fiction should succeed as an art.

AR: ḍuʔūlaẗ, ʔādāb, ǧumūd, ǧadīd, muḍāraʕaẗ, ġarbī (ġarb), ʕilmī (ʕilm, ʕilmiyyaẗ), taḥlīl, fannī (fann)
EN: a [real] contemporary of Western literature, science-based, [psycho-], analytical, aesthetic ambition

وهذا ممّا يثلّج صدورنا ويفعم نفوسنا بالأمل الكبير من نجاح قصصنا ورواياتنا العصرية المصرية ؛

wa-hāḏā mimmā yuṯliǧu ṣudūra-nā wa-yufʕimu nufūsa-nā bi’l-ʔamal al-kabīr min naǧāḥ qiṣaṣi-nā wa-riwāyāti-nā ’l-ʕaṣriyyaẗ al-miṣriyyaẗ;

This is something that cools our hearts a bit and fills our souls with great hope that our modern Egyptian stories and novels will be successful.

AR: nufūs (nafs), ʔamalqiṣaṣriwāyaẗ, ʕaṣrī (ʕaṣriyyaẗ), miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ),
EN: …

لأنّ غايتنا منها إيجاد أدب مصري موسوم بطابع شخصيتنا المصرية ويمثّل حياتنا الاجتماعية والنفسية والوطنية .

li-ʔanna ġāyata-nā min-hā ʔīǧād ʔadab miṣrī mawsūm bi-ṭābiʕ šaḫṣiyyati-nā ’l-miṣriyyaẗ wa-yumaṯṯil^u ḥayāta-nā ’l-iǧtimāʕiyyaẗ wa’l-nafsiyyaẗ wa’l-waṭaniyyaẗ.

For what we aim at with them is the creation of an Egyptian literature that carries the traits of our Egyptian [national] character and will be representative of our social, emotional and national life.

AR: ġāyaẗ, ʔīǧād, ʔadab, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), ṭābiʕ, šaḫṣiyyaẗ, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), ḥayāẗ, iǧtimāʕī (muǧtamaʕ), nafsī (nafs), waṭaniyyaẗ
EN: Egyptian, Egyptian [national] character, social, emotional and national life

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