Youssef Rakha
was born on 12 June 1976 in Cairo. He has a first class BA Hons in English and Philosophy (Hull University, UK, 1998) and was awarded the Larkin Prize for English and the Chris Ayers Prize for Philosophy.
Since the early 1990s he has contributed many articles and translations to the Arabic press, and is presently senior writer/copy editor for the English-language Al-Ahram Weekly.
He has one collection of short stories (Dar Sharqiyat, 1999) and two travel books, including Beirut, shi mahal [Beirut, some place], Amkena Books, 2006, and one novel.
In October 2009 he was selected as one of the 39 authors of the Beirut39 project.
Contributor's Issues
Banipal No 26 Summer 2006
Banipal No 32 Summer 2008
Banipal No 38 Arab American Authors
Banipal No 27 Autumn/Winter 2006
Banipal No 38 Arab American Authors
Latest News
06/02/2012At a celebration of literary translation on Monday 6 February at Kings Place, Khaled Mattawa will receive the 2011 Saif Ghobash Banipal Prize for Arabic Literary Translation.
[read more]03/02/2012
The Mosaic Rooms celebrates theartistic and poetic works of the great Syrian poet Adonis with talks and events from 3-8 February and an exhibition of Adonis's collages from 3 February until 30 March. The opening evening this Friday sees Adonis in conversation with Khaled Mattawa who is the winner of the 2011 Saif Ghobash Banipal Prize for his translation Adonis: Selected Poems.
[read more]16/01/2012
Khaled Mattawa wins the 2011 Saif Ghobash-Banipal Translation Prize for Adonis:Selected Poems
[read more]12/01/2012
Chair of IPAF Judges Georges Tarabichi announces the shortlist authors of the 2012 International Prize for Arabic Fiction.
[read more]09/01/2012
Banipal Book Club's first book for discussion is The Tobacco Keeper by Ali Bader.
[read more]08/01/2012
Ibrahim Aslan, one of Egypt's best-loved authors, has died of heart failure at the age of 77.
[read more][read all news stories]