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Anis K. Makdisi 1885-1977
Professional Career
Publications

Anis K. Makdisi 1885-1977

• Born 1885 in Tripoli, he completed his elementary education in Tripoli, and then studied at the American Evangelical School at Souk Al-Gharb, Sidon and Beirut.
• In 1906 he received his BA from the Syrian Protestant College in Beirut, followed by his MA in 1908. During his college career, he was an active member of the football team at the S.P.C.
• In 1920, he married Ms. Salma Khalil Khoury. They had four children.
• From 1914-1977 he was an active member of the National Evangelical Church in Beirut. In 1923 he became an elder of the church, and served as chair of the Evangelical Schools committee.

Professional Career

• In 1904, he taught Arabic at Bishmizeen (North Lebanon) and later at the secondary school of the Syrian Protestant College.
• From 1910-1911, he taught at the American College Assiout (Egypt).
• From 1911-1912, he chaired the Arabic Department of the secondary school of Syrian Evangelical College in Beirut.
• In 1920, he joined Professor Jabr Doumit at the Arabic Department of the Syrian Protestant College, which that year became the American University of Beirut
• In 1923, he was promoted to the rank of Associate Professor.
• In 1924, he went to Iraq on behalf of AUB to promote the newly created Education Program and to recruit students.
• In 1925, he was promoted to the rank of Full Professor.
• From 1929-1950, he chaired the Arabic Department at AUB and was the driving force behind its modernization and development.
• In 1945, he was elected a member of the Arabic Language Academy in Damascus.
• In 1948, he was awarded the Lebanese Gold Medal.
• In 1950, he retired, and became Professor Emeritus at AUB.
• He was awarded the Lebanese Gold Medal for Education.
• From 1953-1955, he was Visiting Professor at the Institute of Higher Studies in Cairo.
• In 1957, he was Visiting Professor at the University of Tehran, where he gave a series of lectures.
• In 1961, he was elected a member at the Arab Language Academy in Cairo (delivering a lecture every year).
• In 1963, he was granted the Medal of the President of the Republic of Lebanon (Friends of the Book Club).
• On February 17, 1977 he passed away.

Publications

1. Articles
   - With his brother Jirjis, Prof. Makdisi established the Al-Mawrid Al-Safi (the Clear Spring), "a scientific, literary, and social journal," co-editor 1909-1940
   - He Published numerous articles, among others, in the Annals of the Arab Academies in Cairo and Damascus, Al-Hilal, Al-Muqtataf, Al-Mawrid Al-Safi, Al-Kulliya (organ on the Syrian Protestant College, later AUB), Al-Abhath (AUB), and Al-Adab.
    

2. Books (listed according to the year of publication)
   - Arab States and their Literatures (Arabic), Beirut 1915; 6th print, 1939.
   - Treasures of Literature ( school book in Arabic), Beirut 1911[?]; 6th print, 1931.
   - The Umara of Arabic Poetry During the Abbasid Era (Arabic), Beirut 1932; 18th     print, 1994.
   - The Development of Prose Styles in Arabic Literature (Arabic), Beirut 1934; 8th print, 1989.
   - The Diwan of Ibn al-Sa'ati. A critical edition, 1-2 (Arabic), Beirut 1938-1939.
   - The Influential Factors in the Modern Arab Literature, Beirut 1939.
   - A Reader in Arabic Literature (A selection of well known pieces), Beirut 1946; 16th print, 1999.
   - Literary Trends in the Modern Arabic World, Beirut 1952; 4th print, 1960.
   - The First Generation of Arab Poets in the Twentieth Century (Arabic).
   - An Introduction to the Study of Literary Criticism in Arabic Literature (Arabic), Tehran 1958.
   - The Epistles (Letters) of Ibn al-Athir. A critical edition, Baghdad 1959.
   - Literary Genres and their Leading Figures during the Modern Arab Nahda "Enlightenment" (Arabic), Beirut 1963; 4th print, 1984.
   - Foreign Words in the Arabic Language (Arabic), Damascus 1964.
   - Post-Classical Language in Modern Arabic Dictionaries (Arabic), Damascus 1965.
   - In the Processions of Light. Theatrical scenes (Arabic), Beirut 19[?]; 2nd print, 1964.
   - Al-Waqafat. A volume of poetry (Arabic), Beirut n.d.
   - In the Company of Time. Memoirs (Arabic), eds. Y.Ibish & Y.K. Khoury, Beirut.
   - Literary trends in the Modern Arab World, a study of the political, social and intellectual background of Arabic literature in the first half of the twentieth century (English), Typescript (363 leaves), Jafet Library (AUB).
    

3. Translation into Arabic
   - Tennyson, , Alfred: In Memoriam, Beirut 1925.
   - Day, Alfred: Kingdoms of Nature, Beirut 1927-1930.
   - Twain, Mark: The Prince and the Pauper, Beirut 1930.