Abdullah honours winners of Al Burdah Award

The award-giving ceremony was organised by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Community Development as part of its celebrations of the birth of Prophet Mohammed (Peace Be Upon Him).

The function at the Shaikh Zayed Grand Mosque was attended by Abdul Rahman bin Mohammed Al Owais, Minister of Culture, Youth and Community Development, a crowd of scholars, researchers, senior government officials, diplomats and Arab and foreign guests and dignitaries.

A galaxy of fame Arab singers chanted and performed religious songs and hymns during the evening.

The Al Burdah Awards are held in two categories of Poetry – Formal and Nabati; and two categories of Arabic Calligraphy – Traditional and Modern as well as Decoration. A jury of leading writers and experts evaluated the 366 entries that were in the running for this year’s award and named 36 winners.

Organisers said the 8^th edition of the Award was characterized by the high quality of entries in all categories. There were high quality entries from many Arab and Islamic countries.

Top three winners in Annaskh Calligraphy are Sabah Maqdeer Babeer of Britain, Mohammed Safarbati of Algeria, and Abdel Rahman Ahmed Al Abdi of Syria respectively.

Top three winners in calligraphy are Kiwan Yadallahi of Iran, and both Ihan Ahmadi, and Hameed Ramadenio of Iran.

Winners in modern style are: Alaa Ismail Abdel Rahman of Iraq, first place; Taj Alser Hassan of Sudan, second place, and Hossam Ahmed Abdel Wahab Ali of Egypt, third place.

Winners in Nabati poetry are: First Place: No winner, Ali Bin Abdullah Al Qurni, from Yemen, and Ibrahim Abdullah Hussein Ali , from UAE shared the second place; and Abdullah Saleh Al Emari of Yemen and Saeed Mohammed Obaid of Oman, were third placers and no winners for fourth place.

Winners in fluent poetry are: Mohamed Areej of Morocco, first place; Hassan Mubarak Mohamed Al Rabeeh (KSA), second place; Nezar Najm Nasser Al Jabouri, of Iraq third and Jassim Mohammed Al Saheeh of KSA, fourth.

Top three decoration winners are: Laila Abbassi of Iran, first place; Shaimaa Akour, Turkey second place and Mohsen Akameri of Iran third place.

The Al Burdah Awards were instituted to promote and reward artists and poets in various categories including Eloquent Poetry (poems in praise of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH)), Poetry, Traditional Calligraphy, Modern Calligraphy and Classical Ornamental Decoration. These are open to artists and poets from the UAE and across the world.

A lot of entries in the poetry category covered new creative areas which proved the award’s increasing appeal to artists in the Arabic and Islamic worlds. This Arabic and Islamic participation reflects positively on the local environment and artists. The Ministry enlists the services of well-reputed experts and artists from around the world to assess the award’s different categories.

The Ministry of Culture, Youth and Community Development has been organising the Awards from 2004, to celebrate the birth of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) and it has grown in stature and significance over the years. The competitions are designed to create and stimulate artistic discourse and creative exchange among the wider community. The awards also aim to stimulate the younger generation to commit to their religion and to recognise their duties towards the Islamic faith. It also honours individuals and institutions worldwide that have made significant contributions to the Islamic community.