“Tahtawi and the Twenty First Century” in a Seminar at the BA
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The Bibliotheca Alexandrina organized a seminar entitled “Tahtawi and the Twenty First Century” on Tuesday, 14 December 2021, in the BACC Small Theater. Participants included Dr. Emad Abu Ghazi, former Minister of Culture and Professor of Arabic Documents at the Faculty of Arts, Cairo University; Dr. Ahmed Zakaria Al-Shalak, Professor Emeritus of Modern and Contemporary History at the Faculty of Arts, Ain Shams University; Dr. Anwar Moghith, Professor of Modern and Contemporary Philosophy, Helwan University; Dr. Maged El-Saiedy, Professor of Literature and Criticism at the Faculty of Al-Alsun, Ain Shams University; and Dr. Mervat Asaad Atallah, Professor of Modern and Contemporary History at the Faculty of Education, Alexandria University.
The discussion revolved around the glorious enlightening message carried by Sheikh Rifa'a Rafe' Al-Tahtawi of Al-Azhar, who was the nation’s teacher and pioneer of the process of the renewal and enlightenment of the modern Egyptian thought – a historical message that has since become a leading example for new generations. The seminar also highlighted the major translation movement, first launched by Tahtawi during his studies in Paris, when he was an Imam and member of the first educational mission sent overseas by Muhammad Ali in the mid 1820s.