Mohammed bin Rashid:
United Arab Emirates - Dubai: His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, may God protect him, congratulated Professor Charbel Dagher on winning the “Arab Geniuses 2025” award in the category of literature and arts, stressing that literature and arts have formed an important component in the lives of peoples and the civilizations of nations in all ages.
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum said in a post on his account on the “X” platform: “We congratulate the winner of the Arab Genius Award for the Literature and Arts category for 2025, Professor Charbel Dagher, from Lebanon, Professor of Arabic Literature . He has made intellectual contributions spanning decades in various fields of literature, from poetry, writing, novels, and criticism. He has also worked on studying Arab arts in their history and depth, and all the changes that have occurred to them . ”
His Highness added: “Professor Charbel has published more than 70 books, through which he has enriched the fields of literature and arts in our Arab world, and his works are considered references for the study of Arab literature and art throughout history . We congratulate all the winners of the Arab Geniuses Award, and we say to all Arabs: He who created the greatest civilization in history is capable today of building a greater future… if he believes in himself, in his capabilities, and in his role in resuming civilization.”
The “Arab Geniuses” award is the largest of its kind in the Arab world. It has established itself as the “Arab Nobel Prize” over the past few years since it was launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum as an Arab cultural project that highlights outstanding Arab minds and their creative, intellectual and scientific achievements in six main categories: literature and arts, architecture and design, engineering and technology, medicine, economics and natural sciences.
Heritage and contemporary identity
Among the most famous literary and artistic works known worldwide by Professor Charbel Dagher, which are considered essential references in the study of Arabic and Islamic art and calligraphy and modern visual arts, are “Islamic Art in Arabic Sources: The Making of Ornament and Beauty”, “Arabic Calligraphy: Art and Identity”, “Art and the Orient”, and “The Eye and the Painting ” .
Professor Charbel Dagher is one of the leading cultural figures in Lebanon and the Arab world. A poet, critic, and academic, he combines creative sensibility with rigorous research. Born in 1950, he grew up in a cultural environment that influenced his intellectual development, leading him to build a prolific literary and research career over more than fifty years, contributing significantly to the advancement of aesthetic studies and Arab art criticism.
He writes in both Arabic and French, which has allowed him to engage with diverse schools of thought and formulate approaches that combine tradition and modernity. His work is distinguished by its integration of poetry with aesthetic studies and art criticism, along with significant contributions to the analysis of modern Islamic and Arab arts, where he connects tradition and modernity and offers authoritative approaches to issues of cultural identity and modern literary and artistic criticism .
Professor Dagher also holds the position of Professor of Arabic Literature and Arts at the University of Balamand, and enjoys a broad academic and research presence in universities and cultural institutions. He has authored numerous reference books on poetry, criticism, and the arts, and his works are considered authoritative references in the field of Arabic literature and art.
Al Gergawi: "Arab Geniuses" embodies Mohammed bin Rashid's confidence in Arab minds, competencies, and creativity
His Excellency Mohammed bin Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs and Chairman of the Higher Committee of the “Arab Geniuses” initiative, made a video call to Professor Charbel Dagher, informing him of his winning the “Arab Geniuses 2025” award in the Literature and Arts category, noting the universal humanitarian message of shared values in his artistic works, which have reached global audiences and addressed a wide audience from different cultures in the language of literature and art that touches everyone.
His Excellency Mohammed Al Gergawi said that the “Arab Geniuses” strategic initiative embodies the absolute confidence of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, may God protect him, in the potential and capabilities of Arab minds, talents and creativity that present the correct narrative about the civilizational contributions of the Arab world and represent a role model that future generations look up to, stressing that the appreciation of Professor Charbel Dagher is a celebration of the Arab creator as well as a celebration of an intellectual and aesthetic path that contributed to developing the understanding of Arab literature and arts, and enhancing the presence of cultural identity in contemporary literary and artistic discourse, through linking heritage and modernity.
Literature and Arts Committee
The Literature and Arts Committee for the “Arab Geniuses” Award for the year 2025 included His Excellency Mohammed Ahmed Al Murr, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Library, Chairman of the Committee, and Dr. Ahmed Abdullah Zayed Hijab, Director of the Library of Alexandria.
Conclusion of the third session
The announcement of the winner for the Literature and Arts category for 2025 , Professor Charbel Dagher, Professor of Arabic Literature, concludes the winners of the third cycle, which also included the victory of Professor Majed Sharqi in the Natural Sciences category, Professor Abbas Al-Jamal in the Engineering and Technology category, Dr. Nabil Saidah in the Medicine category, Professor Badi Hani in the Economics category, and Dr. Suad Al-Amiri in the Architecture and Design category, after the specialized judging committees within their six categories completed all the evaluation processes for the nominations received by the third edition of the “Arab Geniuses” initiative from all over the Arab world and the world, each according to its specialization, in the fields of medicine, engineering and technology, economics, natural sciences, architecture and design, and literature and arts .
The specialized committees evaluated the nominations for the “Arab Geniuses” award to select the most distinguished male and female candidates according to a set of unified criteria and standards for each of its six categories, in order to ensure a comprehensive, scientific and transparent evaluation of the nominations for each category.
His Excellency Mohammed Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs, chaired the Higher Committee of the Arab Geniuses Initiative. The Nominations Follow-up Committee included Her Excellency Huda Al Hashimi, Assistant Minister of Cabinet Affairs for Strategic Affairs, Shukrallah Haddad, Partner and Head of Consulting at KPMG, Abdul Salam Heikal, Founder and Executive Chairman of Majarrah, Ali Matar, Head of LinkedIn in the Middle East, North Africa and Emerging Markets in Africa and Europe, and His Excellency Saeed Al Nazari, Secretary General of the Arab Geniuses Initiative.
The award included 6 high-level specialized committees for each category. His Excellency Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy, chaired the Economics Committee. Her Excellency Sarah Al Amiri, Minister of Education, chaired the committee for the Engineering and Technology category. His Excellency Mohammed Ahmed Al Murr, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Library, chaired the committee for the Literature and Arts category. His Excellency Dr. Amer Ahmed Sharif, Executive Director of Dubai Health and Director of Mohammed bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences, chaired the committee for the Medicine category. Professor Sihamuddin Hussein Kaldari, Senior Vice President for Research and Director of the Institute of Scientific Research at New York University Abu Dhabi and a University Professor of Biology, Biochemistry and Molecular Cytology, chaired the Natural Sciences Committee. Professor Hashim Sarkis, Dean of the College of Engineering and Planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, chaired the Architecture and Design Committee.
The committees included His Excellency Essa Kazim, Governor of the Dubai International Financial Centre, Dr. Mohamed Madhi, Dean of the College of Business and Economics at the United Arab Emirates University, Dr. Rabah Arezki, Senior Fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, Farid Belhaj, from the Policy Center for the New South, and Dr. Jihad Azour, Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund.
The specialized committees also included Professor Ismail Al-Hanti, Director of Al-Hussein Technical University; Adel Darwish, Regional Director of the International Telecommunication Union; Dr. Ahmed Abdullah Zayed Hijab, Director of the Library of Alexandria; His Excellency Dr. Alawi Al-Sheikh Ali, Director General of the Dubai Health Authority; Professor Elias Zerhouni, Professor Emeritus at Johns Hopkins University; Professor Noureddine Melikchi, Dean of the Kennedy School of Science and Professor of Physics at the University of Massachusetts Lowell; Professor Nader Masmoudi, Professor at the Core Institute for Mathematical Sciences at New York University Abu Dhabi; Dr. Latifa Al-Wadghiri, Researcher at the Thomas Jefferson Laboratory in the United States; and Professor Jehan Rajai, Professor Emeritus of Chemistry at the American University in Cairo. The specialized committees also included Dr. Adrian Lahoud, Dean of the School of Architecture at the Royal College of Art, and Professor Ali Malkawi, Director of the Harvard Green Building Center.
The largest Arab award of its kind
The Arab Genius Award is the largest Arab initiative to honor outstanding Arab minds in six vital sectors for the revival of Arab civilization and the enhancement of its contribution to the progress of human civilization: medicine, engineering and technology, natural sciences, economics, architecture and design, and literature and the arts. Often referred to as the “Arab Nobel Prize,” the Arab Genius Award celebrates and honors the achievements of creative and distinguished Arabs, highlighting their exceptional accomplishments that revive the golden age and leading position of the Arab region in the global knowledge society and human civilization.
For the third year in a row, the award continued to highlight the achievements and innovations of inspiring Arab minds, talents, and competencies in the Arab world to promote the Arab contribution to the human cultural and intellectual heritage.