The General Union of Writers and Authors in Iraq mourned today, Friday, the esteemed critic and researcher Bassem Abdul Hamid Hamoudi. The union stated in a statement, "The General Union of Writers and Authors in Iraq mourns the esteemed critic and researcher Bassem Abdul Hamid Hamoudi, who passed away at the age of eighty-seven, early this Friday, May 10, 2024, in Baghdad, after a rich career filled with knowledge, culture, and achievements in the fields of folklore and heritage."
Who is the Iraqi writer Bassem Abdul Hamid Hamoudi?
Iraqi writer and author Bassem Abdul Hamid Hamoudi Al-Nuaimi, born in 1937 in Baghdad, was a pioneer of Iraqi literary and journalistic movements. He obtained a degree in history from the College of Education in 1960. He published his first article in 1954 and was one of the most significant figures of Iraqi criticism that emerged in the last century, in addition to being a researcher and specialist in heritage and folklore.
Hamoudi served as the editor-in-chief of the magazine "Folklore" published by the General Cultural Affairs House and was a member of the General Union of Writers and Authors in Iraq. He worked throughout his career as a teacher, editor-in-chief of the magazines "Pens" and "Foreign Culture," as well as managing editor of the magazine "The Pioneers" and head of the publication department at the General Cultural Affairs House. He was also elected as the secretary-general of the Arab Writers' Association for Folk Heritage.
Hamoudi authored numerous books, especially in the area of popular literature in which he specialized, including "The Popular Biography and the Arab Self," "Customary Justice among the Arabs: A Glossary of Terms," "The Critic and the Story of War: An Analytical Study," and "Customs and Traditions of Iraqi Popular Life." His other works include "Mahmoud Al-Abta: An Iraqi Folkloric Departure," "I Am Unemployed and Other Stories," and "The Third Face of Woman."
He also published "The Third Face of the Mirror," "The Exile of Al-Khafaji Amer Iraqi," "Diwan Al-Aqlam," "A Journey with the Iraqi Story," in addition to books such as "Al-Rasheed Street," "In the Drama of the Wars Poetry: Critical Variations on Fao’s Poem," "In the Details of the Event: The Margin in Iraqi History," and "The Magic of Truth: Characters, Books, and Studies in Popular Heritage," "The Half-Circle Case," and "Meryl Streep."
He published many heritage studies in the magazine "Folklore" and various specialized Arab journals. He received the Creativity Award in Literary Criticism from Iraq, the Folklore Medal from Lebanon and Mansoura University, and was honored by the Jordanian Ministry of Culture in 1990, where he served as a judge for the Jordanian State Award in the field of folk heritage.
