Said Akl

Akl was born in 1912 ^[3] in a Maronite family in the city of Zakhle, Lebanon. After losing his grandfather at the age of 14, he had to quit school because of laziness, and later worked as a teacher and then a journalist. He then studied theology, literature and Islamic history, becoming a lecturer at the university and subsequently lecturing at a number of Lebanese universities, educational and political institutions. He died in Beirut, Lebanon at the age of ^[4] 102 or 103 ^[1] .

In his early years, Akl was a supporter of the Syrian social nationalist party (in Arabic الحزب السوري الومي التما), led by Antun Sa'ad, eventually being expelled by Saadeh because of irreconcilable ideological disputes ^[5] . Akl adopted a powerful doctrine of the true thousand-year-old symbol of Lebanon, echoing the sublime sense of Lebanese dignity. His admiration for Lebanese history and culture was marked by a strong dislike for Lebanon’s Arab identity. He quotes saying, “I would cut off my right hand, just not to be an Arab” ^[5] . In 1968, he declared that the literary Arabic would disappear in Lebanon ^[6] .

For Akl, Lebanon is the cradle of culture and the heir to Eastern civilization, long before the arrival of the Arabs on the historical scene ^[5] . He emphasized the Phoenician heritage of the Lebanese people.

He is known for his radical Lebanese nationalist mood; in 1972, he helped found the Lebanese party “update” (in Arabic حزب التجدّد اللبناني transliterated as Hizb Al Tajaddod Al Lubnaani), who was proposed to May Murr, a well-known writer and researcher of the ancient history of Lebanon and a staunch supporter of Acl. This party was a non-sectarian party that adhered to Lebanese nationalism. During the Lebanese Civil War, Akl served as the spiritual leader of the Lebanese nationalist Guards of the Cedars (in Arabic رّاس الأرز), led by Étienne Sakr. ^[five]

Said Akl Yar’s book and an excerpt from a book in Akl’s proposed Lebanese alphabet were the ideologue of promoting Lebanese as independent of the Arabic language. Despite the influence of the Arabic language, he argued that the Lebanese language was equally, if not more influenced by the Phoenician language and to encourage the use of the Lebanese dialect, written in a modified Latin alphabet, and not Arabic. ^[7] His designed alphabet for the Lebanese language is using the Latin alphabet, except for a few recently developed letters and accented with Latin letters according to Lebanese phonology. The proposed Lebanese alphabet from Akl contained 36 letters. The proposed alphabet is as follows: ^[8]

Beginning in the 1970s, Akl offered a prize to the one who wrote the best work in Lebanese Arabic. Since then, the awards said Akl has been granted to many Lebanese intellectuals and artists. ^[5] He published books of poems by Yara using his suggested Lebanese alphabet, becoming the first book ever published in this form. In the following years he also published his books Khumasiyyat in the same alphabet. He published the tabloid newspaper Lebnaan with the help of the Lebanese dialect. It was published in two versions, لبنان (transliteration and pronunciation of Lubnan, which means Lebanon in Arabic) using the Lebanese dialect written in the traditional Arabic alphabet, the other Lebnaan (Lebanese Arabic Lebanon) in his proposed Lebanese-based Latin alphabet.

Akl has numerous compositions, from theatrical plays, epics, poems and songs. His first published work was released in 1935, in a theater play written in Arabic. His works are written in Lebanese Arabic, literary Arabic or French. He is also known for writing lyrics to many famous songs, including “Zahrat Al Madaen” (in Arabic زهرة المدائن) performed by Fairuz.

1935: Ben Yifta '(theater) - (in Arabic بنت يفتاح) 1937: Al Majdaliyyah (epic) - (in Arabic المجدليّة) 1944: Qadmos (theater) - (in Arabic قدموس) 1950: Rindalah - (in Arabic رندلى) : Mushkilat Al Nukhba - (in Arabic مشكلة النخبة) 1960: Amal Minik ...? La! - (in Arabic! أجمل منك ...؟ لاا 1960: Lubnaan in haka - (in Arabic لبنان, حكى) 1961: Ka-El-Kamr (in Arabic س الخمر) 1961: Jarak (using his developed Lebanese alphabet) (in Arabic يارا) 1961: Ajraas Al Yasmin (in Arabic أجراس الياسمين) 1972: Kitab Al-Ward (in Arabic كتاب الورد) 1979: Qasaed Min Daftari (in Arabic قصائد من دفتري) 1974: Iaqa Ia mara, Iaa mara, Ia mara, Iaaa al-Yarmin (in Arabic قصائد من دفتري) I am al-Yasmin; : Khumasiyyat (using his developed Lebanese alphabet) (in Arabic خماسيّات) In 1981, he also published poems in French

Hymns

Akl is the proposed text of the anthem is a Syriac social Syrian social nationalist party, but this proposal was rejected by its founder Antun Saad, who proposed another hymn for the party, which he wrote in prison. When he was asked what he wrote about, Akl denies it, and says that it was a certain Khalil Nasrallah’s family (Akl’s husband’s relative) who wrote the text. Akl wrote the anthem of another pan-Arab movement, Jem'iyyat Al Uruwwa Al Wuthqa (in Arabic جمعية العروة الوثقى).

Songs

Akl also wrote poems that were turned into a pan-Arab anthem of the song from the Rahbani brothers and sing Lebanese diva Feyrouz. These include "Zahrat Al Madaen» (in Arabic زهرة المدائن) of Jerusalem, «Ghannaytou Mecca" (in Arabic غنيت مكة) of Mecca and «Saailiini I Sham" (in Arabic سائليني يا شام) of Damascus, «Ruddani amp biladi» (in Arabic ردني لى بلادي) about Lebanon and “Ummi I Malyaki” (in Arabic يا أمي ملاكي) about my mother.

mass media

Said Akl wrote as a journalist in a number of publications, in particular the Lebanese Al-Jarida newspaper and the weekly Al-Sayyad magazine. In the 1990s, Akl also wrote an A-Safir newspaper on the first page of a personal column in Lebanon.