Scholars remember Assad as ‘standard-bearer’ for Arabic literature

AMMAN — Jordan on Thursday lost the “sheikh of Arabic language, a man who dedicated his life to the betterment of the country’s educational and cultural scenes”, intellectuals said.

Nasser Eddine Al Assad, described by scholars and linguists as the “standard-bearer” for Arabic literature, passed away in Amman, leaving behind him a “rich” heritage for the coming generations.

Born in Aqaba in 1923, Assad obtained a PhD in literature from Cairo University in 1955, but his “thirst for knowledge and fondness for the Arabic language made him a standout”.

“His love for Arabic literature was personal as well as professional. He used to believe in the need for an Arabic renaissance as a prerequisite for the advancement of the Arab world,” said Senator Adel Tweisi, former culture minister and former president of the University of Jordan (UJ).

Assad, who authored many books on literary criticism and Arab history, was the main founder of UJ before serving as a lecturer and then as its president between 1962 and 1968.

Tweisi noted that Assad taught many current professors at UJ.

“I have known him for years and I can say that his knowledge was as vast as the ocean,” he said.

Throughout his life, Assad assumed many cultural posts in Jordan and other Arab countries, serving as higher education minister, dean of the faculty of literature at the University of Libya and head of the Arab League’s cultural department.

He also served as Jordan’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia.

“He was very articulate and strongly believed that language is one of the tools for developing social thinking,” said former education minister Ibrahim Badran.

He noted that Assad used to consult specialists in their respective fields — a trait “many intellectuals and thinkers avoid to remain in the lead”.

The scholar was also among those who drafted the recently endorsed law on protecting Arabic, which aims at safeguarding the language against “slang and foreign terms” in official agencies and state-run educational and media institutions, according to Badran.

For former culture minister Jeryes Samawi, Assad represented a rare case of a man who contributed to the establishment of Jordan’s higher education life.

“He founded a new language for Arab critical writing that is characterised by accuracy, subjectivity and rationality,” he told The Jordan Times.

Samawi added that Assad established a new approach for literary criticism based on scientific rigor and tolerance of the younger generation.

“He took out the idolatry and cold clichés that used to live in the literary text and brought back its glory,” he said.

Assad served as member of several boards, including the Jordan Academy for Arabic and the Abdul Hameed Shoman International Award for Jerusalem.

“He used to be very supportive of young people and always stood by their side,” said Abdul Rahman Masri, director of the Abdul Hameed Shoman Foundation’s scientific research programme.

Though in his nineties, Assad had a “youthful mind” until his death that was evident in his approach to technology.

“He was technology-savvy to the level that competed with the current digital generation,” Tweisi said.

“He had a sense of humour that he also used when correcting errors of young poets. He used to believe in the soul,” Samawi noted.

Assad was a recipient of the Order of Independence of the First Class.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour on Thursday paid tribute to Assad, citing his contributions to the Kingdom’s educational and cultural life.