The Library of Arabic Literature makes available Arabic editions and English translations of significant works of Arabic literature, with an emphasis on the seventh to nineteenth centuries. The Library of Arabic Literature thus includes texts from the pre-Islamic era to the cusp of the modern period, and encompasses a wide range of genres, including poetry, poetics, fiction, religion, philosophy, law, science, travel writing, history, and historiography.

Books in the series are edited and translated by internationally recognized scholars. They are published in parallel-text and English-only editions in both print and electronic formats. PDFs of Arabic editions are available for free download. The Library of Arabic Literature also publishes distinct scholarly editions with critical apparatus.

The Library encourages scholars to produce authoritative Arabic editions, accompanied by modern, lucid English translations, with the ultimate goal of introducing Arabic’s rich literary heritage to a general audience of readers as well as to scholars and students.

The Library of Arabic Literature is directed by a group of distinguished scholars from around the world. The Editorial Board comprises Philip F. Kennedy of New York University, who serves as the General Editor; James E. Montgomery, Sir Thomas Adams’s Professor of Arabic at the University of Cambridge, and Shawkat M. Toorawa, Professor of Arabic at Yale University, who serve as the Executive Editors; and Sean Anthony (The Ohio State University), Huda Fakhreddine (University of Pennsylvania), Lara Harb (Princeton University), Maya Kesrouany (NYU Abu Dhabi), Enass Khansa (American University of Beirut), Bilal Orfali (American University of Beirut), Maurice Pomerantz (NYU Abu Dhabi), and Mohammed Rustom (Carleton University), who serve as Editors. The Editors are involved in the commissioning of texts, the selection of editor-translators, the review of manuscripts, and the vetting of the final edition-translations. In addition, the founding members of the editorial board—Julia Bray (University of Oxford), Michael Cooperson (University of California, Los Angeles), Joseph E. Lowry (University of Pennsylvania), Tahera Qutbuddin (University of Chicago), and Devin J. Stewart (Emory University)—serve as Consulting Editors, providing guidance and direction for the series as a whole.

The Library of Arabic Literature has a Fellowship and grants program (please note that indirect costs are not supported). The Fellowship program is supervised by General Editor Philip Kennedy in consultation with the Executive Board.

The publications of the Library of Arabic Literature are generously supported by Tamkeen under the NYU Abu Dhabi Research Institute Award G1003 and are published by NYU Press.

Philip F. Kennedy
General Editor, Library of Arabic Literature