Rafik schami biography
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An exile in his homeland
One of Rafik Schami's most recent and at the same time oldest stories tells of a hairdresser he visited as a 15-year-old in the Syrian capital of Damascus, where he was born in 1946. The barber was reputed to be a wise man. A deserved reputation as it transpired. However, to the writer's dismay, he proved to be more butcher than barber when it came to cutting hair. Schami's locks would eventually recover from the attentions of the hair-messer, and the story was stored away in his memory until it finally saw the light of day in 2011 as one of the tales in "Die Frau, die ihren Mann auf dem Flohmarkt verkaufte" (The woman who sold her husband at the flea market). It tells the story of how Schami became a writer.
Born Suheil Fadel, Rafik Schami is the son of a baker, a Christian who, as a 16-year-old, started up a wall newspaper. He came to Germany when he was 25, arriving in Heidelberg with a suitcase full of manuscripts to begin his new life. Before establishing himself as a full time writer, however, Rafik Schami found time to do a doctorate in chemi
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Rafik Schami is one of the most important writers of the German language. He came to Germany when he was twenty-five years-old; his homeland Syria he carries in his heart. It is the focus of many of his stories.
One of Rafik Schami’s most recent and at the same time oldest stories revolves round a barber whom the author visited at the age of 15. In the Syrian capital of Damascus, where Schami was born in 1946. It was said that the barber was an expert in worldly wisdom. And he was. Unfortunately, he botched his young customer’s haircut. The hair grew back. The story remained with the writer. It crops up again in his book Die Frau, die ihren Mann auf dem Flohmarkt verkaufte (i.e. The Woman Who Sold Her Husband in the Flea Market), published in 2011 by Carl Hanser Publishers. In the tale Schami tells how he became a writer.
Actually, Rafik Schami is named Suheil Fadel. He is the son of a baker, a Christian. At the age of 16 he founded a wall newspaper; at 25, with a suitcase of manuscripts, he emigrated to Heidelberg and there made for himself a new life. But before Schami we
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Rafik Schami
Born
in Damascus, Syrian Arab RepublicJune 23, 1946
Website
https://www.rafik-schami.de/
Genre
Literature & Fiction
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Born in Damascus, Syria in 1946, Rafik Schami (Arabic: رفيق شامي) is the son of a baker from an Arab-Christian (originally Aramaic) family. His schooling and university studies (diploma in chemistry) took place in Damascus. From 1965, Schami wrote stories in Arabic. From 1964-70 he was the co-founder and editor of the wall news-sheet Al-Muntalak (The Starting-Point) in the old quarter of the city. In 1971 Schami moved to Heidelberg and financed further studies by typical guest worker jobs (factories, building sites, restaurants). He earned his doctorate in chemistry in 1979 and began career in the chemical industry. In his spare time, he co-founded the literary group Südwind in 1980 and was part of the PoLiKunst movement. Schami became a fuBorn in Damascus, Syria in 1946, Rafik Schami (Arabic: رفيق شامي) is the son of a baker from an Arab-Christian (originally Aramaic) family. His schooling and university studies (diploma
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