Minister of State and Qatar National Library President HE Dr Hamad Bin Abdulaziz Al-Kawari participated in a ceremony that launched the German translation of his book, The Global Majlis.

The ceremony was held recently by the Qatar Embassy in Berlin, in collaboration with the Arab Cultural House Diwan and the Berlin Forum for German-Gulf Dialogue. The book by HE Dr Hamad recounts his  biography, which combines personal tales and his passion for knowledge and wisdom.

The Global Majlis

The Global Majlis offers a unique insight into Dr Hamad’s lifetime of diplomacy and nuances of statecraft, welcoming them to an intellectual gathering where a new era of cultural diplomacy forges stronger ties between the world’s nations and civilisations.

Through his extensive career, Dr Hamad sheds light on his rich journey between aspects of humanity’s major issues, offering many reflections and discussing issues of cultural diplomacy, dialogue of cultures, media, cultural industries and concerns about heritage preservation.

This will be the eighth translation of his book, which is already offered to readers in French, English, Spanish, Hindi, Persian, and Turkish, among others.

The ceremony was attended by Ambassador of Qatar to the Federal Republic of Germany HE Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Saud Al Thani, Arab Cultural House Director General Dr Lawrence Al-Hanawi and German orientalist Dr Sebastian Heine who translated the book from Arabic to German. The ceremony concluded with a reading and signing of the book by HE Dr Hamad.

HE Sheikh Abdullah congratulated Dr Hamad on the launch of the German translation of his valuable book. He said that the launch of the book, The Global Majlis, falls within the mission of the Arabic Cultural House in bringing cultures closer together, building bridges of communication and introducing Arab culture in the field of thought, literature and the arts.

HE Dr Hamad, meanwhile, said it is an honour to be attending the ceremony for the publication of the German translation of his book. He said he hoped the book provides readers with a deeper cultural understanding of the rich Arab culture and helps establish a broader strategic dialogue between Arab and German culture.

I would like to express my gratitude to all those who attended the ceremony and look forward to future cultural exchanges between Qatar and Germany.

The Arab Cultural House, the first independent Arab cultural centre established by the State of Qatar outside the country, was opened as a testament to Qatar’s commitment to building bridges with nations around the world, strengthening the Arabic-German relations as part of the German-Qatar Year of Culture in 2017.

As part of its mission to promote cultural exchange and through its contribution to the German-Qatar Year of Culture in 2017, the Library also held a variety of initiatives which provided an insight into the history of Arabic and German fairytales and folk tales, and how the two cultures influenced each other. The initiative also launched, Books – Made in Qatar to encourage the production of Qatari children’s literature.

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