This February, Qatar National Library is hosting a series of events to mark National Sport Day and to explore the cultural connections between the Arab World and Southeast Asia.
The month begins with the Hadhrami Arab diaspora in Indonesia, which will be the subject of panel discussions and a series of presentations that will offer a broad overview of how the community has forged close ties to Indonesian society throughout history.
The event, which takes place on 10 February, brings together Dr. Engseng Ho, a professor at Duke University and a scholar of transnational anthropology, Professor Farish Noor from the University of Malaya, and Professor Fatimah Husein, an expert in philosophy of religion at the State Islamic University Sunan Kalijaga in Indonesia.
For those interested in creative writing in Arabic, on 10th February, the Library will host the Arabic Short Story Workshop led by Sabah Sanhouri, a Sudanese fiction writer and founder of the #OneDayFiction project.
Sanhouri, a member of the Sudanese Writers Union and a jury member of the University of Khartoum's Short Story Contest, will explain how writers can leverage their senses to build characters and create a cohesive plot.
On 12 February, the focus will turn to sports with the Library hosting a day of entertainment and healthy competition for families in celebration of National Sport Day.
The day will also feature a walk that kicks off at the Library and finishes at Oxygen Park, led by Dr. Nasser Al Muhannadi, author of How to Be an Iron Man.
Children will also have the opportunity to participate in the Little Storytellers program to learn how to read a story expressively firsthand from a professional storyteller.
The history of Indonesia will take center stage again on 21 February with Dr. Oman Fathurrahman, a philologist with vast experience and expertise of the Islamic world.
Dr. Fathurrahman will share his perspective and research findings on Indonesian manuscripts and other topics closely related to the ongoing Library exhibition, "Letters of Faith: The Arabic Script in Indonesia”.
The Library encourages all members of the community to mark their calendars for these enriching events. For more information on the full program calendar and to register to attend, please visit the Library’s website at www.qnl.qa/en/events or the QNL mobile app, which is free and available to download from the App Store or from Google Play.
