Anwar Shaul

Anwar Shā’ūl (Hebrew: אנואר שאול, Arabic: أنور شاؤول, 1904–1984) was an Iraqi Jewish journalist, publisher, author, translator, and poet.

Anwar Shā’ūl
Native name	أنور شاؤول
Born	1904 Hillah, Iraq
Died	14 November 1984(1984-11-14) (aged 79–80)
Language	Hebrew, Arabic
Nationality	Iraq

Shaul was born in Hillah in 1904 to a second generation Austrian-Iraqi mother and a Mizrahi father.[1][2] He originally trained as a lawyer at the Baghdad Law College, graduating in 1931.[3][4] Shaul served as editor of the Arabic-language Iraqi Zionist journal, al-Miṣbāḥ (Hebrew: אל-מצבאח, Arabic: المصباح), from 1924 to 1925.[5] In his contributions to the publication, Shaul wrote under the pseudonym Ibn al-Samaw'al (an allusion to the poet, Samaw'al ibn 'Adiya).[6]

From 1929 to 1938, Shaul founded and worked as editor of Al Hassid (Arabic: الحاصد, lit. 'The Reaper'), a weekly literary magazine. "The Reaper" featured significant political commentary; mixing harsh criticism of European fascism and advocacy for both Iraqi nationalism and complete political independence from the British Empire.[7][8][9] Under his editorial leadership, Al Hassid, became the foremost Baghdadi weekly.[10]

In addition to his publication of periodicals, Shaul published a number of longer works including memoirs, translations of western literature into Arabic, as well as anthologies of short stories and Arabic poetry.[11]

In 1971, Shaul, who had long been resistant to emigrating despite intensive State-sponsored anti-Semitism in Baathist Iraq, reluctantly made Aliyah to the State of Israel. Shaul lived in Israel until his death in December 1984.[12]