Hessa al-Rifa'i

Hessa al-Rifa'i (Arabic: حصة الرفاعي) (born 1947) is a folklorist and poet from Kuwait.

Dr

Hessa al-Rifa'i
Born1947
CitizenshipKuwait
EducationIndiana State University
EmployerKuwait University

Biography

Al-Rifa'i was born in Kuwait City in 1947.[1] She studied for a BA in Arabic at Cairo University.[1] She was awarded an MA in Folk Literature in 1971.[1] She then went on to study for a PhD at Indiana State University, which she was awarded in 1982.[1] In it she studied the impact of modernisation on the folk traditions of Kuwait.[2]

Since 1982, al-Rifa'i has worked as a professor in the Department of Arabic Language at Kuwait University.[1] Her poetry and her research are published in both English and Arabic.[3][4]

She lives in Kuwait.[1]

Folklore Studies
Fishing boat, Kuwait 1980

Al-Rifa'i is an expert in the culture and history of sea-songs and shanties, from Kuwait and the Persian Gulf region.[5][6] She studied has studied their musical structure, demonstrating that they follow Arabic melodic structures.[7] She has also studied the movement of Arabic musical traditions across the Mediterranean to Andalusia.[8] As well as the musical heritage of sea-shanties, al-Rifa'i has studied the cultural practices that go alongside: for example women performing rituals, such as placing a bar of hot iron in the sea, to ensure the safe return of fishermen.[6] In addition, al-Rifa'i studies comparative folk literature, including the Cinderella narrative in Kuwaiti tradition.[9] She has worked on the legacy of the folk-poet Zaid Al-Harb.[10]

Poetry

Al-Rifa'i is a poet herself and has published four books of poetry.[1]

References
  1. "حصة الرفاعي". 2019-03-27. Archived from the original on 2019-03-27. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
  2. "AL-NEHMAH WAL-NAHHAM: A STRUCTURAL, FUNCTIONAL, MUSICAL AND AESTHETIC STUDY OF KUWAITI SEA SONGS". www.elibrary.ru. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
  3. صخر, محمد الشارخ-. "أرشيف المجلات الأدبية والثقافية". archive.alsharekh.org (in Arabic). Retrieved 2020-03-29.
  4. "Folklore and the Issue of Terminology" (in Arabic)". pubcouncil.kuniv.edu.kw. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
  5. "Performing the past: Sea music in the Arab Gulf states - ProQuest". ProQuest 304653749. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  6. Ulaby, Laith (2012). "On the Decks of Dhows: Musical Traditions of Oman and the Indian Ocean World". The World of Music. 1 (2): 43–62. ISSN 0043-8774. JSTOR 24318118.
  7. AL-RIFAI, H. (1987). "Cultural and Historical Features of Kuwait Sea Song Music". Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. 17: 143–162. ISSN 0308-8421. JSTOR 41223052.
  8. Music and media in the Arab world. Frishkopf, Michael Aaron (1st ed.). Cairo: The American University in Cairo Press. 2010. p. 125. ISBN 978-977-416-293-0. OCLC 687918320.CS1 maint: others (link)
  9. "Umi Smaika-Cinderella Comparative Study in Fairy Tales". apc.ku.edu.kw. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
  10. "Zaid Al-Harb and Touching the Nations Strings". apc.ku.edu.kw. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
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