Abdulaziz Saud Albabtain

Abdulaziz Saud Albabtain (1936 – 15 December 2023) (Arabic: عبدالعزيز سعود البابطين) was a Kuwaiti poet, businessman, and philanthropist.

He was the Founder and Head of Abdulaziz Saud Albabtain Cultural Foundation, based in Kuwait. The foundation is dedicated to Arabic poetry and literature among other issues, including the Culture of Just Peace. He was the Head of the Albabtain Foundation for Poetic Creativity.

Biography Abdulaziz Al-Babtain was born in 1936. He established the Albabtain Central Library for Arabic poetry.

He served at the Ministry of Education in Kuwait as a librarian of Al-Shuwaikh Secondary School, during the period from 1955 until 1962. and Europe. aiming to foster the translation movement from other languages to Arabic and vice versa in 2005. He also launched training courses developed into Chairs for Arabic Culture in universities worldwide, including:

Abu Al-Qasim Al-Shabi’s Poetry Chair It was established in cooperation with the Tunisian Presidency and inaugurated at the City of Culture in Tunis in the presence of H.E the President of the Tunisian Republic, Beji Caid Essebsi, the Tunisian Minister of Culture, the members of the Kuwaiti-Tunisian Cooperation Council, ambassadors, intellectuals and poets on 29 June 2018 Abdulaziz Saud Albabtain Chair for Just Peace at Malta University Abdulaziz Saud Albabtain Cultural Foundation signed an agreement to create this Chair in October 2021 with the Centre for Study and Conflict Resolution of the University of Malta to promote and teach the culture of Just Peace.

Albabtain Institute for Intercultural Dialogue complements Abdulaziz Albabtain’s endeavor to establish a dialogue between European and Arab cultures.

The Al-Babtain Foundation for Poetic Creativity called in January 2016 for contributions to an Arabic epic on themes of peace, tolerance and love.

Beginning in 2016, Al-Babtain also endowed the Abdulaziz Saud AlBabtain Laudian Professorship in Arabic in the Faculty of Oriental Studies at the University of Oxford. Formerly known as the Laudian Chair of Arabic, it was first endowed in 1636 by Archbishop William Laud and is one of the oldest Chairs of Arabic in Europe.

Intercultural Dialogue and the Culture of Just Peace Abdulaziz Albabtain has been leading a process of intercultural dialogue since 2005, and recently he launched a new initiative to advance the Culture of Peace.

On 5 September 2018, Abdulaziz Albabtain addressed the General Assembly of the United Nations following an invitation by the then President of the General Assembly, Miroslav Lajcak, wherein he emphasized the Foundation’s commitment to promoting a culture of just peace that springs from the state of Kuwait’s commitment to supporting peace around the world permanently.

To promote the culture of peace related to the program of action of the UN, Abdulaziz Albabtain was the principal speaker at a side event during the UN High-Level Forum on the Culture of Peace.

Abdulaziz Albabtain Cultural Foundation held the "World Forum for Culture of Peace" entitled "Peace Education for the Protection of Cultural Heritage" on 13 June 2019, at the headquarters of the International Court of Justice - Peace Palace - in The Hague.

Abdulaziz Saud Albabtain Cultural Foundation held the Second World Forum for the Culture of Just Peace, entitled Leadership for Just Peace, in Valletta, the capital of the Republic of Malta, from 3–4 March 2022.

Books, Studies, and Academic Theses Studying and Analyzing His Poetry Critical Studies in the collection of poems (Intimations of the Deserts), Studies and criticism written by researchers and critics, compiled and a foreword by Dr. Fawzi Eissa (Egypt), published by Delta Center for Printing, Alexandria 1996. The book includes the following studies and articles;

A Dialogue with the Text, Dr. Mostafa Nassef (Egypt), pages 43–90 Intimations of the Deserts, analytical study, Dr. Mohammed Mostafa Hadara (Egypt), pages 91– 106 Critical issues on Intimations of the Deserts, Dr. Abdul Moneim Khafagui (Egypt), pages 107-122 The Construction of the Poetic Style in Intimations of the Deserts, Dr. Fawzi Eissa (Egypt), pages 123-142 The Intimations of the Deserts, reading in the content and the influences, Dr. Ayman Mohammed Maidan, (Egypt), pages 143 -158 A reading in Intimations of the Deserts, Dr. Nabil Rashad Nofal (Egypt), pages 159 -164 The Echo of the Poetic Heritage in the collection, Intimations of the Deserts, Khalifa Al-Khayari (Tunisia), pages 165- 176 Joud Al-Ghawadi fi Bauh Al Bawadi, Dr. Abdul Malek Mortad, (Algeria), pages 177 - 187 Bauh Al Bawadi (Intimations of the Deserts), Hamoud Al- Begheli (Kuwait), pages 191-192, previously published in Al-Qabas newspaper, Issue No. 8025, Wednesday, 25 January 1995 Bauh Al Bawadi (Intimations of the Deserts), Nasser Kermani (Kuwait), page 193, previously published in Al-Qabas newspaper, Issue No. 8096, Friday, 5 January 1996 Reaching the harbors of poetry with a first collection of poems, Faisal Al-Saad (Kuwait), pages 194-199, previously published in Al-Qabas newspaper The owner of paralleled personalities, Iqbal Al-Gharballi (Kuwait), pages 200 to 202, previously published in Al-Watan newspaper, Issue No. 7129, 15 December 1995 The Strays of Poet’s Intimations, pages 203-205, previously published in Al Ahram Newspaper, 6 February 1995 Intimations of the Deserts, between the romantic flame and the interaction with the masterpieces, Rawda Abdellawi (Tunisia), pages 207- 210, previously published in "Haqa’eq" magazine, Tunisia, Issue No. 518, 6 October 1995 Intimations of the Deserts, A New Collection of Poems, Hamouda Al-Sharief Karim (Tunisia), pages 211-219, previously published in AlHoreya Newspaper, Tunisia, 19 October 1995 The Structure of poem in, Intimations of the Deserts, Hamouda AlSharief Karim(Tunisia), pages 221-230, previously published in AlHoreya Newspaper, Tunisia, 26 October 1995

Laayoune Forum for Poetry was prepared by Dr. Louise Boulbers and published by the Ministry of Cultural Affairs, Rabat, in 1997. The book includes the following studies and articles presented during an honoring seminar held for Abdulaziz Albabtain, include:

Intimations of the Deserts, A Sincere Abundant Passion, Dr. Mohammed Altazi Saud (Morocco), pages 115 - 120 The time and place in the Intimations of the Deserts, Dr. Mohammed Al-Sarghini (Morocco), pages 121 - 128 Intimations of the Deserts, A Dialogue with the Text, Dr. Mostafa Nassef (Egypt), pages 129 - 134 The poeticalness of remembering and retrieval in the Intimations of the Deserts, collection of poems, Dr. Ahmed Altaebiq (Morocco), pages 135- 160. The Memory of Reading/ The Reading of the Memory - A Statistical Sequence/ Contradicting Reading- The Dialectics of Time and Space The Semantics of titles in Intimations of the Deserts, AbdelHakim Alsabee’, pages161-171 Intimations of the Deserts, toward the awakening of the Bedouin urban poem, Dr. Mohammed Al-Danai (Morocco), pages 172-194 The Rhythmic Structure in the Poetry of Abdulaziz Albabtain, Dr. Mohammed Mostafa Abushwareb (Egypt), pages 195-202

Studies on Abdulaziz Albabtain's poetry

The approach of virtuousness in the poetry of Abdulaziz Saud Albabtain, Dr. Yassine Al-Ayoubi (Lebanon) in his book (In the Word’s Shrine: A critical research and study of the modern and contemporary Arabic literature), pages 265-278, published by The Contemporary Library, Beirut 1999 Interview with Abou-Alkacem Mohamed Kerrou on the Foundation of Albabtain’s Prize for Poetic Creativity, Correspondent member of the Arabic Language Academy in Damascus

Personal life Al-Babtain died on 15 December 2023, at the age of 87. He published his second collection of poems, "A Traveler in the Wastelands" (Arabic: ديوان مسافر في القفار) in 2004. He published his third collection of poems, "Songs of Al-Fayafi" in 2017.