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Watch at https://youtu.be/628MU8iTqzE |

A blog by Dr. Ramzi Salti, Stanford Lecturer + Host of Arabology Radio & YouTube Program
CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO MY ARABOLOGY YOUTUBE CHANNEL
Sunday, December 27, 2020
New Year Video Message from Dr. Ramzi Salti's Arabology Program
Wednesday, December 16, 2020
Fairuz's "Khidni Ya Habibi" Translated into English by Dr. Ramzi Salti
Here is my modest attempt to translate Fairuz's song "Khidni Ya Habibi خدني يا حبيبي " [Take Me Away, My Love] from Arabic into English. This song has always had a special place in my heart, as does the operetta/musical Petra in which it was initially performed, back in 1978.
I have uploaded a special video of the song, with optional English subtitles, to my YouTube Channel. To view subtitles, start playing video then click on CC at bottom of video screen/window.
For bilingual English/version, scroll down.
Watch below or at https://youtu.be/Hi4-DAq72s8
An Egyptian man arrived one night
English Translation by Dr. Ramzi Salti |
Original Arabic Lyrics |
An Egyptian man arrived one night Carrying with him the mysteries of the Pyramids And the sublime color of the Nile He appeared out of nowhere and, like joy itself, He gave us hope. Take me away, my love To a house that has no doors Take me away, my love To the moon that guides the forgotten Leave me in a deep slumber on a clear, bright day Until the nights return, along with our loved ones My love, my love, my love Take me away, leave me behind Joy is on its way Your love consumes me While you have no companion O King of all Swords You took away the summer I imagine you everywhere Lost in the fog Take me away, my love Take me away, my love Leave me in a deep slumber On a clear and bright day My love, my love, my love There was once a little princess Who grew up too quickly Jealousy surrounded her And she had no wings to fly away They made her live in Palaces Surrounded by vast oceans But the Princess was too little And the oceans (doors) too vast Take me away, my love To a house that has no doors Take me away, my love To the moon that guides those who are lost Leave me in a deep slumber On a clear, bright day Until the nights return, along with our loved ones My love, my love, my love |
ببيروس اللي إجا من الليل حامل غموض الهرم ولون النيل وصل ع غفلة متل الفرح وأعطانا الأمل خدني يا حبيبي ع بيت مالو بواب خدني يا حبيبي ع قمر الغياب انساني بالغفا بأيام الصفا تترجع الليالي ويرجعوا الأحباب يا حبيبي يا حبيبي يا حبيبي خدني ولا تخدني الفرح ع الطريق حبك بيحصدني وما عندك رفيق يا أمير السيف وين أخدت الصيف بشوفك وما بشوفك وضايع بالضباب خدني يا حبيبي خدني يا حبيبي انساني بالغفا بأيام الصفا يا حبيبي يا حبيبي يا حبيبي في أميرة زغيرة انخطبت بكير رميوا عليها الغيرة وما بتعرف تطير سكنوها قصور خلف سبع بحور وزغيرة الأميرة وكبيرة البواب خدني يا حبيبي خدني يا حبيبي ع بيت مالو بواب خدني يا حبيبي ع قمر الغياب انساني بالغفا بأيام الصفا تترجع الليالي ويرجعوا الأحباب يا حبيبي يا حبيبي يا حبيبي |
Tuesday, November 19, 2019
Arabology Interviews 'The Arab Sinatra' Omar Kamal (November 2019)
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Listen at https://soundcloud.com/arabology/omarkamal2019 |
Listen below or at https://soundcloud.com/arabology/omarkamal2019
This interview includes the following song excerpts from Omar Kamal's new album "Show Me The Light" ℗© 2019 Estuana Records:
1. Ya Ana Ya Ana (3:32)
2. Wicked Dreams (9:36)
3. Atyaf El Leil (15:01)
4. Um Kulthoum Swings (22:53)
Monday, November 4, 2019
Ramzi Salti's Talk About Indie Arabic Music at Sijal (in English) Available
Watch the video below or at https://youtu.be/F5FeL3KssuA
This talk was meant to go along with THIS YOUTUBE PLAYLIST.
This talk spotlights the following segments (chronologically):
01. Katy Whiting Intro (0:00)
02. Ramzi Salti: Intro (02:13)
03. El General (Tunisia) (07:09)
04. Emel Mathlouthi (Tunisia) (11:27)
05. Ramy Essam (Egypt) (15:35)
06. Cairokee (Egypt) (21:20)
07. Ibn Thabit (Libya) (25:38)
08. Mashrou' Leila (Lebanon) (28:57)
09. Zeid Hamdan and Maryam Saleh (Lebanon + Egypt) (37:35)
10. Tania Saleh (Lebanon) (39:44)
11. Omar Offendum (Syria) (43:35)
12. DAM (Palestine) (45:56)
13. Jadal and Autostrad (Jordan) (51:26)
14. Q & A Session (55:36) featuring questions about Mashrou' Leila (55:59), El General (58:52), 47Soul + El Far3i (1:04:00), Fairuz (1:04:56), Dalida (1:06:06) , and even Olivia Newton-John (1:06:23).
This talk was meant to go along with this playlist:
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
Weekly Night Class in Introductory Arabic at Stanford (Starts September 25, 2019)
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To register: https://continuingstudies.stanford.edu/courses/liberal-arts-and-sciences/introductory-arabic/20191_ARB-01 |
https://continuingstudies.stanford.edu/courses/liberal-arts-and-sciences/introductory-arabic/20191_ARB-01
Tuesday, August 27, 2019
محاضرة الدكتور رمزي سلطي حول الموسيقى البديلة -- معهد سجال
Artwork by Jordanian artist Tamer Al Ahmar
VIDEO OF MY LECTURE ABOUT INDIE ARABIC MUSIC AT SIJAL (JORDAN)
Dr. Ramzi Salti's audio-visual talk (in Arabic) about indie/alternative Arabic music--recorded at Sijal Institute in Jordan on Aug 26, 2019 محاضرة الدكتور رمزي سلطي في معهد سجال حول الموسيقى العربية البديلة
Here is a list of the song excerpts that were included in this lecture; please note that two short segments have been muted due to copyright issues (these can be viewed separately on YouTube)
1. Asmahan "Emta" at 11:13
2.
Friday, June 7, 2019
Stanford Students of Arabic Perform Fairuz Song On Stage
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Watch video below or at https://youtu.be/f76AgFDYTyg |
Special thanks to members of the Stanford Middle East Ensemble for making this performance possible.
WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW OR AT https://youtu.be/f76AgFDYTyg
Watch video from rehearsals : 0:00-2:55 or skip to Performance by clicking here > 2:56-10:23
Sunday, April 7, 2019
الدكتور رمزي سلطي يتحدث عن برنامجه الاذاعي الامريكي عربولوجي باللغة العربية Dr. Ramzi Salti Talks about His Arabology Program in Arabic
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https://youtu.be/vpSCXqavnrE |
يمكنكم الآن مشاهدة هذا الحوار بين الدكتور رمزي سلطي ورامه شققي حول برنامجه عربولوجي الذي يُبث عبر اذاعة جامعة ستانفورد في الولايات المتحدة الامريكية وذلك عبر الرابط التالي.
رامه شققي هي رائدة أعمال سورية، أسست العديد من المشاريع لدعم الشباب في الشرق الأوسط للحصول على تعليم ومستقبل أفضل.
Dr. Ramzi Salti speaks about his Arabology radio show/podcast (in Arabic) as part of the “Digital Media Entrepreneurship Program” run by the VIP.fund in collaboration with Syria Revival Initiative. By special invitation from Rama Chakaki, Founder & Executive Director of the VIP.fund https://vip.fund
Sunday, March 3, 2019
47Soul in Concert in San Francisco on March 13 (Promo ft El Far3i)
The current lineup includes: Z the People (vocals & synths) El Far3i (darbouka, Mc/Vocals) Walaa Sbeit (percussion, Mc/vocals) El Jehaz (guitar & vocals).
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/47soul-slims-tickets-55540759908
Saturday, March 2, 2019
Arabology Interviews Syrian Poet Lubna Kayyali
Here is the poem in Arabic + English Translation ©Lubna Kayyali
I have been told
To reap the fruits, you must labor
To prove that the earth rotates,
You must subtract five from ten
and become a scientist
Your ethnic color will dim
And you will raise up your gender
I was told
To reign over the language
You must memorize its alphabet
And chant in rhymes
For only then would you attain civility
Your dialect will fade
And your star will shine bright
I was told
To understand, you must read
And to succeed, you must understand
So I labored, memorized, recited, read, understood
But I did not succeed
I dared to inquire: why?
They replied:
Your star is still dim
So I seized a golden thunderbolt and struck my star
It tilted, straightened, then shone bright
In the sky of defeated stars
But, still, I do not succeed
So, again, I asked: why?
They answered:
Your dialect is Aleppian and you exude Damascene jasmine and
lilies
So, I stole a foreign tongue
Chewed on it for hours, days, and decades
But my mouth swelled and my Dadd* transformed to a broken, frail Ghain**
But, still, I am not succeeding
Perplexed, I asked: why?
They answered:
Your gender is feeble and contemptible
It was, after all, created from a rib
Doomed to live in life’s margins
With bread and meat at its very core
And countless children as its ultimate end
So I skinned my soft flesh
Replaced it with scales of steel
Ripped out my perfumed hair
And wore my grandfather’s ancient fez instead
I plucked out my rosy nails
And affixed, in their place, tyrannical claws
But, still, I was not succeeding…
Baffled, I asked: why?
They answered:
Your color remains Arabic
Its shadow is Syrian
And you are now in the land of Giants
They hate the Arab
And loathe the Syrian
So I scurried to the box of crayons
And painted myself in white, green, and blonde
I spoke and walked my colors
Until I mastered them
Until I forgot the land of my ancestors
Until I forgot my father’s Kufic*** pen
Until I forgot my grandmother’s Rifa’i cuisine
Then they spoke to me again
But to whom were they speaking?
They said: you!
But who am I?
...
And I still do not succeed
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** Ghain (الغين ): a soft-sounding letter in
Arabic.
*** Kufic (كوفي
): the oldest calligraphic form of the various Arabic scripts.
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قد قیل لي
إن
اجتهدتِ حصدتِ
إن
طَرَحْتِ خمسة من عشرة أثَبتِ أن الأرض تدور
وغدوت عالمة
لونك یشُف وجِنْسكِ یرقى
قد قیل لي
إن
حفظتِ الأبجدیة ونشدتِ القافیة تمَلَّكْتِ اللغة
وأصبحت راقیة
لهجتُكِ تبْهَت ونجمكِ یسطع
قد قیل لي
إن قرأت فهمت وإن فهمت نجحت
فاجتهدت وحفظت ونشدت وقرأت وفهمت
ولكنني لم أنجح
استقصیت: لماذا؟
أجابوني
مازال نجمك خافت
فأخذت صاعقة ذهبیة وضربت نجمي
فمال واعتدل وسطع في سماء النجوم الخاسرة
ولكنني مازلت لا أنجح
سألت: لماذا؟
أجابوني
لهجتك حلبیة وریحك تفوح یاسمین دمشقي وریحانا
فسرقت لسان أعجمي
ولكْتُهُ ساعةً ویومًا وعقودا
فتهیج فمي وتبدلت الضاد إلى غیْنْ لینة مكسورة
ولكنني مازلت لا أنجح
تعجبت: لماذا؟
أجابوني
جنسك خسیس واهن
قد خلق من ضلع مهشم
وهاهو یعیش حیاة مهمشة
محورها خبز ولحم ومآلها أطفال معددة
فسلخت جلدي الناعم
وركبت حراشف فولاذیة
واقتلعت شعري المعطر
وارتدیت طربوش جدي المعتق
ونزعت أظافري الزهریة
وثَّبتُ مخالب مُسَتِّبدة
ولكنني مازلت لا أنجح
ذهلت: لماذا؟
أجابوني
مازال لونك عربي
وظله سوري
وأنت على أرض العمالقة
یكرهون العربي
ویحتقرون السوري
فهرعت إلى علبة الألوان
وتلونت بالأخضر والأبیض والأشقر
وأتقنت ألواني فنسیت أرض أجدادي
ونسیت قلم أبي الكوفي
ونسیت مطبخ جدتي الرفاعي
فكلموني
ولم أعرف من یكلمون
قالوا لي: أنت
فقلت: ومن أنا؟
….
ومازلت لا أنجح
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Thursday, November 22, 2018
Ramzi Salti Discusses Music of Arab Spring Using Zoom Video Communications
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Watch at https://youtu.be/zNaTLgmmJ4s |
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Scan code above to go to Playlist |
This lecture was presented to the fellows in the Stanford Global Studies Education Partnership for Internationalizing Curriculum (EPIC) program. More info below.
1. Noor - Don't Wanna (Arab Spring / ربيع العرب)
2. El général, the voice of Tunisia, english subtitles
3. My word is Free ( كلمتي حرة ) , English Subtitled (Tunisian revolution)
4. Emel Mathlouthi - Kelmti Horra (Orchestral Version) (+English, French and Arabic Lyrics)
5. Revolutionary Art: Ramy Essam and The Protest of Tahrir Square
6. Ramy Essam at 60 Minutes - CBS News تعذيب رامى عصام 9 مارس
7. Music Amidst Revolution
8. Ramy Essam - Bread Freedom
9. Cairokee - Ethbat Makanak - (English subtitles)
10. Cairokee ft Aida El Ayouby Ya El Medan (English Subs)
11. Massar Egbari - Wana Kol Ma2ol | وأنا كل ماقول - مسار إجباري
12. Massar Egbari - E2ra El Khabar | مسار إجباري - اقرا الخبر
13. Massar Egbari - Read The News
14. Eskenderella Short Report
15. Eskenderella – Safha Gedeeda
16. Youssra El Hawary - El Soor
17. Ibn Thabit feat. MC Swat - Victory or Death (English Subtitles)
18. Ibn Thabit نداء لشباب ليبيا إبن ثابت
19. Khaled M ft Lowkey - Can't Take Our Freedom
20. Souad Massi - Raoui English translation
21. Souad Massi – Raoui (Live)
22. Rachid Taha - Ya rayah (English subtitles)
23. Amine AUB & Masta Flow - Kan Ya Ma Kan (Music Video) | أيوبي و ماسطا فلو - كان ياما كان
24. Mashrou Leila on Dateline: Rocking the Middle East
25. Mashrou' Leila - Ghadan Yawmon Afdal
26. Zeid and the Wings - GENERAL SULEIMAN
27. Zeid Hamdan and Maryam Saleh | Eslahat
28. Fareeq El Atrash - Lawein & Ba'ed Min Hon (Video Clip)
29. Tania Kassis - Islamo-Christian AVE (live at l'Olympia) | تانيا قسيس - الصلاة الإسلامية المسيحية
30. Tania Kassis - Watani (live from Sydney Opera House)
31. Tania Saleh - Omar & Ali عمروعلي LIVE
32. Tania Saleh – It’s Springtime
33. Hiba Tawaji - Al Rabih Al Arabi [Official Music Video] (2014
34. Tanjaret Daghet - Ta7t El Daghet / Under Pressure (Official Music Video)
35. Tanjaret Daghet Our Dream for Syria
36. Omar Offendum - #SYRIA
37. Malek Jandali - Watani Ana
38. DAM - Change Tomorrow with English Subtitle
39. DAM featuring AMAL MURKUS - If I Could Go Back In Time لو أرجع بالزمن
40. Rim Banna - The Absent One
41. JOWAN SAFADI – TO BE AN ARAB
42. JOWAN SAFADI & TAMER NAFAR - AWAL BAWAL
43. Revolution Makers - غزة افتحي قلبك - صناع الثورة
44. Basel Zayed - Gaza
45. Jadal - El Makina (Official Lyric Clip)
46. Yazan Al Rousan Feat. Hana Malhas - Trouh
47. Narcy featuring Shadia Mansour - "Hamdulillah" Official Music Video
48. SHADIA MANSOUR FT. OMAR OFFENDUM - لازم نتغير (We have to change)
49. 47SOUL - Mo Light (Official Video) | السبعة وأربعين - رفّ الطّير
50. Yasmine Hamdan – Balad
Ramzi Salti's Talk: Healing through Lebanese Music (EPIC Fellows, Stanford Global Studies, September 2020)
Watch full talk at https://youtu.be/LzAaUrZEq8k This audio-visual talk by Stanford Lecturer + Arabology program host Dr. Ramzi Salti was pre...


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Join us on Wednesday, July 22, 2020 at 8:30 pm (PST) for an online conversation between Stanford Lecturer Dr. Ramzi Salti and Jordanian Di...
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Listen at https://soundcloud.com/arabology/dwnjmbwuoqga يمكنكم الاستماع الى قصة نجاح حانم شاهين عبر الرابط التالي Listen to Hatem ...
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Watch video at https://youtu.be/ZojLibSdLac Here is the link to my July 22 conversation with Fadi Haddad, Director of the iconic Jor...
