Doha: The Cultural Village Foundation (Katara) announced that it will hold an award ceremony to honor the winners of the first edition of the Katara Prize for Manuscripts and Archaeological Sites for 2024. The ceremony will be held on the evening of Thursday, Oct. 30, in Hall 15.
According to Qatar News Agency, the ceremony will include the unveiling of the winning research papers, which will be published by Katara Publishing House. President of the Mauritanian Association for the Preservation of Arabic Heritage and the Environment and Combating Extremism Abdullah Mohammed Bilal will also be honored in recognition of his organization’s exhibition of Arabic Manuscripts. The exhibition featured a distinguished collection of literary and historical manuscripts, and was held in conjunction with the 10th Katara Festival for Arabic Novels, which ran from October 13-20, 2024.
The award committee selected three winners: Syrian researcher Walid Al Saraqbi, who won in first place with a cash prize of USD 20,000 for h
is verified manuscript titled “Tadhkirat Al Nahhat by Abu Hayyan.” Second place went to Egyptian researchers Ahmed Abdel Basset and Ahmed Abdel Sattar with their verified manuscript entitled “Ma Wasala Min Al-Jami Al-Mustaqsa Fi Fadhail Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa by Ibn Asakir (600 AH).” The two researchers will receive a cash prize of USD 15,000.
In third place was Egyptian researcher Nuha Hussein Al Hafnawi for her verified manuscript entitled “Tuhfat Al-Adab Fi Al-Rihlah Min Damietta Ila Al-Sham Wa Halab by Ahmed Al Adhami (1159 AH),” with a cash prize of USD 10,000.
The Cultural Village Foundation (Katara) launched the first edition of the Katara Prize for Manuscripts and Archaeological Sites on March 11, 2024. The award comprises two categories: the first for an investigation of an original, previously unpublished manuscript, and the second for the best research study on archaeological sites or landmarks in the Arab region, subject to specific conditions.
This award aims to encourage manuscript owners, experts
, and specialists in manuscript editing to share and widely disseminate their collections and research efforts, thereby enhancing Arab and Islamic culture. It also contributes to encouraging Arabic publishing and urging publishers to contribute to the advancement of the Arab mind and enrich Arab culture with new and distinctive content, keeping pace with contemporary issues.