Moussa Ould Ebnou

Moussa Ould Ebnou
Native name	موسى ولد ابنو
Born	1956 Boutilimit, Mauritania
Occupation	Novelist, short story writer
Language	French, Arabic
Nationality	Mauritanian
Notable works	Barzakh

Moussa Ould Ebnou (Arabic: موسى ولد ابنو, born 1956) is a professor of philosophy and a novelist from Mauritania.

Life and career

Moussa Ould Ebnou was born in Boutilimit.[1] He received a PhD from the Sorbonne in Paris. In 1984, he became a consultant for the United Nations Sudano-Sahelian Office (UNSO). In 2008, he became a professor of philosophy at the University of Nouakchott. He has also served as an advisor for the Mauritanian government.[2]

He has published two novels in French: L’amour impossible (1990) and Le Barzakh (1994), which were later published in Arabic as الحب المستحيل ("al-Hubb al-Mustahil") (1999), and مدينة الرياح (Madinat al-Riyah) (1996), respectively.[3] He has translated his own work into Arabic.[2]

Ebnou has also published other works in Arabic, including حج الفجار (Hujj al-Fijar) (2003), and الامثال والحكم الشعبية الموريتانية (al-Imthal w'al-Hakm ash-Sha'biya al-Muritaniya).[1][4]

Barzakh (referred to as The City of Winds) was listed by The National as one of the fifty most important Arabic novels of the twentieth century. The announcement called it "one of the most gripping dystopian tales to come out of the Arab world."[5]

Works

In French

• The Impossible Love (L’amour impossible, 1990)
  • Arabic translation: الحب المستحيل (al-Hubb al-Mustahil, 1999)[3]
• Barzakh (Le Barzakh, 1994)
  • Arabic translation: مدينة الرياح (Madinat al-Riyah, 1996)[3]
  • English translation: Barzakh: The Land In-Between (2022)[6]

In Arabic

• The Hajj of Sinners (حج الفجار, Hujj al-Fijar, 2003)
• Popular Mauritanian Proverbs and Sayings (الامثال والحكم الشعبية الموريتانية, al-Imthal w'al-Hakm ash-Sha'biya al-Muritaniya)

Notes and External Links

1. Biographical Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East & North Africa, 2007, entry on Moussa Ould Ebnou
2. "Moussa Ould Ebnou". Words Without Borders. Retrieved 2024-10-21.
3. Qader, Nasrin (2002). "Fictional Testimonies or Testimonial Fictions: Moussa Ould Ebnou's Barzakh". Research in African Literatures. 33 (3): 14–31. doi:10.1353/ral.2002.0088. Project MUSE 29730.
4. "Hadhrat al-kitab al-katib - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oHYmNl7O2w"
5. Saeed, Saeed; Jalal, Maan; Bedirian, Razmig; Mullally, William; Salah, Faisal. "Fifty most important Arabic novels of the 20th century". The National. Retrieved 2024-10-21.
6. "Barzakh: The Land In-Between". www.iskanchi.com. Retrieved 2024-04-30.

• UNESCO.org [1]