Majallat al-Muqtabas
- Author died
- 1372 AH
- Editions
- Majallat al-Muqtabas
Majallat al-Muqtabas (مجلة المقتبس) was an Arabic monthly cultural, literary, and scientific periodical founded and edited by the Syrian scholar, historian, and journalist Muhammad Kurd Ali (1293–1372 AH / 1876–1953 CE) .
Establishment and Publication History
Kurd Ali established the journal in Cairo, Egypt, in 1324 AH (1906 CE) following his departure from Damascus . During its initial publication run in Egypt, he simultaneously engaged in editing daily newspapers, including al-Zahir and al-Mu'ayyad . Following the Ottoman Constitutional Revolution in 1908 CE, Kurd Ali returned to Damascus and continued publishing Majallat al-Muqtabas there .
In Damascus, he also launched a daily newspaper of the same name (Jaridat al-Muqtabas) in collaboration with his brother, Ahmad Kurd Ali (Abu Bassam) . When political pressure and accusations from Ottoman authorities intensified, Kurd Ali handed over the management of the daily paper to his brother and dedicated his efforts entirely to the monthly journal . Publication was later disrupted during the outbreak of World War I due to political turmoil, the suspension of academic bodies, and severe paper shortages, though it temporarily resumed under the Ottoman commander Ahmad Jamal Pasha . In total, the journal comprises 96 issues, spanning nine volumes and 6,467 pages .
Scope and Content
Majallat al-Muqtabas served as a platform for historical, literary, and scientific studies . Its contents combined classical Islamic heritage with modern knowledge: it regularly published editions and extracts of rare manuscripts, while also translating reports and findings on contemporary Western science, inventions, and civilizational developments from European periodicals .
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