History Makers

Mohammad Najm

1925-2009

Arabic Literature Scholar

Category: Great Scholars and Teachers
Education: AUB, BA 1946, MA 1948; King Fuad I University, MA 1951; Cairo University, PhD 1954

Professor Najm was a fixture in AUB's Department of Arabic Language and Literature for over 50 years. Dr. Najm's legacy to Arabic literature lies in his numerous published works, primarily on Arabic theater and fiction. He has published, in Arabic, 13 critical editions of classical Arabic works; studies on classical Arabic literature and theater; literary crticism; and translations of British literary criticism. Two of his important works are The Play in Arabic Literature and Al-Mounsef, or, The Novel in Arabic Literature. Professor Najm held membership in a number of cultural committees and organizations of the Arab League, and of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Tunisia, Jordan, Syria, and Egypt. He also acted as General Secretary, conferences of Arab Cultural Affairs Ministers (1979-94) and drew up plans and surveys for cultural development in Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait. Najm also served as librarian of the Arab League's Institute for Graduate Studies, director of the Franklin Book Program in Beirut (1957-72), and on the board of the Welfare Association of Geneval. His awards include the Arab Leaugue Cultural Development's Prize for Literary Studies (1956 and 1958), the prize of the Kuwait Organization for the Advancement of Science (1979), and the King Faysal International Prize for Arabic Literature (1992).

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Anis K. Makdisi

1885-1977

Arabic Scholar, Poet

Category: Great Scholars and Teachers
Education: AUB, BA 1906, MA 1908

Anis K. Makdisi was a prominent scholar of Arabic literature and a transformative chair of AUB's Arabic Department. He was born in Tripoli, Lebanon, and graduated from the Syrian Protestant College (SPC). He joined the Arabic Department the same year the SPC changed its name to the American University of Beirut (1920). Makdisi eventually became a full professor and chaired the Arabic Department for more than 20 years (1929-50). He was a staunch defender of the founding mission of AUB, which included a central role for Arabic language and culture. Makdisi had a huge impact on the Arabic department and was the driving force behind its modernization and development. He was an elected member of the Arabic Language Academies in Damascus and Cairo and earned many awards, including the Lebanese Gold Medal for Education and the Medal of the President of the Republic of Lebanon. He was a prolific scholar and the author of seminal books and articles on Arabic literature, as well as an accomplished poet. His scholarship was recognized by the University when he became the first holder of the Margaret Weyerhaeuser Jewett Chair of Arabic (established 1929). In 2002 an active outreach academic and cultural program was established at AUB in his name: the Anis Makdisi Program in Literature (www.aub.edu.lb/fas/ampl).

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Raymond Debbane

Business Leader, Philanthropist

Category: Leaders in Business
Education: AUB, BS, Agricultural Sciences and Agricultural Engineering; University of California-Davis, MS, Food Science and Technology; Stanford Graduate School of Business, MBA

Raymond Debbane is President and Chief Executive Officer of The Invus Group, LLC, a New York-based global investment firm with offices in Paris, London and Hong Kong, which he co-founded in 1985 as the exclusive investment advisor of Benelux-based Artal Group S.A.. In 1998, Mr. Debbane also became the Chief Executive Officer and a board member of Artal. Since 1985, Invus has been an equity investor in companies that seek to transform their industries. Invus has invested in companies across a wide range of industries including consumer products and services, food, specialty retail, software, biotech and medical devices. Prior to forming Invus, Ray was a manager for The Boston Consulting Group in Paris. Mr. Debbane is Chairman of the Board of Weight Watchers International, Inc., Chairman of the Board of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and a Director of Blue Buffalo Pet Products, Inc. of which he was Chairman until its 2015 IPO. He is a Trustee Emeritus of Connecticut College and is the Chairman of Action Against Hunger-USA. He is also involved in a number of charities aiming to address educational needs in Lebanon. In 2012 Forbes named him as The Mystery Man behind Weight Watchers and the Private Equity Deal of the Century.

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Raja Shehadeh

Writer, Human Rights Activist

Category: Virtuoso Artists and Writers
Education: AUB, BA, English Literature 1973

Raja Shehadeh is a writer and a lawyer who founded the pioneering Palestinian human rights organisation Al-Haq, an affiliate of the International Commission of Jurists. Shehadeh is the author of several books on international law, human rights and the Middle East including Occupiers Law and From Occupation to Interim Accords. His literary books include Strangers in the House, Occupation Diaries, A Rift in Time, Travels with my Ottoman Uncle, Language of War, Language of Peace and Palestinian Walks which won the 2008 Orwell Prize, Britain's pre-eminent award for political writing. His latest book, Where the Line is Drawn, Crossing Boundaries in Occupied Palestine will be published in Spring 2017. Shehadeh's family were forced to leave Jaffa in 1948 and settled in Ramallah on the West Bank, where Raja Shehadeh lives today. After training as a barrister in London, he returned to Palestine where he has been pursuing the cause of peace through his work and his writings.

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Khalid Idriss

1913-1993

Humanitarian Doctor, Healthcare Advocate

Category: Pioneers in Health
Education: AUB, MD 1936; University of Lyon, Post-doctorate

Dr. Khalid Mohammad Idriss devoted his professional life promoting healthcare and the welfare of the humanity. He worked as an Assistant Professor in AUB’s OB/GYN Department after graduating in 1936. Dr. Idriss was the first AUB graduate physician to work in Saudi Arabia as he served for two years on a special mission as a consultant of the American Public Health Service. He started building a bond that was strengthened and expanded into a lifetime of dedicated service to the people of Saudi Arabia and its health sector. In 1946, he founded the first private hospital in Jeddah. Ten years later, he opened the state-of-the art facility New Jeddah Hospital (1956). In 1963, he founded a third hospital with the highest modern standards, which is known today as Dr. Khalid Idriss Hospital. In 1982, he established the Al Shate Teaching Hospital, which was converted to a general private hospital in 1990 named “Idriss Hospital”. The “Dr. Khalid Idriss Delivery Suite and Assisted Technology Unit” was inaugurated at AUBMC in 2002 to honor his valuable contributions in the field of medicine in obstetrics and gynecology.

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Kamel Abdel Rahman

1908-1980

Entrepreneur, Philanthropist

Category: Leaders in Business
Education: AUB, BA 1931

Kamel Abdel Rahman was an entrepreneur, business leader, philanthropist, and champion of higher education. After graduating from AUB, he established the Contracting and Trading Company (CAT) along with his fellow alumnus, Emile Boustany. In 1952, he also established the Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) with friends and former AUB students Said Khoury and Hasib Sabbagh . CAT and CCC went on to become two of the most successful and respected construction companies of the Arab region and the world. To support his mantra that education was paramount and transformative, he established the Kamel Abdel Rahman Education Fund in 1976 to aid the university education of financially- disadvantaged Palestinian refugees. Many of these students went on to form highly respected companies throughout the Middle East. In 2014, AUB announced the largest single endowment for scholarships ever received by the University. "The Kamel Abdel Rahman Endowed Scholarship Fund" is an endowment of more than $8 million to support scholarships for qualified Palestinian students from refugee camps, or any qualified Palestinian student of great financial need, to pursue an AUB education. Kamel was also on the Board of Trustees at the International College (IC), where he also has an education fund in his memory.

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Abdul Mun’im Talhouk

1913-2004

Entomologist, Scholar, Teacher

Category: Great Scholars and Teachers
Education: AUB, BS Biology 1948, MS Biology 1955; University Munich, PhD 1960

Abdul Mun’im Talhouk was a world-class entomologist who was one of the two founders of AUB’s School of Agriculture and a long-time professor (1955 – 1979). He was appointed emeritus professor in 1988. Talhouk discovered over 400 insects previously unknown in Saudi Arabia, and some 150 species of insects and mites new to science in Lebanon, Syria, and Saudi Arabia. In recognition of his contributions to the field, one genus and twelve species from Saudia Arabia and thirteen species from Lebanon and Syria were named after Talhouk. His research focused on entomophagous insects, the chemical control of insect pests, biological and ecological studies of pests, and virus transmitters. Talhouk’s wide-ranging expertise was in wide demand across the region and throughout the world. During his career, he published 75 articles and four books, including Insects and Mites Injurious to Crops in Middle Eastern Countries, the proceeds of which he donated to needy AUB students. Talhouk also donated his unparalleled collection of local insects, which he assembled between 1935 and 1998, to AUB’s Natural History Museum.

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Edvick Jureidini Shayboub

1915-2002

Author, Pioneer

Category: Virtuoso Artists and Writers
Education: AUB, BA Arabic Literature 1951, MA Modern Arabic Literature 1969

Edvick Jureidini Shayboub is a Lebanese author, women’s right activist, and pioneer in print and radio journalism in the Middle East. After being widowed with two young children, she founded a nursery, had a successful career in radio and press, and wrote books for adults and children. Shayboub read the news for a decade, had a daily women’s program for three decades, and was editor-in-chief of two monthly women’s magazines Sawt El-Mar’a and Dunya Al-Mar’a. She traveled the world advocating for women’s rights, including a 70-day tour in the USA in 1967. She wrote numerous books, including two poetry books, Baouh and Shaouk, a memoir Thikrayati maa Gibran, as well as children’s books and short stories. Shayboub received numerous awards, such as the Gold Medal of the Lebanese Order of Merit (1958); three prizes from the President of Lebanon; and the National Order of the Cedar, Knight rank (1969), Officer rank (1985), and Commander rank (2003, posthumous).

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William McKenzie Bickers

1908-1990

Doctor, Scholar, Pioneer

Category: Pioneers in Health
Education: William and Mary, BA 1929; Medical College of Virginia, MD 1933

As chair of Obstetrics and Gynecology for 15 years (1958 – 1973), Dr. William Bickers helped bring modern obstetrical practice to Lebanon and the Middle East, including introducing lumbar epidural anesthesia. AUBMC became one of the early pioneers of this technique, before it became a standard procedure for pain relief during childbirth. A renowned obstetrician, he was a consultant for the families of numerous heads of state in the region and delivered many of their children. He authored two books, including his autobiography entitled Harem Surgeon, which chronicles his time in the Middle East. Besides being an excellent physician, Dr. Bickers was fluent in Arabic and widely read in many fields including comparative religion, archaeology, philosophy, and literature. He received Lebanon’s Order of the Cedar as well as honors from Oxford University and the University of Dublin. After retiring to Virginia, he established an endowed professorship in Middle Eastern Studies at the College of William and Mary.

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Nikula Jurjus Shahin

1897-1985

Science Educator, Volunteer

Category: Innovative Engineers and Scientists
Education: AUB, BA 1918, MA 1920

Nikula Jurjus Shahin walked to and from his village, Bishmizzine, in North Lebanon five times in order to study at AUB during WWI. He taught in high schools for a number of years until he was called to teach at the Physics Department at AUB in 1939, where he was a professor until he retired in 1965. While a student under Professor Mansour Jurdak, he became interested in astronomy and remained a committed volunteer at the AUB Observatory until long after retirement. Shahin provided An Nahar with daily weather updates and when the Observatory was shut down permanently, he set up a weather station on his roof. An Nahar kept publishing daily updates from Marsad Nikula Shahin; a tradition that was continued by his daughter and grandson after his death. In 1948 he wrote the first book in Arabic on The Atom, Atomic Energy, and the Atom Bomb, which he dedicated to President Bayard Dodge. An avid educator and science mentor to the Arab public, he was often called on by broadcasting stations to explain natural phenomena and he published hundreds of articles in Arabic on math, science, and space. His many contributions were recognized with a Medal for Education by the Lebanese government.

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Nicholas H. Dagher

1885-1967

Pioneering Pharmacist

Category: Pioneers in Health
Education: AUB, BA 1915, MS Pharmacy 1920

Nicholas Harissi Dagher spent 11 years at AUB (1909 – 1920), studying, teaching, and working. In 1920 he founded the first legal pharmacy in Sidon under the French mandate and taught science at the Sidon Boys School (SBS). His summer home in Rmeileh served as an emergency free clinic, where he and his wife, Hanneh Elias Farah (RN 1922), helped treat many patients, such as for pink eye. In 1947, Dagher along with pharmacists Baroudi and Mahmassani wrote the constitution for the Pharmacist’s Association, Nakabit el Siadilah, to regulate the profession. In the 1960s, Nicholas was instrumental in transferring the American mission to the Presbyterian Synod. In civic affairs, Dagher was active in projects and solving problems in water systems and electrical regulations. From 1947 – 1959 he was a member of the emergency commission, Lijnit al Tawari. Throughout Dagher’s life, he encouraged education and helped pay tuition fees of needy students so that they could attend SBS and AUB.

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Shibli Shumayyil

1860-1917

Physician, Author, Social Reformer

Category: Activists and Public Servants
Education: AUB, MD 1871

A controversial Lebanese physician and social reformer. He began his studies of medicine in the Syrian Protestant College. He published al-Shifa magazine (1886-1891) to spread new medical ideas, and with Salama Musa, published al-Mustakbal (1914) in order to build a society based upon modern scientific reasoning.The foremost popularizer of Darwin’s theory of evolution in the Arab world, his commentary and translation of Ludwig Buchner’s lectures on Darwin caused an uproar. He was also one of the first proponents of socialist and secularist thought in Arabic. Among other works, he translated Hippocrates, wrote a commentary on Ibn Sina and published several medical works. His Les Mefaits de la domincation turque et la responsabilite de l’Europe (Cairo 1913) revealed what he felt was wrong with the Ottoman Empire. He died during World War I.

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Jurji Zaidan

1861-1914

Novelist, Journalist, Intellectual

Category: Virtuoso Artists and Writers

Jurji Zaidan was one of the major figures of the Arab Nahda (Awakening) and a popular novelist. Born and raised in Beirut, Zaidan left for Cairo in 1882. In 1891 he founded a small printing house and later re-opened it in 1896 as the Matba'at al-Hilal. In 1892 Zaidan founded al-Hilal, one of the earliest Arabic-language literary journals and which still operating today. He is the author of 22 historical novels including: The Conquest of Andalusia, The Battle of Poitiers, The Caliph's Sister, The Caliph's Heirs, and Saladin and the Assassins. His novels have been translated into many languages and are still widely read. Several were republished with commentaries in 1984. His goal was to awaken in the Arab public a historical consciousness and a pride in the great days of Arabo-Islamic history.

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Nicolas Ziadeh

1907-2006

Scholar and Teacher

Category: Great Scholars and Teachers
Education: London University BA and PhD Islamic History

Nicolas Ziadeh was a noted scholar and teacher, specializing in the history of Syria and North Africa. He taught history at AUB for over 20 years, chairing the Department of History twice. Editor of Longman’s Arab Background Series from 1969 to 1990, Professor Ziadeh has published more than 40 books dealing with Arabic-Islamic civilization and culture. The first of these works, Travellers in the Arab East in the Middle Ages was published in Cairo in 1943. In 2000, he published Christianity and the Arabs. In between, he translated a number of historical works from English into Arabic, including Tyonbee’s Mother Earth, and published hundreds of short articles and book reviews. Between 1947 and 200 he delivered thousands of short broadcasts for the BBC and other networks on a variety of historical subjects. He was a visiting professor at Harvard, Jordanian University, Ain Shams University, and Lebanese University, among others. Professor Ziadeh was a member of several academic societies, including the American Oriental Society, the American Medieval Society, and the Iraqi Academic Society.

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Karim W. Nasser

Engineer

Category: Innovative Engineers and Scientists
Education: AUB, BA & BSc Civil Engineering 1949; University of Kansas MS Civil Engineering 1952; Univeristy of Saskatchewan PhD Civil Engineering 1965

Karim (Kay) Nasser, born and raised in Lebanon, studied civil engineering at the American University of Beirut and the University of Kansas, and earned his PhD at the University of Saskatchewan, where he taught as a professor of civil engineering for 33 years. Dr. Nasser’s research led to the invention of the K-slump tester, a device that easily tests the consistency, or slump, of concrete when it is poured. The tester was used in the construction of the CN Tower in 1973 and is still widely used today. He holds 18 patents, has written four books, and numerous scientific articles. Dr. Nasser has received many awards and honors, including the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal. He is a fellow of the American and Canadian Society of Civil Engineers. An ardent philanthropist, he has given generously to the University of Saskatchewan,has funded university student scholarships (including at AUB), and has given to his hometown of Shweir as well as numerous cultural and civic organizations. He is currently professor emeritus at the University of Saskatchewan.

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Sami Makarem

1931-2012

Scholar and Teacher

Category: Great Scholars and Teachers
Education: AUB, BA Literature and Philosophy 1954, MA Arabic Literature 1957; University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, PhD 1963

Sami Makarem was a Lebanese scholar, writer, poet and artist. Born in Aley, he studied at the American University and the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where he obtained in 1963 his PhD. in Middle Eastern Studies, specializing in Islamic Batini Studies. Sami Makarem went back to Lebanon to teach Islamic Thought at the Lebanese University and, in 1964, was appointed assistant professor at AUB, teaching Arabic Literature and Islamic Thought, later becoming a full professor. He twice held the position of Head of the Department of Arabic Literature and Near Eastern Languages and was director of the Center of Middle Eastern Studies at the American University in Beirut, from 1975. The loss of his father, Sheikh Nassib Makarem, an accomplished artist and calligrapher, inspired Sami Makarem to discover the artist in himself. In addition to his academic contributions in the fields of Islamic studies, Sufism, and Islamic history, Sami Makarem is an artist and a poet with three published works of poetry. In all, he has published over 30 books, in addition to a great number of articles in different specialized periodicals, and hundreds of art works.

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George Fawaz

1913-2005

Scientist, Physician, Health Advocate

Category: Pioneers in Health
Education: AUB, BA 1933, AUB, MS Biochemistry 1935, Graz University, PhD Organic Chemistry 1937, University of Heidelberg, MD 1955

George Fawaz is best known for his work on the binding of digitalis and other drugs to plasma proteins. During his time as a Rockefeller Fellow at Harvard University in the lab of L.F. Feiser, he succeeded in synthesizing a number of active compounds, most notably antimalarial drugs such as naphthoquinone. Upon returning to Beirut, he became professor and chair of Pharmacology until he retired in 1984. During his tenure at AUB, Dr. Fawaz proved to be a distinguished professor, mentor, and researcher. He authored 67 scientific publications. His work at AUB focused on cardiovascular physiology and pharmacology. Throughout his life, he helped poor patients and the citizens of his hometown, Deir Mimas. He was a very modest and humble man who refused awards and honors during his lifetime. He was fond of saying, "What greater reward can physicians receive than the knowledge that their interventions saved the lives of human beings." He was the son of Dr. Amin Yousef Fawaz, a chemistry graduate of the Syrian Protestant College (1892).

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Sa'id B. Himadeh

1894-1991

Prominent Economist, Professor

Category: Activists and Public Servants
Service to AUB: Assistant in Treasurer's Office 1915-1920, Assistant Treasurer 1920-1923, Associate Professor of Applied Economics 1923-1938, Professor of Applied Economics 1945-1961, Emeritus Professor in Economics 1962-1992
Education: AUB Bachelor of Commerce 1914, Columbia University MA 1926

After receiving his degree from AUB, Said Himadeh joined the Comptroller's Office in 1915 and began to teach at AUB in 1920. From 1937 to 1948, he headed the Department of Business and Economics and then served as chairman of the Department of Business Administration until his retirement in 1959. Professor Himadah went on to serve the public domain after his retirement: he was appointed Minister of Economy and Agriculture in 1966. In 1959, Himadeh established Shouf National College, a non-profit high school in the Shouf district, which was the first high school in the area. He served as chairman of its Board of Trustees until he passed away in 1991. A noted academic and scholar, Professor Himadah is among the most prominent economists in Lebanon and the Arab World. Besides a wealth of articles and studies on the economics of this region, his early books in the 1970s heralded a new tradition of scientific economic research and remained for years to come the uncontested sources of authoritative material in the field. Notable among his publications are the books, Monetary and Banking System in Syria and Economic Organization of Syria.

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