Afag Masud Explained

Afag Masud
Native Name:Afaq Məsud
Native Name Lang:az
Birth Date:1957 6, df=y
Birth Place:Baku, Azerbaijan SSR, Soviet Union
Language:Azerbaijani
Occupation:Writer, playwright
Citizenship:
Education:Baku State University

Afag Masud (Azerbaijani: Afaq Məsud) (born 3 June 1957, Baku) is an Azerbaijani writer, and playwright. She has been honored with the title of People’s Writer, Honored Art Worker, a full member of Peter’s Academy of Art and Science, a full member of European Academy of Sciences, Arts and Literature, member of the Georgian Writers Association? Board Chair of the Azerbaijan Translation Centre, and editor-in-chief of the “Khazar” World Literature Magazine.[1] playwright, Honored Art Worker, "Humay" award winner, Chief editor of "Khazar" world literature magazine.[2] [3]

Life and literary career

Afag Masud was born on 3rd June 1957 into an intellectual family in Baku. She graduated in Journalism from Baku State University in 1979. Worked as an editor and editorial board member for Azerbaijanfilm Studio (1979–1986), and Director of “Azerbaijantelefilm” Studio (1986–1988). In 1989–2014, her positions included: Chair of the Republican Centre of Translation and Literary Relations, and editor-in-chief of the “Khazar” World Literature Magazine.[4]

She was appointed Director of the Translation Centre under the Cabinet of Ministers of the Azerbaijan Republic by Decree 501 of President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev dated 16th May 2014, and Board Chair of the Azerbaijan State Translation Centre by the Presidential Order 110 dated 18th May 2018.

She is the author of novels, plays, essays and short stories.

Her works, interviews and articles have been issued in publishing houses and media inmany countries, and published on cultural and literary portals.

She is the author of such plays, as “At Death’s Door”, “He Loves Me”, “Getting to Leave”, “Woman under a Train”, “Karbala”, and “Mansur Al-Hallaj.” The plays “At Death’s Door”, “He Loves Me” have been staged in the State (Theatre Director – Vagif Ibrahimoghlu), and the play “Woman under a Train” have been staged in the Academic National Drama Theatre (Theatre Director –Mehriban Alakbarzade.)

Her works “The Sparrows” (Television Director – Eyvaz Valiyev), “The Party” (Television Director – Tariyel Valiyev) have been made into television dramas, and “Night” (Film Director – Teymur Guliyev), “Punishment” (Film Director – Mehriban Alakbarzade), and “The Death of the Rabbit” (Film Director – L. Najafzade) - into television movies.

She has translated into Azerbaijani a number of foreign works, such as the novels “Autumn of the Patriarch” by Gabriel García Márquez, “The Web and the Rock” by Thomas Wolfe, tazkira books by Muhammad Nasifi, Abu Hamid al-Ghazālī, Ibn Arabi, and Jalal ad-Din Rumi. The reading and discussion of the novel “Procession” in German were held at the Berlin Literary House in 1994.

In 2000, a doctoral dissertation from the University of Vienna on her literary creativity was defended (Sena Dogan “Female Writers in European Oriental Studies”).

In 2004, the radio play “Die Sperlinge” (“The Sparrows”), based on the motives of the same story, was broadcast on Vienna radio.

She is also famous for translating works by authors such as Franz Kafka, Guy de Maupassant and Gabriel García Márquez into Azeri.[4] She currently works as the editor-in-chief of the Azerbaijani literary magazine Khazar.

List of works

Prizes and awards

of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, in 2003;

translation industry in the country by Order of the President of the Azerbaijan RepublicIlham Aliyev.

Ilham Aliyev in 2019 for her services to the development of Azerbaijani culture;

Republic” in 2019;

strengthening of literary relations with Turkic-speaking countries, and for her specialmerits in the development of theatrical art in 2015-2021;

of the Georgian Writers Association in 2019;

2022;

Association and the title of “Honoured Worker of Culture” of the Rustaveli Society ofIntellectuals for her activities on developing literary and cultural relations betweenAzerbaijan and Georgia in 2023.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Azərbaycan Respublikasının mədəniyyət xadimlərinə fəxri adların verilməsi haqqında Azərbaycan Respublikası Prezidentinin Sərəncamı. https://web.archive.org/web/20201013064138/https://president.az/articles/33258. 13 October 2020. 13 October 2020.
  2. Web site: Haqqında . https://web.archive.org/web/20201013064551/https://www.afaqmesud.az/az/pages/id:1. 13 October 2020. afaqmesud.az. 13 October 2020.
  3. Web site: Haqqında . 2023-05-02 . Afaq Məsudun saytı.
  4. Unknown Bakuvians: Afag Masud. Baku.ru