Dubai: A poetry competition for students in the UAE was launched yesterday by the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature and Hamdan Bin Mohammad Heritage Centre (HHC) in an effort to promote a revival of the Emirati heritage and highlight the beauty of the spoken word.
The ‘Qasidah Par Coeur’ competition, which means ‘poetry by heart’, is one out of four written and spoken word competitions of the Festival, which will be taking place from March 3 to March 7, 2015 under the patronage of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
The poetry competition, which has been sponsored by HHC for the second year now, allows schoolchildren with a passion for reciting poetry to participate and get a chance to be awarded during the festival.
Speaking at the press conference yesterday after signing this year’s agreement, Abdullah Bin Dalmook, CEO of HHC, said that it is an honour for the centre to partner with the festival, which is part of the Emirates Literature Foundation.
“We thank the centre for agreeing to focus on Nabati poetry this year, [Arabian poetry that was the only record of historical events back in the 16th century]. As we know, poetry is a big part of our culture and it has the power to describe our past, including the events that took place back then,” he said.
Ebrahim Abdul Rahim, director of events at HHC, said: “This competition brings poetry into focus and the interpretive nature of the competition encourages participants to delve deeper into the meaning of the poem. Poetry, especially Nabati poetry, is undergoing a resurgence and has been aided by the festival’s efforts over the past year and the HHC works towards promoting Emirati heritage among the youth of the nation,” he said.
This year, the competition is open to 8 to 13 year-olds and 14 to 18 year-olds, and will be judged in three rounds by renowned poets. The final round will be held during the festival on March 4 where winners will be awarded with trophies and books.
Students in the 8 to 13 age category must choose one poem in Arabic, English, or their mother tongue. Students in the 14 to 18 age category can choose to perform one poem from the anthology provided by the festival or perform a poem in their mother tongue. They will also be required to give a 50-word personal justification for their choice which they must recite from memory.
Isobel Abulhoul, festival director, said the competition opens doors for primary and secondary schools to participate, particularly pupils who are keen to show their poetry performance skills.
“The HHC and we share a joint aim to teach the citizens of the UAE about the nation’s culture, and the competition is an ideal way to educate young people,” she said.
Running alongside the festival, which is now in its seventh year, are different sessions and workshops for residents and visitors of all ages by international and local authors.
