Lebanese scholar Charbel Dagher wins 2025 Great Arab Minds Award for literature and arts

Dubai: His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, announced the winner of the Great Arab Minds Award in Literature and Arts, naming Lebanese scholar Charbel Dagher as the 2025 recipient.

In a message posted on X, Sheikh Mohammed congratulated Professor Dagher, praising a body of work that has spanned decades and reshaped the study of Arabic literature and Arab art. 

“Congratulations to Professor Charbel Dagher of Lebanon, Professor of Arabic Literature, on winning the Great Arab Minds Award in the Literature and Arts category for 2025,” Sheikh Mohammed wrote. 

“Over decades, Professor Dagher has made sustained intellectual contributions across a wide range of literary fields, including poetry, prose, the novel, and literary criticism. His scholarly work has also extended to the study of Arab art, examining its history, depth, and the transformations it has undergone over time.”

 “Professor Dagher has published more than 70 books, significantly enriching the Arab literary and artistic landscape. His works are widely regarded as essential references for the study of Arabic literature and art across different historical eras,” Sheikh Mohammed tweeted. 

 “Congratulations to all the winners of the Great Arab Minds Award, and we say to Arabs everywhere: those who built one of the greatest civilizations in history are fully capable today of shaping an even greater future, through belief in themselves, confidence in their abilities, and commitment to their role in renewing civilization,” Sheikh Mohammed said.

According to the award’s citation, Professor Dagher was selected in recognition of his profound contributions to the study of Arabic literature and Arab art, and for advancing understanding of Arab cultural heritage within its artistic and intellectual contexts. 

His scholarship explores literature and art as evolving expressions shaped by historical, social and cultural forces, with particular attention to modern Arabic poetry, the early Arabic novel and theatre, and major artistic transformations.

The citation also noted that Dagher’s work has helped link Arabic literature and art to broader civilisational frameworks, while expanding the global reach of Arab culture.