Politicsנעים עריידי

Naim Araidi

Naim Araidi was an Israeli Druze poet and scholar of literature who wrote in Hebrew and Arabic and served as Israel's ambassador to Norway and Iceland from 2012 to 2014.

1950 to 2015Poetry in Hebrew and ArabicFounding the Nissan poetry festivalAmbassador to Norway and Iceland

Born: 2 April 1950, Maghar
Died: 2 October 2015
Occupation: poet, diplomat, translator, university teacher
Education: Bar-Ilan University, University of Haifa

Naim Araidi was born in 1950 in Maghar

Araidi was born in 1950 in the village of Maghar, into the Druze community. He attended elementary school in his village and went to high school in Haifa.

He earned bachelor's degrees in Hebrew language, political science and comparative literature, and a master's degree in Hebrew and comparative literature at the University of Haifa. He completed a doctorate at Bar-Ilan University on the poetry of Uri Zvi Greenberg.

He taught at schools in Maghar and later lectured at the University of Haifa, Bar-Ilan University and Gordon College. He was academic dean of the Arab Academic College for Education in Haifa. From 1995 to 2008 he presented a weekly Arabic news magazine on Channel 2.

His first book of poems in Hebrew appeared in 1972 and started a debate about Arabs writing in Hebrew. He founded the Nissan international poetry festival in Maghar and won the Prime Minister's Prize for Hebrew writers in 2009.

In 2012 he was appointed ambassador to Norway and non-resident ambassador to Iceland. In 2014 he was recalled after claims that he sexually harassed embassy employees, claims he denied. He died in 2015.