Role of Arab culture in growth of other cultures highlighted

Expatriate writing will create new opportunities for exchange of civilizations, writer M. Mukundan has said.

Speaking after receiving the Sadana Cultural Foundation Award at an Arabic seminar at Calicut University on Wednesday, Mr. Mukundan said the Arab culture had played a significant role in building several other civilizations.

Arab civilization had an indelible role in the making of the European civilization, he said. ‘‘When Malayali expatriates in the Gulf are being read today, what is happening is the beginning of a great cultural exchange,’’ he said.

The function also marked the beginning of a two-day international seminar on Arab culture and legacy of the United Arab Emirates organised by the Department of Arabic, Calicut University, in association with the Sadana Foundation and Dar Al Yasmeen, UAE.

Calicut University Vice Chancellor M. Abdul Salam inaugurated the seminar. Fathima Bouharaka, director, Sadana Cultural Foundation, presented the award to Mr. Mukundan.

Calicut University Registrar T.A. Abdul Majeed presided.

M.A. Baby, former Education Minister, will inaugurate the second day’s programme on Thursday. He will release the Malayalam, Hindi, and Tamil translations of Asma Bint Al Qasimi’s Ana Hahuna .