Mohammed Abed al-Jabri
Mohammed Abed al-Jabri was one of the best known Moroccan and Arab philosophers; he taught philosophy, Arab philosophy, and Islamic thought in Mohammed V University in Rabat from the late 1960s until his retirement. He is considered one of the major philosophers and intellectual figures in the modern and contemporary Arab world. He is known for his academic project "Critique of Arab Reason", published in four volumes between the 1980s and 2000s. He published several influential books on the Arab philosophical tradition.
Biography
Mohammed Abed al-Jabri was born on 27 December 1935 in Figuig to a middle-class family of Berber origin. During his childhood, he read classics of Arabic literature, memorized parts of the Quran and learnt Arabic grammar.He contributed to at-Tahrir, official daily newspaper of the National Union of Popular Forces and had a column called ṣabaḥ an-nūr. In 1959, he responded to the phenomenon of Zionist cinema in a series of articles in his column, criticizing Zionist propaganda films depicting violence against Arabs screened in Morocco behind closed doors at functions and gatherings including weddings. He was also one of at-Tahrir
He received a bachelor's degree in philosophy from the University of Mohammed V in 1967. He also obtained a PhD in philosophy from the same university in 1970. His master's thesis was on the philosophy of history in Ibn Khaldun and his doctoral dissertation was also on Ibn Khaldun. He died in Casablanca on 3 May 2010.
Views
Jabri was a "fervent advocate" for Arabization. In his eyes, both Berber languages and colloquial Arabic were inadequate as serving as a national unifier. Jabri went as far as advocating for the complete destruction of Berber languages and he advocated for their banning from schools, radio and television:Awards
- The Ibn Rushd Prize for Freedom of Thought for the year 2008 in Berlin.
Translations
English
*French
- La Pensée de Ibn Khaldoun: la Assabiya et l'État. Grandes lignes d'une théorie Khaldounienne de l'histoire musulmane. Paris: Édima, 1971.
- Pour une Vision Progressiste de nos Difficultés Intellectuelles et Éducatives. Paris: Édima, 1977.
- Nous et Notre Passé. Lecture contemporaine de notre patrimoine philosophique, 1980.
- Critique de la Raison Arabe - 3 volumes, Beyrouth, 1982.