For the acronym meaning "Absent Without Authorized Leave", see AWOL

For the digital distribution company "Artists Without A Label", see AWAL

For the digital 1967 Malayalam film, see Awal (film)

Awal (Arabic: أوال‎) is the ancient name of Bahrain, an island country in the Persian Gulf. The name Awal had remained in use, probably for eight centuries. Awal was derived from the name of a god that used to be worshiped by the inhabitants of the islands before the advent of Islam. Awal resembled the head of an ox. As for the meaning of this name, there are^[1] ʼawwal 'first, first part, previous'; ʼawwalan 'firstly, at first'; ʼawwalī 'prime, primordial, original'. Awal Premi also means 'the best' in many Indian languages. Similarly the deity Awal of Bahrain appears to be very similar to the deity Nandi of the Hindus. Indus valley civilization also had a deity like an ox. It suggest that there were religious and cultural links between the two cultures.

Before Islam Bahrain's administrative name was Mishmahig^[2] and it was also called Tylos by the Ancient Greeks. If the name /Tulos/ is related to /ṭiwal/ 'rope with which the feet of draught-cattle are tied together'^[3], then the cattle-representation of this deity may be thus confirmed.

See also[link]

• History of Bahrain
• Munzir ibn Sawa Al Tamimi

References[link]

This Bahrain location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Shaukat Ali Khan is a Pakistani folk singer.

Born into a family of artists in Malakwal, Ali began singing while at college in the 1960s, receiving help from his elder brother Inayat Ali Khan. Since 1970 he has performed ghazals and Punjabi folk songs. He gave a live performance at the 1982 Asian Games in New Delhi, and has been awarded the highest Pakistani civilian Presidential award, as well as the Voice Of Punjab Award. His song "Kadi te Has Bol Ve" was used in the movie "Love Aaj Kal". He also released a track titled Jagga. He is the father of Pakistani singer Imran Shaukat.

Songs[link]

Shaukat Ali's hits include Kyun Door Door Rendeyo, Kaddi Te Has Bolve, Jab Bahaar Aey Tou Sehra, Mein Walait Kanu Aa Gaya, Challa, Jagga, Kaanwan Maa Jannat Da Parchaavan and Saif Ul Malook & Heer Waris Shah which is recited by Shaukat Ali

Personal Life[link]

Shaukat Ali lost his daughter, Mahjuvi, in a fire on the Doon Express on 22 November 2011^[1].

References[link]

• "Western culture ‘affecting’ Indians, Pakistanis". The Tribune. 11 December 2004. http://www.tribuneindia.com/2004/20041212/haryana.htm#2. Retrieved 7 September 2010. 

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. It includes attribution to IMDb, which may not be a reliable source for biographical information. Please help by adding additional, reliable sources for verification. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (December 2010)

Iwan Rheon
Born	(1985-05-13) 13 May 1985 (age 27) Carmarthen, Wales, UK
Occupation	Actor, singer
Years active	2002–present

Iwan Rheon (born 13 May 1985) is an Olivier Award-winning Welsh stage and television actor and singer, and a graduate of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.

Early life[link]

Born in Carmarthen, to Einir and Rheon Tomos, he has an older brother named Aled, and the family moved to Cardiff when he was five years old.^[1] Rheon attended Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Glantaf and began acting at the age of 17, where he took part in school drama productions, and was later "spotted" during a National Eisteddfod of Wales, before going on to study at LAMDA.^[1]

Career[link]

Acting[link]

Rheon joined Welsh language soap Pobol Y Cwm, aged 17, where he played Macsen White, but later left to train at LAMDA.^[1] His first notable stage part came from the play Eight Miles High which was staged in 2008 at the Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool.

Later in 2008 he was cast to play the role of the haunted Moritz Stiefel in the London production of the Tony Award-winning rock-musical, Spring Awakening.^[1] He played this role from January 2009 at the Lyric Hammersmith, and continued it when the show was transferred to the Novello Theatre, until it closed in May 2009, five months earlier than planned. He earned a What's On Stage Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical, which was eventually won by Oliver Thornton (Priscilla Queen of the Desert). He has been nominated as Best Supporting Actor in a Musical by the Olivier Awards, which he won in 2010.^[1]

Immediately after Spring Awakening, Rheon was cast in the E4 channel's Misfits, a BAFTA winning programme, a show described by 247 Magazine as "a mix of Skins and Heroes". He plays nervous, shy Simon Bellamy who gains the superpower of invisibility and precognition in season 3.^[2] On 20 December 2011, Rheon announced via Twitter that he had left the show, along with fellow cast member Antonia Thomas.^[3]

Most recently, Rheon made a guest appearance as character Ben Theodore in Simon Amstell's comedy Grandma's House.^[2] In 2011 he also appeared in the final episode of Secret Diary of a Call Girl. In 2011, he was nominated for a Golden Nymph in the "Outstanding Actor - Drama Series" category for his role in Misfits as Simon Bellamy.^[4]

Music[link]

Songwriting and singing since the age of 16, he was lead singer in The Convictions until leaving the band to pursue his acting career. In 2010, he recorded his first solo work, Tongue Tied EP, at RAK Studios in London,^[5] produced by Jonathan Quarmby and Kevin Bacon.^[6] An accomplished 4 track release with acoustic guitar and voice, the EP was released digitally in June 2010. He returned to RAK Studios, in April 2011, to record his second EP Changing Times, again produced by Quarmby and Bacon, with the addition of 3 backing musicians. Changing Times was released on 10 October 2011.^[7] In a February radio chat with AWAL OnAir Radio, Rheon announced that he was currently working on a full-length album.

Filmography[link]

Discography[link]

• 2010: Tongue Tied EP
• 2011: Changing Times EP

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Iwan Rheon

• Iwan Rheon on Facebook
• Iwan Rheon at the Internet Movie Database
• Iwan Rheon at London Theatre Database
• Iwan Rheon at BBC Wales
• Iwan Rheon at The Spotlight

Ahmad Zahir
Ahmad Zahir years before his death
Background information
Birth name	Ahmad Zahir
Born	(1946-06-14)14 June 1946 Laghman, Afghanistan
Died	14 June 1979(1979-06-14) (aged 33) Salang, Parwan Province, Afghanistan
Genres	Rock, pop
Occupations	Singer, songwriter, composer
Instruments	Harmonium, piano, accordion, Farfisa, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, combo organ
Years active	1967–1979
Labels	Afghan Music, Aj Musik, EMI, Music Center

Ahmad Shirpacha Zahir (Persian: احمد ظاهر‎ – Aḥmad Zāhir; 14 June 1946 – 14 June 1979) was a singer, songwriter, and composer from Afghanistan. He is widely considered an icon of Afghan music and is sometimes called the "King of Afghan music". His songs are mostly in Persian and based on well-recognized Persian poems, although a few are in Pashto and English.^[1] Zahir composed and performed rock and pop music, in a similar style to Elvis Presley. Today, he is regarded as one of the greatest persons in Afghan culture and history.

Biography[link]

Zahir was born on 14 June 1946 (Jauza 24, 1325 of the Jalali calendar) in Laghman, Afghanistan.^[2] His father, Abdul Zahir, was a royal court doctor, minister of health, Prime Minister of Afghanistan between 1971 and 1972,^[3] speaker of the parliament and an influential figure in King Zahir Shah's era who helped write the 1964 Constitution of Afghanistan. Zahir grew up in Kabul and belonged to the Pashtun ethnic background.^[2][4][5]

Zahir attended Habibia High School in Kabul in the early 1960s. He sang and played the accordion in a band mainly consisting of his friends and classmates including Omar Sultan on guitar, Farid Zaland on congas and Kabir Howaida on piano. The band later became known as the amateur band of Habibia High School and performed in local concerts during celebratory occasions like Nowruz, Eid ul-Fitr,^{[disambiguation needed ]} and Afghan Independence Day.^[6]

He later attended and graduated from Daru' l-Malimeen ("Teachers' College") in Kabul, then continued his higher education for two more years in India to get a degree as an English instructor. Eventually, however, he decided that music was his true calling. Zahir began his solo career composing songs based on well-recognized Persian poems. His first recorded song, "Gar Kuni Yak Nizara", was his own composition, sung in the pilu raga. He continued writing and recording songs such as "Azeezam Ba Yaadat", "Ahista-ahista", "Akhir Ay Darya", "Hama Yaranam", "Agar Sabza Boodam", "Guftam Ke Mekhwaham Tura", "Shabe Ze Shabha" and "Parween-e Man".^[6]

Zahir worked with mentors such as Ismail Azami (saxophonist), Nangalai (trumpeter), Abdullah Etemadi (drummer), and other musicians including Salim Sarmast, Naynawaz, Taranasaz, and Mas'hour Jamal. He recorded over 22 albums in the 1970s. His songs were noted for their mellifluous tone, poetic style, compelling depth, and passionate emotional evocation.^{[citation needed]} His lyrics covered a wide range of subjects. Many of his songs contained autobiographical elements or political criticism of Afghanistan's government.^[7] As a result many of his recordings were destroyed by the government.

The Zahir professionally was on the scene of Afghan Music for only 10 years at the most; however, Zahir managed to record more than 30 albums. This was and is unheard of in any music industry around the world. All of these albums were successful and widely accepted (to this date) by everyone. The kings managed to complete these recordings almost 40 years ago with almost no technology of today's world, and all was done in live recordings. It is said the kings recorded his Arian Music Album 1 in one day, that had more than 12 songs. Zahir only recorded two music videos during his career.

Death[link]

Zahir died on 14 June 1979, on his 33rd birthday. There are many mixed views from critics for why he was killed, but according to his son Rishad Zahir, Zahir "was assassinated by the order of a communist general^{[verification needed]} named Daud Taroon, who used one of Zahir's best friends as an accomplice to carry out his orders". Zahir's political stance was at odds with the Marxist government of the time^[6] who claimed that he had died in a car accident.^[7] Other critics state that he was shot twice by someone, who then crashed Zahir's car on a wall, and put him inside the vehicle, pretending that he had a car accident.

A large crowd of mourners attended Zahir's funeral in Kabul, clogging the city streets and bringing daily activities to a halt.^[7]

After his death Zahir became a national hero and his image was mythologized by the Afghan people.^[8] Because of his privileged family background, Zahir helped to establish music as a more respected profession which in turn led to the founding of The Kabul Music School in 1974.^[9]

Discography[link]

Afghan music albums[link]

• Vol. 1 – Dilak am (1973)
• Vol. 2 – Bahar (1973)
• Vol. 3 – Shab ha ye zulmane (1974)
• Vol. 4 – Mother (1974)
• Vol. 5 – Awara (1975)
• Vol. 6 – Ghulam-e Qamar (1975)
• Vol. 7 – Sultan Qalbaam (1976)
• Vol. 8 – Az Ghamat Hy Nazaneen (1976)
• Vol. 9 – Gulbadaan (1971)
• Vol. 10 – Yaare Bewafa (1977)
• Vol. 11 – Lylee (1977)
• Vol. 12 – Ahmad Zahir and Jila (1978)
• Vol. 13 – Ahange Zindagee (1978)
• Vol. 14 – Shab-e Hijraan (1979) (posthumous release)

Note: Audio cassette versions of many of Zahir's Afghan Music albums are missing some songs that are present on the original vinyl records.

Ariana music albums[link]

• Vol. 1 – Daard-e Dil (1972)
• Vol. 2 – Mosum-e Gul (1977)

Note: The original Ariana Music record albums contain many hidden tracks.

Music center albums[link]

• Vol. 1 – Ashiq rooyat Mon (1973)
• Vol. 2 – Neshe Gashdum (1976)
• Vol. 3 – Lylee Jaan (1977)
• Vol. 4 – Ahmad Zahir Ba Sitara Haa (1977)
• Vol. 5 – To Baamanee (1978)

Private albums[link]

• Shamali
• Hindi Songs
• Afghanistan Songs
• Agar Bahar Byayad
• Ahmad Zahir & Nainawaaz
• Almase-Sharq
• Gulhaayi-Jawedan
• Gulhayi Nafaramoshshuda
• Khateraha
• Khudaat-Medani Guleman
• Laily-Laily-Jan
• Raaze-Penhan
• Soorodhayie-Jawedan
• Yaad-Mandaha
• Zindani

Other discography information[link]

• He has over 10 private recording albums from 1965–1978.
• He only recorded 2 music videos in Radio Kabul TV: "Laylee Jaan" in 1976 and "Khuda Buwat Yarret" in 1977.
• Zahir recorded several songs in Radio Kabul and Radio Afghanistan studios which later came out as albums. Eight of these albums have been released.

References[link]

• "Review of Anthology of World Music: The Music of Afghanistan". Delusions of Adequacy Reviews. http://www.adequacy.net/review.php?reviewID=3579. Retrieved 28 January 2006. ^{[dead link]}
• "Ahmad Zahir". http://saaztube.com/Ahmad_Zahir.txt. Retrieved 23 March 2012. 
• Sakata, Hiromi Lorraine (1983). Music in the Mind: The Concepts of Music and Musician in Afghanistan. Kent State University Press. ISBN 0-87338-265-X. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ahmad Zahir

• AhmadZahir.com Official website