Nir Barkat
Nir Barkat, mayor of Jerusalem
Mayor of Jerusalem
Incumbent
Assumed office 2008
Preceded by	Uri Lupolianski
Personal details
Born	(1959-10-19) 19 October 1959 (age 52) Jerusalem, Israel
Spouse(s)	Beverly Barkat
Children	3
Religion	Judaism

Nir Barkat (Hebrew: ניר ברקת‎; born 19 October 1959) is an Israeli businessman, politician and mayor of Jerusalem.

Personal life[link]

Nir Barkat was born in 1959 and raised in Jerusalem. His father, Zalman, was a professor of physics at the Hebrew University. He served in the Paratroopers Brigade of the Israel Defense Forces for six years (1977–83), as well as reserve duty, and reached the rank of Major.

Barkat received his bachelor degree in computer science at Jerusalem's Hebrew University.

Barkat is married to his wife Beverly and is the father of three daughters.

Career[link]

Barkat started his career in the hi-tech industry by founding a software company called BRM in 1988, which specialized in antivirus software. Later the company became an incubator venture firm that invested in several companies such as Check Point and Backweb. He later helped found the social investment company IVN.

Barkat entered politics in January 2003 when he founded the party Yerushalayim Tatzli'ah ("Jerusalem Will Succeed") and ran in the Jerusalem mayoral race, gaining 43% of the vote and narrowly losing to Uri Lupoliansky. He became head of the opposition on the city council, until the 2008 election.

In 2007, Barkat took part in the Israeli version of Dragons' Den, the venture-capitalist television programme, which consists of entrepreneurs pitching their ideas in order to secure investment from business experts.

Barkat ran again and won the election for mayor of Jerusalem on 11 November 2008 gaining 52% of the votes, defeating his main rival Meir Porush, who won 43% of the votes. Barkat is described as a secular politician, contrasting with both Lupoliansky and Porush, who are described as Haredi.^[1]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Nir Barkat Bio (from time as Councilmember). Startupjerusalem.org
• Eli Barkat, Managing Partner biography, BRM Capital (2007).
• Nir Barkat official campaign page - Hebrew
• Cidor, Peggy (2009-03-26). "On the fast track". The Jerusalem Post. http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1237727552676&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull. Retrieved 2009-04-01. 

John C. Hagee
Pastor Hagee in Washington DC in July 2007
Born	(1940-04-12) April 12, 1940 (age 72) Baytown, Texas
Occupation	Pastor, Cornerstone Church
Employer	John Hagee Ministries
Title	CEO
Religion	Evangelical/Charismatic

Cornerstone Church sanctuary

John Charles Hagee (born April 12, 1940) is an American founder and senior pastor of Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas, a non-denominational charismatic megachurch with more than 19,000 active members.^[1]

Hagee is also the chief executive officer (CEO) of his non-profit corporation, Global Evangelism Television (GETV).

Hagee is the President and CEO of John Hagee Ministries, which telecasts his national radio and television ministry carried in the United States on 160 TV stations, 50 radio stations, and eight networks, including The Inspiration Network (INSP), Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN), and Inspiration Now TV.^[2] The ministries can be seen and heard weekly in 99 million homes. John Hagee Ministries is in Canada on the Miracle Channel and CTS and can be seen in Africa, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and in most Third World nations.^[3]

Hagee is the founder and National Chairman of the Christian-Zionist organization Christians United for Israel, incorporated on February 7, 2006.^[4]

Hagee has incurred controversy for his religious beliefs and comments regarding Nazism, Catholicism, Islam, homosexuality, Jews, and Hurricane Katrina.^[5][6]

Life and career[link]

John Hagee was born in Baytown, Texas, to the former Vada Mildred Swiek and the Reverend William Bythel Hagee.^[7] He graduated from Trinity University in San Antonio, with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering in 1964.^[8] He was on a football scholarship and appeared on the Academic Dean's List.^[9] Hagee received a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of North Texas in Denton in 1966 and completed his theological training at Southwestern Assemblies of God University with a Diploma in Theology in Waxahachie, south of Dallas. Hagee descends from a long line of Anabaptist Mennonite pastors^{[citation needed]},a sect known for espousing doctrines of pacifism, aversion to war and forgiveness of enemies).^[10] In 1989, he received an Honorary Doctorate from Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma.^[11] In 2005, he received another Honorary Doctorate from Netanya Academic College in Israel.^[12] Hagee served on the Oral Roberts University Board of Regents from 1989 to January 2008.^[8]

On August 26, 1960, Hagee married his first wife Martha; they had two children, Christopher and Tish.^[8] In October 1966, Hagee founded Trinity Church in San Antonio, Texas.^[13] Hagee and Martha divorced in 1975.

Hagee married his second wife, the former Diana Castro, a member of Trinity Church, on April 12, 1976. According to both biographies at John Hagee Ministries, Hagee and his second wife Diana have three children, Christina, Matthew, and Sandy, and eight grandchildren.^[1][14] Matthew Hagee, John's son, is the executive pastor of Cornerstone Church.^[15]

Hagee founded a new church, The Church at Castle Hills, on May 11, 1975, Mother's Day. The church started with 25 members, but within two years, had to build a new sanctuary seating 1,600 people. The church continued to grow; on October 4, 1987, Hagee dedicated a 5,000-seat sanctuary and named it Cornerstone Church. Dr. W. A. Criswell, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, anointed Hagee and Diana before the congregation.^[13]

Today, Trinity Church is located 7.3 mi (11.7 km) from Hagee's Cornerstone Church on the same stretch of highway in San Antonio.

Hagee has written a number of best-selling books and is a Southern Gospel recording artist.^[16] He, Matthew, Christina, and Sandy often travel together as the "Hagee Family Singers."

On his telecast of December 14, 2008, Hagee disclosed to the audience that he had recently undergone successful heart bypass surgery.

Personal beliefs[link]

Hagee believes in traditional Pentecostal practices such as the "baptism of the Holy Spirit," He also believes in the "absolute authority of the scripture," baptism by immersion, and evangelism.^[17]

Hagee has denounced replacement theology, believing that chapters 9-11 of the book of Romans teaches that the Jews have continuing favor with God by the election of grace. He believes the Bible commands Christians to support the State of Israel and the Jewish people even though he has uttered remarks that some have interpreted as antisemitic.^[18][19]

Because the land now known as Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank was ruled by the Ottoman Turks prior to World War I, then controlled by the British, and later partitioned under United Nations mandate, Hagee argues that the land does not belong to the Palestinian people, and that the name "Palestine" (deriving from that of the ancient Philistines) was imposed by the Roman Emperor Hadrian to punish the Jews for their revolt against the Roman Empire. Hagee maintains there is no Palestinian language and no historic Palestinian nation.

In 2007, Hagee stated that he does not believe in global warming, and he also said that he sees the Kyoto Protocol as a conspiracy aimed at manipulating the U.S. economy.^[20] Also, Hagee has condemned the Evangelical Climate Initiative, an initiative "signed by 86 evangelical leaders acknowledging the seriousness of global warming and pledging to press for legislation to limit carbon dioxide emissions."^[21]

Hagee denounces abortion, and stopped giving money to Israel's Hadassah Medical Center when it began performing the procedure.^[18]

He has spoken out against homosexuality, linking its presence in New Orleans to Hurricane Katrina as an act of divine retribution. He said in 2006, "I believe that New Orleans had a level of sin that was offensive to God, and they are—were recipients of the judgment of God for that. The newspaper carried the story in our local area, that was not carried nationally, that there was to be a homosexual parade there on the Monday that the Katrina came."^[22][23] However, on April 25, 2008, Hagee clarified his comments regarding Hurricane Katrina by saying, "But ultimately neither I nor any other person can know the mind of God concerning Hurricane Katrina. I should not have suggested otherwise."^[24]

In his 2005 book Jerusalem Countdown: A Warning to the World, Hagee interprets the Bible to predict that Russia and the Islamic states will invade Israel and will be destroyed by God. This will cause the antichrist, the head of the European Union, to create a confrontation over Israel between China and the West. The book echoes predictions made in The Late, Great Planet Earth, the best-selling 1970 book co-authored by Hal Lindsey and Carole C. Carlson.

The Christian Research Institute (among others) has strongly criticized Hagee's recent book, In Defense of Israel (2007), for apparently arguing that Jesus did not claim to be the Messiah for the Jews, only the Savior for the Christian Church, and therefore, that attempts should not be made to convert Jews.^[25] Hagee issued a statement denying the first of these allegations and promises to revise one chapter in a new edition to make his views clearer.^[26]

Relationship with Israel[link]

The San Antonio B'nai B'rith Council awarded Hagee with its "Humanitarian of the Year" award. It was the first time this award was given to a gentile.^[27] Hagee was presented the Zionist Organization of America's Israel Award by U.N. Ambassador Jeane Kirkpatrick. This award was given by the Jewish Community of Dallas, Texas.^[28] He was presented the ZOA Service Award by Texas Governor Mark White. Houston Mayor Kathryn J. Whitmire issued a special proclamation in his honor, declaring Pastor John C. Hagee Day.^[29]

Hagee has been to Israel 22 times and has met with every Prime Minister of Israel since Menachem Begin. John Hagee Ministries has given more than $8.5 million to bring Soviet Jews from the former Soviet Union to Israel. Hagee is the Founder and Executive Director of "A Night to Honor Israel," an event that expresses solidarity between Christians and Jews on behalf of Jerusalem, the State of Israel, and the United States.^[30]

On February 7, 2006, Hagee and 400 leaders from the Christian and Jewish communities formed a new national organization called Christians United for Israel (CUFI).^[31] This organization addresses members of the United States Congress, professing a Biblical justification for the defense of Israel.

Hagee was the primary early funding source for the Israeli Zionist group Im Tirtzu,^[32] which has pressured Israeli academics it accuses of being anti-Zionist and lobbied to have their funding cut for their political views.^[33]

Controversial views[link]

Hagee has been criticized for his statements about Israel, the Roman Catholic Church, and Islam. One notable critic is journalist Bill Moyers, who claims that Hagee and other evangelicals are working toward supporting the religious right. He states, "Someone who didn't know better could imagine from the very name Christians United For Israel—CUFI—that pastor John Hagee speaks for all Christians. Well, he doesn't... What these fellows have forged is a close connection between the [George W. Bush] White House and the religious right."^[34]

Some Jewish leaders, such as Reform Rabbi Eric Yoffie, criticized Hagee for being an "extremist" on Israeli policy and for disparaging other faiths including Islam and Roman Catholicism.^[35]

Accusations of anti-Catholicism[link]

After Hagee's 2008 endorsement of U.S. Presidential candidate John McCain, a furor arose over comments, broadcasts, and writings made by Hagee that were seen as anti-Catholic. After discussions with Catholic leaders, Hagee made an apology, which was publicly accepted by Catholic League President William Donohue.^[36]

When Hagee made the endorsement, the Catholic League for Civil and Religious Rights president William A. Donohue issued the following remarks regarding Senator John McCain's ties to Hagee:

Now that he has secured the Republican nomination for president, and has received the endorsement of President Bush, McCain will now embark on a series of fundraising events. When he meets with Catholics, he is going to be asked about his ties to Hagee. He should also be asked whether he approves of comments like this: "A Godless theology of hate that no one dared try to stop for a thousand years produced a harvest of hate." That quote is proudly cited by David Brog in his recent book, Standing with Israel. Both Brog and Hagee clearly identify the Roman Catholic Church as spawning a "theology of hate." This is nothing if not hate speech. There are so many good evangelical leaders in this country—Dr. James Dobson, Dr. Richard Land, Tony Perkins, Gary Bauer, Dr. Al Mohler, Chuck Colson—and none has ever insulted Catholicism.^[37]

The "Godless theology" quotation is taken from Hagee's 1987 work Should Christians Support Israel? (p. 4)^[38]

Hagee's attack against Christian antisemitism in his book Jerusalem Countdown claimed that Adolf Hitler's antisemitism derived especially from his Catholic background, and that the Catholic Church under Pope Pius XII encouraged Nazism instead of denouncing it. (pp. 79–81)^[39] He also states that the Roman Catholic Church "plunged the world into the Dark Ages," allowed for the Crusaders to rape and murder with impunity, and called for Jews to be treated as "Christ killers". (p. 73) Later in the book (pp. 81–2), however, he praises Pope John Paul II for repudiating past antisemitism in the Roman Catholic Church.

Hagee claimed in March 2008, "I've learned that some have accused me of referring to the Catholic Church as the 'great whore,' of Revelation. This is a serious misinterpretation of my words. When I refer to the 'great whore,' I am referring to the apostate church, namely those Christians who embrace the false cult system of Jew-hatred and antisemitism."^[40]

Donohue rejected Hagee's explanation as disingenuous: "Anti-Catholic Protestants have long labeled the Catholic Church "The Great Whore," and no amount of spin can change that reality. No one who knows anything about the term would suggest otherwise."^[40] Furthermore, Hagee did identify [the Great Whore of] Babylon as Rome in his book From Daniel to Doomsday (1999), in a way that melded reference to the Roman Empire and the Roman Catholic Church: "The evidence would point to Rome...It was Rome where Nero wrapped Christians in oily rags and hung them on lampposts, setting them ablaze to light his gardens. It was Rome that orchestrated the Crusades where Jews were slaughtered...It was Rome that orchestrated the Inquisitions throughout the known world where "heretics" were burned at the stake or pulled in half on torture racks because they were not Roman Catholic." (pp. 10–11)

Hagee further responded to the charge in a videotaped statement and press release, categorically denying that he was anti-Catholic, on the grounds that his church runs a "social services center" that serves a largely Catholic constituency, that he supported a convent personally, that he had often denounced Martin Luther, not just the Catholic Church, for antisemitism, and that he did not interpret the "Whore of Babylon" as a reference to the Catholic Church.^[41]

Letter of apology and reconciliation[link]

On May 12, 2008, Hagee issued a letter of apology to William Donohue, the president of the Catholic League, expressing regret for "any comments that Catholics have found hurtful."^[42] He apologized for condemning Catholics for what he viewed was their persecution of Jews, and outright stated that he did not believe that, and many other previously held views, any longer.^[42] He also said that the "great whore" comments were taken out of context and were not directed at the Catholic Church.^[42] He went on to explain that his comments about the Catholic Church were made "[i]n my zeal to oppose anti-Semitism and bigotry in all its ugly forms. I have often emphasized the darkest chapters in the history of Catholic and Protestant relations with the Jews."^[43] Bill Donohue told Fox News, "I'm absolutely delighted... I haven't seen such a quick turnaround in the 15 years that I have been president of the Catholic League.... The tone of Hagee's letter is sincere. He wants reconciliation and he has achieved it."^[42] "Indeed, the Catholic League welcomes his apology," Donohue wrote in a press release. "What Hagee has done takes courage and quite frankly I never expected him to demonstrate such sensitivity to our concerns. But he has done just that. Now Catholics, along with Jews, can work with Pastor Hagee in making interfaith relations stronger than ever. Whatever problems we had before are now history."^[42]

Islam[link]

On the September 18, 2006, edition of National Public Radio's Fresh Air, Hagee discussed Islam, stating, "those who live by the Qur'an have a scriptural mandate to kill Christians and Jews... it teaches that very clearly." He then proceeded to characterize the military threat posed by those who follow Islamic scripture: "There are 1.3 billion people who follow the Islamic faith, so if you're saying there's only 15 percent that want to come to America or invade Israel to crush it, you're only talking about 200 million people. That's far more than Hitler and Japan and Italy and all of the Axis powers in World War II had under arms."^[44]

Judaism[link]

Despite Hagee's professed "Christian Zionist" beliefs and public support for the state of Israel, Hagee has made statements that some have interpreted as antisemitic. He has blamed the Holocaust on Jews themselves. He has stated that Hitler's persecution was a "divine plan" to lead Jews to form the modern state of Israel. He calls liberal Jews "poisoned" and "spiritually blind." He also admits that that the preemptive nuclear attack on Iran that he favors will lead to the deaths of most Jews in Israel.^[45]

In his book Jerusalem Countdown, Hagee claims that Adolf Hitler was born from a lineage of "accursed, genocidally murderous half-breed Jews."^[46] On page 149 in a chapter with the title 'Who Is a Jew?', Hagee writes:

"It was Esau's descendants who produced the half-breed Jews of history who have persecuted and murdered the Jews beyond human comprehension ... Adolf Hitler was a distant descendant of Esau."^[46]

Hagee has attributed the persecution of Jews throughout history, implicitly including the Holocaust, to disobedience, thereby attracting accusations of antisemitism:^[47]

"It was the disobedience and rebellion of the Jews, God's chosen people, to their covenantal responsibility to serve only the one true God, Jehovah, that gave rise to the opposition and persecution that they experienced beginning in Canaan and continuing to this very day... Their own rebellion had birthed the seed of antisemitism that would arise and bring destruction to them for centuries to come.... it rises from the judgment of God upon his rebellious chosen people."^[48]

In the book, Hagee cites material from the Jewish tradition (Jeremiah 9:13–16; 44:2–4, 15–17) to justify this view.

In 2008, in response to a question about this matter, he differentiated between his interpretation of the Bible and his understanding of modern history: "I learn from the Bible that the children of Israel were punished by God for their iniquities. But I do not presume to explain Jewish suffering in modern times. I only seek to alleviate it."^[49]

Hagee's interpretation of the historical role of Hitler and the Holocaust in relation to the foundation of the state of Israel has also caused offense. Hagee interprets a reference in Jeremiah 16:16 to "fishers" and "hunters" as symbols of positive motivation (Herzl and Zionism) and negative motivation (Hitler and Nazism) respectively, both sent by God for the purpose of having Jews return to the land of Israel, even suggesting that the Holocaust was willed by God because most Jews ignored Herzl's Zionist call.^[50] Following the broadcast of Hagee's remarks in late May 2008, some orthodox and conservative Jews have come forward to defend Hagee against charges of antisemitism, although other Jews have applauded McCain for distancing himself from Hagee.^[51][52]

In another sermon, Hagee blamed American economic problems on the fact that the Federal Reserve System is controlled by "a group of Class A stockholders, including the Rothschilds." In the same series, Hagee further asserted that the Rothschilds, who are Jewish, were part of a wide-ranging conspiracy of "international power brokers based in Europe."^[53]

Political activities[link]

In 2002, Hagee endorsed the conservative State Representative John Shields in the latter's unsuccessful bid for the Republican primary for the District 25 seat in the Texas Senate. Hagee dubbed Shields's opponent, incumbent Jeff Wentworth, "the most pro-abortion" of 181 legislators in both houses of the Texas legislature. Wentworth still holds the Senate seat, which includes northern portions of San Antonio.^[54]

In 1996, Hagee spoke on behalf of Republican presidential primary candidate Alan Keyes, who in 2004 lost the U.S. Senate election in Illinois to Barack H. Obama. In 2008, Hagee endorsed Senator John McCain of Arizona in the presidential contest against Obama.^[55]

See also[link]

• Israel lobby in the United States
• Pat Robertson

Books[link]

• The Invasion of Demons (1973) - Old Tappan, N.J., Revell, ISBN 0-8007-0576-9, Bibliography: p. 157–158.
• Like a cleansing fire (1974) Old Tappan, N.J., Revell, ISBN 0-8007-0685-4
• The Beginning of the End (1996) ISBN 0-7852-6772-7 - on the New York Times Best Seller list (NYTBSL) and #1 book in the United States in 1996 in the Association for Christian Retail non-fiction division
• Day of Deception (1997) - on the NYTBSL
• Final Dawn Over Jerusalem (1998) - listed as the #1 book on the NYTBSL
• His Glory Revealed (1999)
• From Daniel to Doomsday: The Countdown Has Begun (1999)
• God's Two-Minute Warning (2000)
• The Revelation of Truth (2000)
• The Battle For Jerusalem (2001)
• Attack On America New York, Jerusalem, And The Role Of Terrorism In The Last Days (2001), revised version of The Battle For Jerusalem
• Devil's Island (2001) - first novel
• Avenger of Blood (2002) - second book in the novel series
• The Life Plan Study Bible: God's Keys to Personal Success (2004) - editor
• The Seven Secrets: Unlocking Genuine Greatness (2004)
• Life Lessons to Live By: 52 Weeks of God's Keys to Personal Success (2005) - (daily devotional)
• Jerusalem Countdown (2005)
• What Every Man Wants In a Woman/What Every Woman Wants In a Man (2005) - co-authored with his wife, Diana.
• In Defense of Israel (2007)
• Financial Armageddon (2008)
• Can America Survive? 10 Prophetic Signs that we are the Terminal Generation (2010)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: John Hagee

• John Hagee Ministries website
• John Hagee background & information at Freethoughtpedia
• Cornerstone Church website
• John Hagee Headlines
  • "Rev. Hagee's Thoughts On Katrina"
  • Audio on Hitler: Digg
• "Jesus Made Me Puke: Matt Taibbi Undercover with the Christian Right" - A Rolling Stone article detailing unorthodox religious practices in Hagee's church
• "CUFI Confidential" - An American Prospect article about John Hagee's 3rd annual Christians United for Israel Conference
• Exchange of Letters with Pastor John Hagee on Jews and the Holocaust - Anti-Defamation League
• Why Did J Street Make a 'Radical' Revision to John Hagee's Words? (UPDATED) - The Forward
• Presbyterian Israel-bashing shows how Jews are clueless about Christian groups. - AISH
• Southwestern Assemblies of God University website

Umm Kulthum
Background information
Birth name	Umm Kulthum Ebrahim Elbeltagi
Also known as	Oum Kalthoum, Om Kalsoum, Om Koulsum, Om Kalthoum, Oumme Kalsoum, Umm Kolthoum, Om Koultoum
Born	(1898-12-30)December 30, 1898 Tamay Ez-Zahayra, El Senbellawein, Dakahlia Governorate,Egypt
Died	February 3, 1975(1975-02-03) (aged 76) Cairo, Egypt
Genres	Arabic classical music
Occupations	Singer, actress
Years active	c. 1924–73
Labels	EMI Arabia
Associated acts	Fairuz Abdel Halim Hafez Mohammed Abdel Wahab Maria Callas

Umm Kulthum (Arabic: أم كلثوم‎ ʾUmm Kulṯūm; Egyptian Arabic pronunciation: [omme kælˈsuːm]; born فاطمة إبراهيم السيد البلتاجي Fātimah ʾIbrāhīm as-Sayyid al-Biltāǧī, [ˈfɑtˤmɑ (ʔe)bɾˤɑˈhiːm esˈsæjjed elbelˈtæːɡi]; see Kunya) (December 30, 1898^{[citation needed]}–February 3, 1975) was an Egyptian singer, songwriter, and actress. Born in Tamay ez-Zahayra village, which belongs to El Senbellawein, she is known as "the star of the East" (kawkab el-sharq). More than three decades after her death, she is widely regarded as the greatest female singer in Arab music history.^[1]

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Umm Kulthum was born in Tamay ez-Zahayra village in El Senbellawein, Dakahlia Governorate, Egypt, in Dakahlia, in the Nile Delta, near the Mediterranean Sea. Her birth date is unconfirmed, as birth registration was not enforced throughout the Arab world. The Egyptian Ministry of Information seems to have given either December 31, 1898, or December 31, 1904.^[2] She was likely born some time between these two dates.

At a young age, she showed exceptional singing talent. Her father, an Imam, taught her to recite the Qur'an, and she is said to have memorized the entire book. When she was 12 years old, her father disguised her as a young boy and entered her in a small performing troupe that he directed. At the age of 16, she was noticed by Mohamed Aboul Ela, a modestly famous singer, who taught her the old classical repertoire. A few years later, she met the famous composer and oudist Zakariyya Ahmad, who invited her to come to Cairo. Although she made several visits to Cairo in the early 1920s, she waited until 1923 before permanently moving there. She was invited on several occasions to the house of Amin Beh Al Mahdy, who taught her how to play the oud, a type of lute. She developed a very close relationship to Rawheya Al Mahdi, daughter of Amin, and became her closest friend. Kulthum even attended Rawheya's daughter's wedding, although she always tried to avoid public appearances.

Amin Al Mahdi introduced her to the cultural circles in Cairo. In Cairo, she carefully avoided succumbing to the attractions of the bohemian lifestyle, and indeed, throughout her life, stressed her pride in her humble origins and espousal of conservative values. She also maintained a tightly managed public image, which undoubtedly added to her allure.

At this point in her career, she was introduced to the famous poet Ahmad Rami, who wrote 137 songs for her. Rami also introduced her to French literature, which he greatly admired from his studies at the Sorbonne, Paris, and eventually became her head mentor in Arabic literature and literary analysis. Furthermore, she was introduced to the renowned oud virtuoso and composer Mohamed El Qasabgi. El Qasabgi introduced Umm Kulthum to the Arabic Theatre Palace, where she would experience her first real public success. In 1932, her fame increased to the point where she embarked upon a large tour of the Middle East, touring such cities as Damascus, Syria; Baghdad, Iraq; Beirut and Tripoli, Lebanon.

Fame[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

This section may contain wording that merely promotes the subject without imparting verifiable information. Please remove or replace such wording, unless you can cite independent sources that support the characterization. (June 2010)

Umm Kulthum's establishment as one of the most famous and popular Arab singers was driven by several factors. During her early career years, she faced staunch competition from two prominent singers: Mounira El Mahdeya and Fathiyya Ahmad, who had equally beautiful and powerful voices. However, Mounira had poor control over her voice, and Fathiyya lacked the emotive vocal impact that Umm Kulthum's voice had. The presence of all these enabling vocal characteristics attracted the most famous composers, musicians, and lyricists to work with Umm Kulthum.

In the mid-1920s, Mohammad el Qasabgi, who was the most virtuosic oud player and one of the most accomplished yet understated Arab composers of the 20th century, formed her small orchestra (takht), composed of the most virtuosic instrumentalists. Furthermore, unlike most of her contemporary artists who held private concerts, Umm Kulthum's performances were open to the general public, which contributed to the transition from classical, and often elitist, to popular Arabic music.

By 1934, Umm Kulthum must have been one of the most famous singers in Egypt to be chosen as the artist to inaugurate Radio Cairo with her voice on May 31. Over the second half of the 1930s, two initiatives sealed the fate of Umm Kulthum as the most popular and famous Arab singer: her appearances in musical movies and the live broadcasting of her concerts performed on the first Thursday of each month of her musical season from October to June. Her influence kept growing and expanding beyond the artistic scene: the reigning royal family would request private concerts and even attend her public performances.

In 1944, King Farouk I of Egypt decorated her with the highest level of orders (nishan el kamal), a decoration reserved exclusively to members of the royal family and politicians. Despite this recognition, the royal family rigidly opposed her potential marriage to the King's uncle, a rejection that deeply wounded her pride and led her to distance herself from the royal family and embrace grassroots causes, such as her answering the request of the Egyptian legion trapped in Falujah during the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict to sing a particular song. Among the army men trapped were the figures who were going to lead the bloodless revolution of July 23, 1952, prominently Gamal Abdel Nasser, who arguably was a fan of Umm Kulthum and who would later become the president of Egypt.

Early after the revolution, the Egyptian musicians guild of which she became a member (and eventually president) rejected her because she had sung for the then-deposed King Farouk of Egypt. When Nasser discovered that her songs were forbidden from being aired on the radio, he reportedly said something to the effect of "What are they, crazy? Do you want Egypt to turn against us?"^[4] It was his favor that made the musicians' guild accept her back into the fold; but it is uncertain if that happened. In addition, Umm Kulthum was a dedicated Egyptian patriot since the time of King Farouk. Some claim that Umm Kulthum's popularity helped Nasser's political agenda. For example, Nasser's speeches and other government messages were frequently broadcast immediately after Umm Kulthum's monthly radio concerts. Umm Kulthum was also known for her continuous contributions to charity works for the Egyptian military efforts. Umm Kulthum's monthly concerts took place on the first Thursday of every month and were renowned for their ability to clear the streets of some of the world's most populous cities as people rushed home to tune in.

Her songs deal mostly with the universal themes of love, longing and loss. They are nothing short of epic in scale, with durations measured in hours rather than minutes. A typical Umm Kulthum concert consisted of the performance of two or three songs over a period of three to four hours. In the late 1960s, due to her age and weakened vocal abilities, she began to shorten her performances to two songs over a period of two-and-a-half to three hours. These performances are in some ways reminiscent of the structure of Western opera, consisting of long vocal passages linked by shorter orchestral interludes. However, Umm Kulthum was not stylistically influenced by opera, and she sang solo most of her career.

During the 1930s, her repertoire took the first of several specific stylistic directions. Her songs were virtuosic, as befit her newly trained and very capable voice, and romantic and modern in musical style, feeding the prevailing currents in Egyptian popular culture of the time. She worked extensively with texts by romantic poet Ahmad Rami and composer Mohammad El-Qasabgi, whose songs incorporated European instruments such as the violoncello and double bass, as well as harmony.

Golden age[link]

Umm Kulthum's musical directions in the 1940s and early 1950s and her mature performing style led this period to becoming popularly known as "the golden age" of Umm Kulthum. In keeping with changing popular taste as well as her own artistic inclinations, in the early 1940s, she requested songs from composer Zakariya Ahmad and colloquial poet Mahmud Bayram el-Tunsi cast in styles considered to be indigenously Egyptian. This represented a dramatic departure from the modernist romantic songs of the 1930s, mainly led by Mohammad El-Qasabgi. Umm Kulthum had abstained from singing Qasabgi's music since the early 1940s. Their last stage song collaboration in 1941 was "Raq el Habib" ("The Lover's Heart Softens"), one of her most popular, intricate, and high-caliber songs.

The reason for the separation is not clear. It is speculated that this was due in part to the popular failure of the movie Aida, in which Umm Kulthum sings mostly Qasabgi's compositions, including the first part of the opera. Qasabgi was experimenting with Arabic music, under the influence of classical European music, and was composing a lot for Asmahan, a singer who immigrated to Egypt from Lebanon and was the only serious competitor for Umm Kulthum before Asmahan's tragic death in a car accident in 1944.

Simultaneously, Umm Kulthum started to rely heavily on a younger composer who joined her artistic team a few years earlier: Riad El-Sombati. While Sombati was evidently influenced by Qasabgi in those early years, the melodic lines he composed were more lyrical and more acceptable to Umm Kulthum's audience. The result of collaborations with Rami/Sombati and al-Tunisi/Ahmad was a populist and popular repertoire that had lasting appeal for the Egyptian audience.

Umm Kulthum singing around 1960

In 1946, Umm Kulthum defied all odds by presenting a religious poem in classical Arabic during one of her monthly concerts, "Salou Qalbi" ("Ask My Heart"), written by Ahmad Shawqi and composed by Sombati. The success was immediate. It reconnected Umm Kulthum with her early singing years, defined Sombati's unique style in composing and established him as the best composer of music for poems in classical Arabic, toppling Mohammed Abdel Wahab. Similar poems written by Shawqi were subsequently composed by Sombati and sung by Umm Kulthum, including "Woulida el Houda" ("The Prophet is Born"; 1949), in which she raised eyebrows of royalists by singing a verse that describes the Prophet Mohammad as "the Imam of Socialists".

At the peak of her career, in 1950, Umm Kulthum sang Sombati's composition of excerpts of what Ahmad Rami considered the accomplishment of his career: the translation into classical Arabic of Omar Khayyám's quartets (Rubayyiat el Khayyam). The song included quartets that dealt with both epicurism and redemption. Ibrahim Nagi's poem "Al-Atlal" ("The Ruins"), composed by Sonbati and premiered in 1966, is considered by many^[who?] as Umm Kulthum's best song. While this is debatable, as Umm Kulthum's vocal abilities had regressed considerably by then, the song can be viewed as the last example of genuine Arabic music at a time when even Umm Kulthum had started to compromise by singing Western-influenced pieces composed by her old rival Mohammed Abdel Wahab.

The duration of Umm Kulthum's songs in performance was not fixed, but varied based on the level of emotive interaction between the singer and her audience and Umm Kulthum's own mood for creativity. An improvisatory technique, which was typical of old classical Arabic singing, and which she wonderfully executed for as long as she could have (both her regressing vocal abilities with age and the increased Westernization of Arabic music became an impediment to this art), was to repeat a single line or stance over and over, subtly altering the emotive emphasis and intensity and exploring one or various musical modal scales (maqām) each time to bring her audiences into a euphoric and ecstatic state.^{[citation needed]} For example, the available live performances (about 30) of Ya Zalemni, one of her most popular songs, varied in length from 45 to 90 minutes, depending on both her creative mood for improvisations and the audience request for more repetitions, illustrating the dynamic relationship between the singer and the audience as they fed off each other's emotional energy.

The spontaneous creativity of Umm Kulthum as a singer is most impressive when, upon listening to these many different renditions of the same song over a time span of five years (1954–1959), the listener is offered a totally unique and different experience. This intense, highly personalized relationship was undoubtedly one of the reasons for Umm Kulthum's tremendous success as an artist. Worth noting though that the length of a performance did not necessarily reflect either its quality or the improvisatory creativity of Umm Kulthum. Some of her best performances were 25-45 minutes in duration, such as the three available renditions, including the commercial version of El Awwila Fi'l Gharam ("First in Love"), and Ana Fi Intizarak ("I am waiting for you"), (commercial and 3-3-1955 performance). On the other hand, her songs as of the mid-1960s would extend sometimes over a duration of two hours (premiere of Enta Omri, Enta el Hobb, etc.); however, the repetitions, mostly executed upon the request of the audience, were often devoid of creative musical improvisations and limited to vocal colorful variations on a syllable, letter or word.

Around 1965, Umm Kulthum started cooperating with composer Mohammed Abdel Wahab. Her first song composed by Abdel Wahab, "Enta Omri" (You are my Life"), was considered the "summit meeting". Several beautiful songs composed by Abdel Wahab followed, such as "Amal Hayati" ("The Hope of my Life"), "Fakkarouni" ("They reminded Me"), and others.

Umm Kulthum also sang for composers Mohammad El Mougi and Sayyed Mikkawi.

Legacy[link]

Monument to Umm Kulthum in Zamalek, Cairo. It is located on the site of the former house of the singer.

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Umm Kulthum has been a significant influence on a number of musicians, both in the Arab World and beyond. Among others, Jah Wobble has claimed her as a significant influence on his work. Bob Dylan has been quoted as saying, "She's great. She really is. Really great."^[5][6] Maria Callas, Jean-Paul Sartre, Marie Laforêt, Salvador Dalí, Nico, Bono, Farin Urlaub, and Led Zeppelin are also known to be admirers of Kulthum's music.^{[citation needed]} Youssou N'Dour, a fan of hers since childhood, recorded his 2004 album Egypt with an Egyptian orchestra in homage to her legacy.^[7] One of her best-known songs, "Enta Omri", has been the basis of many reinterpretations, including one 2005 collaborative project involving Israeli and Egyptian artists.

She was referred to as the Lady by Charles de Gaulle and is regarded as the Incomparable Voice by Maria Callas. Umm Kulthum is remembered in Egypt, the Middle East, and the Arab world as one of the greatest singers and musicians to have ever lived. It is difficult to accurately measure her vocal range at its peak, as most of her songs were recorded live, and she was careful not to strain her voice due to the extended length of her songs. Even today, she has retained a near-mythical status among young Egyptians. She is also notably popular in Israel among Jews (of Mizrahi/Arab background) and Arabs alike, and her records continue to sell about a million copies a year. In 2001, the Egyptian government opened the Kawkab al-Sharq (Star of the East) Museum in the singer's memory. Housed in a pavilion on the grounds of Cairo's Manesterly Palace, the collection includes a range of Umm Kulthum's personal possessions, including her trademark sunglasses and scarves, along with photographs, recordings, and other archival material.^[8]

Voice[link]

Kulthum had a contralto vocal range.^[9] Her ability and capability to sing every single Arabic scale made her one of only five women in the history of the Arab world to be able to do this, along with Asmahan, Fairouz, Sabah, and Thekra.^{[citation needed]}

Selected discography[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

References[link]

Sources[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Umm Kulthum

• Biography at Allmusic
• Umm Kulthoum at krwetatnt.net
• The Star of the East at Østfold College, Halden, Norway from almashriq.hiof.no
• List of recordings in chronological and alphabetical order from elmandjra.org