Simin Behbahani

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Simin Behbahani
سیمین بهبهانی
Simin Behbahani
Born
Simin Khalili
سیمین خلیلی

(1927-06-20)20 June 1927
Died19 August 2014(2014-08-19) (aged 87)
NationalityIranian
Occupation(s)Poet, writer
Spouse(s)Hassan Behbahani (1946–1970, divorced)
Manouchehr Koshyar (1971–2002, his death)
ChildrenAli (b. 1948)
Parent(s)Abbas Khalili (Father)
Fakhr-e Ozma Arghun (Mother)

Simin Beh'bahāni[1] (Persian: سیمین بهبهانی) (June 20, 1927 - August 19, 2014) was an Iranian writer and poet. She was Iran's national poet and an icon to Iranian literature. She was called the lioness of Iran.[2] She was nominated twice for the Nobel Prize in Literature, and "received many literary awards around the world."[3]

Behbahani was hospitalized in Tehran on 6 August 2014. She was in a state of coma until her death thirteen days later on 19 August 2014, aged 87.

Works[change | change source]

  • The Broken Lute [Seh-tar-e Shekasteh, 1951]
  • Footprint [Ja-ye Pa, 1954]
  • Chandelier [Chelcheragh, 1955]
  • Marble [Marmar 1961]
  • Resurrection [Rastakhiz, 1971]
  • A Line of Speed and Fire [Khatti ze Sor'at va Atash, 1980]
  • Arzhan Plain [Dasht-e Arzhan, 1983]
  • Paper Dress [Kaghazin Jameh, 1992]
  • A Window of freedom [Yek Daricheh Azadi, 1995]
  • Collected Poems [Tehran 2003]
  • Maybe It's the Messiah [Shayad ke Masihast, Tehran 2003] Selected Poems, translated by Ismail Salami
  • A Cup of Sin, Selected poems, translated by Farzaneh Milani and Kaveh Safa

Awards[change | change source]

  • 1998 Human Rights Watch Hellman-Hammet Grant
  • 1999 Carl von Ossietzky Medal
  • 2006 Norwegian Authors' Union Freedom of Expression Prize
  • 2009 mtvU Poet Laureate[4]
  • 2013 Janus Pannonius Poetry Prize[5]

References[change | change source]

  1. Simin (سیمین) is the Persian word for Silvery, Lustrous or Fair, and Behbahani (بهبهانی), From Behbahan, refers to the people of Behbahan, a city in the Khuzestan Province of Iran.
  2. Fatemeh Keshavarz, Banishing the Ghosts of Iran, The Chronicle Review of Higher Education, Vol. 53, No. 45, p. B6 (13 July 2007). [1] Archived 2007-09-30 at the Wayback Machine
  3. Tehran Halts Travel By Poet Called 'Lioness Of Iran' by Mike Shuster, NPR, 17 March 2010
  4. "Reality TV Shows, Celebrity News, Pop Culture & Music Videos".
  5. Annamária Apró (26 September 2013). "Janus Pannonius Prize goes to Simin Behbahani". Hungarian Literature Online. Retrieved 30 September 2013.

Other websites[change | change source]

Media related to Simin Behbahani at Wikimedia Commons