RIYADH, 28 December 2005 — Two Arab professors from Egypt and Morocco shared the 2006 King Faisal International Prize for Arabic Language and Literature, while two mathematicians — one each from the UK and India — were declared co-winners of the prize for science (mathematics).
An American professor from Harvard Medical School landed the prize for medicine. The award for Islamic studies (The Origins of Islamic Jurisprudence) was withheld, as none of the nominees met the criteria laid down by the selection committee.
KFIP Secretary-General Abdullah Al-Othaimeen announced the names of the award winners at a function held at Al-Khozama Center last night.
King Faisal International Prize laureates have earned numerous prestigious national and international prizes for their efforts. In some cases, King Faisal International Prize has preceded other international awards, including the Nobel Prize, thus validating the rigorous and unbiased selection process. Twelve KFIP winners have become Nobel Prize laureates.
Speaking to reporters, Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, director general of the King Faisal Foundation, said the prizes would be distributed to the winners on Feb. 18 after receiving approval from higher authorities.
He stressed the need for bridging the gap between the Islamic world and others instead of sowing division and creating hatred between different cultures. “We are descendants of the same parents — Adam and Eve — and God chose us (all people) to build this universe. This noble aspiration could be realized only if we show love, cooperation and the spirit of international brotherhood in our mutual dealings,” he observed.
Prince Khaled thanked all those who participated in the evaluation of nominations from all over the world. “Despite the fact that 12 of KFIP laureates went on to become Nobel Prize winners, the award has not yet reached the same stature as the Nobel Prize,” he pointed out.
Asked if the foundation would consider awarding a prize for promoting rapprochement among the followers of different faiths, he said it was a good suggestion, which would be submitted to the KFF secretariat. In reply to a question on instituting a prize for environmental protection, Prince Khaled said the suggestion would also be presented to the secretariat.
Saudi Arabia’s Sheikh Saleh ibn Abdul Rahman Al-Hussayn, head of the Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques Affairs, and Kuwaiti Sheikh Yusuf ibn Jassim ibn Muhammad Al-Haji, president of the International Islamic Charitable Organization, were declared joint winners of the service to Islam prize on Saturday. Over the past 28 years, a total of 34 scholars from 18 different countries have won the Prize for Service to Islam.
Each of the five prize categories consists of a certificate, hand-written in Arabic calligraphy, summarizing the laureate’s work; a commemorative 24 carat, 200-gram gold medal, uniquely cast for each prize; and a cash award of SR750,000 ($200,000). The co-winners in any category share the monetary grant. The prizes will be awarded during a ceremony in Riyadh under the auspices of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.
According to the citation, Tammam Hassan Omar, emeritus professor at the Dar Al-Uloom College of Cairo University, was named the co-winner of the prize in recognition of his efforts over the past 50 years to establish modern Arabic linguistics. His endeavor has been reinforced by his profound knowledge of Arabic language heritage and the principles and methods of modern linguistic analyses.
The other co-winner, professor Abdelkader Fassi Fehri, director of the Institute for Study and Research of Arabization and professor of Arabic and Comparative Linguistics at Mohammad V University in Morocco, shared the prize in recognition of his tireless quest to reconstruct the classical Arabic linguistic theory in the light of modern linguistic concepts.
The King Faisal Prize for Medicine was given to American professor Michael Anthony Gimbrone, Jr., professor of pathology at Harvard Medical School and chairman of the Department of Pathology at Brigham and Wowen’s Hospital in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the field of vascular biology. These studies have contributed significantly to a better understanding of the vascular endothelium and have led to novel strategies of diagnosis and treatment.
In the mathematics category, the UK’s professor Simon Kirwan Donaldson, president of the Institute of Mathematical Sciences and professor of mathematics at Imperial College, London, and India’s professor M.S. Narasimhan, honorary fellow at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in Bombay, India, shared the prize for their seminal contributions to theories which have strengthened the links between mathematics and physics, and helped provide a rigorous foundation for physical theories. This has helped establish strong ties with the formulation of quantum chromodynamics for which the King Faisal Prize in physics was given last year.
Meanwhile, the King Faisal Foundation has announced that the topic for the 2007 King Faisal International Prize for Islamic Studies is “Muslims’ contribution to pure or applied sciences”. The other topics are: Ancient Arabic rhetoric (Arabic language and literature), and prostrate cancer (medicine). The deadline for nomination is April 1, 2006. The topic for science (chemistry) has not yet been announced.
Eugene Braunwald, co-winner of the 2002 King Faisal International Prize for Medicine, has observed that these awards are particularly noteworthy this year because they come at a time which has been so unsettling for people all over the world, especially for people in this region “as well as those in my country, the United States. These prizes, under the auspices of the King Faisal Foundation, celebrate activities that unite persons of good will everywhere. They celebrate efforts to advance civilization and human well-being through progress in the arts and sciences.”
