Across the fair’s halls, publishers are presenting tens of thousands of new titles spanning literature, history, thought, science and other fields.
BAGHDAD
Books, ideas and cultural exchange have taken centre stage in Baghdad as the 27th Baghdad International Book Fair brings together more than 600 publishing houses and agencies from across the Arab world and beyond, in what organisers say is the largest international participation in the fair’s history.
The fair, which opened on September 2 and runs until September 12, has drawn publishers and cultural institutions from 28 countries, including 17 Arab and 11 non-Arab states, according to Abdul Wahab al-Radi, head of the organising committee.
Across the fair’s halls, publishers are presenting tens of thousands of new titles spanning literature, history, thought, science and other fields, while a packed programme of cultural events and discussions is bringing authors, intellectuals, researchers and readers together.
Radi said the strong turnout by Iraqi visitors reflected continued enthusiasm for books and newly published works from Iraq, the wider Arab world and internationally.
The response, he said, demonstrated the importance Iraqi readers attach to reading and culture, while carrying a wider message beyond the fair’s exhibition halls.
“The fair also carries another message to the world: that Iraq is well and Baghdad is well,” he said.
The current edition features around six or seven panel discussions and cultural events each day, alongside exhibitions of recent literary and intellectual publications and initiatives designed to encourage reading and cultural dialogue.
Among them is the “I Read” initiative, one of the highlights of this year’s programme, which organisers say reflects the fair’s emphasis on placing books and reading at the heart of public life.
The scale of participation has also underscored the fair’s growing role as a meeting point for the region’s publishing and intellectual communities.
Iraq’s Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities said the event brings together publishers, writers, intellectuals and readers, while providing space for exchanges on publishing, knowledge and culture.
Ministry official Fadhil al-Badrani described the fair as a major cultural gathering, pointing to the breadth of domestic, Arab and international participation and Iraq’s longstanding cultural ties with Arab countries.
Oman highlights shared cultural heritage
The fair has also provided a platform for countries to showcase their own literary and historical heritage, including Oman, whose participation draws on centuries of intellectual and cultural links with Iraq.
Represented by Oman’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth, the Oman Cultural Memory Center and the House of Antiquities, the Omani pavilion features books and publications on the country’s history, culture, literature and thought.
A central feature is an Omani-Iraqi Memory Panel tracing historical links between the two countries through documents and material relating to figures who contributed to their shared intellectual heritage.
Among those highlighted are Imam Jabir bin Zaid, Al Khalil bin Ahmed al Farahidi, Imam Al Rabi’ bin Habib al Farahidi, Abu Al Abbas Muhammad bin Zaid al-Mubarrad and Ibn Duraid.
The panel also includes a poem by Sayyid Badr bin Hilal al Busaidi marking the arrival of the first Omani student delegation from Iraq in 1383 AH, alongside documents charting the development of relations between the two countries.
The Oman Cultural Memory Centre is showcasing its work to document and preserve the country’s national memory through historical sources, documents and artefacts reflecting Oman’s civilisational development.
Omani organisers said the participation offered an opportunity to deepen ties with Arab and international cultural institutions while exchanging expertise in publishing, documentation, heritage preservation and the safeguarding of national memory.
It also gives Omani writers and cultural institutions a direct platform to reach readers, researchers and intellectuals attending the Baghdad fair.
For Iraqi cultural officials, the public response has been equally significant. Hind Kamel, an adviser to the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities, said the large turnout reflected growing awareness of the value of books and culture in Iraqi society.
She said the continued popularity of the fair showed that books retained their place in Iraqi public life and that reading and culture remained central interests for the public.
With its broad international participation, daily programme of discussions and emphasis on both contemporary publishing and historical memory, the Baghdad fair is bringing together the literary and intellectual worlds of Iraq, the wider Arab region and beyond.
