Leila Aboulela

Sudanese writer and playwright · Sudan · On the map · Writers · Born 1964 · age 62

Leila Fuad Aboulela is a fiction writer, essayist, and playwright of Sudanese origin based in Aberdeen, Scotland. She grew up in Khartoum, Sudan, and in 1990 moved to Scotland, where she began her literary career.

Leila Aboulela is read about 33 times a day, in 28 languages.

A typical day, 30 days to 13 November 2026

The middle day of the days counted, so one week of news cannot move it. The line under it is the last 115 days, one point a day.

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A life in dates

2023“I find myself excited about reading African historical fiction more than other genres because it feels to me that this is actually new and exciting.”In their wordsInterview (2023)Read the whole statement

“I just want people to say to me, these are real characters. Then I’m happy. It doesn’t matter whether it’s sympathetic or not.”In their wordsInterview (2023)Read the whole statement

“I wish I could say she looked like her old self. Suffice to say she looked well. None of us look like our old selves. War is not kind to a woman’s beauty.”In their wordsRiver Spirit (2023)Read the whole statement

“Free, heart tight, expectant, in love, she was not sure what her position would be in the household, not sure about much except that she did not want to be anywhere else”In their wordsRiver Spirit (2023)Read the whole statement

Fellow of the Royal Society of LiteratureAward2020“if you want to produce art, you want it to be more than defensive - you want it to be more than a response, it must be structured in such a way that it is self-supporting.”In their wordsInterview (2020)Read the whole statement

“Fiction is fueled by love and anger - my love for my father and his own love for his family and country fueled Lyrics Alley.”In their wordsInterview with World Literature Today (2019)Read the whole statement

2018OkayAfrica 100 WomenAward2000Caine PrizeAward1964Born

Also in Deutsch

Media & music

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In their own words 4

Leila Aboulela

4 statements, newest first

When it’s fair trade, it’s blessed, and when it’s unfair it’s an injustice. That is the way of the world. Everyone wants something and they barter to get it.
2023 · River Spirit (2023), Own words
Keep your faith within your heart even if your tongue is forced to say otherwise.
2023 · River Spirit (2023), Own words
In my mid-twenties, I moved from Sudan to Scotland. The trauma of that move was the catalyst that launched my journey as a writer.
2020 · Interview with World Literature Today (2019), Own words

Wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0

Awards

Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature2023

OkayAfrica 100 Women2018

Caine Prize2000

About this person

As of 2023, Aboulela has published six novels and several short stories, which have been translated into fifteen languages. Her most popular novels, Minaret (2005) and The Translator (1999) both feature the stories of Muslim women in the UK and were longlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award and Orange Prize. Aboulela's works have been included in publications such as Harper's Magazine, Granta, The Washington Post and The Guardian. BBC Radio has adapted her work extensively and broadcast a number of her plays, including The Insider, The Mystic Life and the historical drama The Lion of Chechnya. The five-part radio serialization of her 1999 novel The Translator was short-listed for the Race In the Media Award (RIMA).

Country

Sudan