S\u00e3o Paulo \u2013 Welcome to a universe of strong men and sweet, sensual women with strong personalities. Crooks, heroes, colonels, workers, mothers, wives, girlfriends, prostitutes. A wide array of characters that became richer and more interesting with the inclusion of Arabs and their descendents in the plots written by Jorge Amado, one of the best known Brazilian writers. And one of the most talented when it came to describing the people and landscapes of his homeland: the state of Bahia, in Northeast Brazil. The author of 32 books, Jorge Amado was the Brazilian novelist that placed immigrants from the Middle East in evidence the most, as was the case with the Syrian Nacib, owner of the Ves\u00favio bar in Gabriela Cravo e Canela<\/i>.<\/p>\n
\u201cJorge Amado gave magnitude and space to the figure of the Arab among us, portraying him as an integral part of our nationality and culture,\u201d explains Ana Ramos, a professor at the School of Languages at the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA). \u201cThe love story between the Syrian immigrant Nacib and the mulatto woman Gabriela charmed readers all over the world,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
According to the director of Funda\u00e7\u00e3o Casa de Jorge Amado (House of Jorge Amado Foundation), in Salvador, the capital of Bahia, Myriam Fraga, Nacib is surely the most famous Arab character created by the writer, but there are other equally important ones, such as Fadul Abdala, in Tocaia Grande<\/i>, and Fuad Maluf, in Farda, Fard\u00e3o e Camisola de Dormir<\/i>. \u201cAs a measure of the author\u2019s fondness for the Arabs, who are often mistaken by the Turkish in Brazil, according to him, we may cite the book A Descoberta da Am\u00e9rica Pelos Turcos<\/i>, featuring unforgettable characters such as Adma, Raduan Murad and Jamil Bechara,\u201d he claims. <\/p>\n
According to Myriam, the writer\u2019s novels have been translated to 49 languages and sold in 55 countries. The foundation\u2019s collection includes Arabic copies of Capit\u00e3es da Areia<\/i>, S\u00e3o Jorge dos Ilh\u00e9us<\/i>, Gabriela Cravo e Canela<\/i>, Seara Vermelha<\/i>, Dona Flor e seus Dois Maridos<\/i>, Farda, Fard\u00e3o e Camisola de Dormir<\/i>, O Cavaleiro da Esperan\u00e7a<\/i>, Tenda dos Milagres<\/i>, Tereza Batista Cansada de Guerra<\/i>, Terras do Sem Fim<\/i>, and Velhos Marinheiros<\/i>.<\/p>\n
The number of works translated into Arabic would not be so high, had Amado not been so close with the community. And where does such affinity come from? \u201cIt stems from friendship ties between the author\u2019s family members and families of Middle Eastern immigrants that settled in Bahia, such as the Nazals, the Adamis, the Medauars and the Soubs\u2019, for instance,\u201d says Ana. \u201cIt is also worth highlighting the description that he makes of the contacts he had since childhood with representatives of the Arab people, through the figure of street vendors, who used to bring dreams and \u201ccivilization\u201d to the cocoa farms, explains the professor.<\/p>\n
It was due to cocoa, by the way, that this group ended up in Bahia, a state that alongside S\u00e3o Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul and Par\u00e1 received the most immigrants, who started arriving in Brazil in the late 19th century. \u201cThe height of the cocoa-based economy boosted trade in the southern region of Bahia, which in turn attracted the Arabs,\u201d explains History professor Augusto Sp\u00ednola. \u201cNow, even in Feira de Santana, in the northeast of the state, there are records of families of Arab origin,\u201d he claims.<\/p>\n
To the History professor and coordinator of the Centre of Documentation and Regional Memory at the State University of Santa Cruz (Uesc), in Ilh\u00e9us, Andr\u00e9 Luiz Rosa Ribeira, the Arabs who settled in Bahia used to work mainly in trade, but some owned land, and others still had strong participations in local politics. Economic activities aside, according to him, the main legacy of Arab presence in the state was cuisine. \u201cYou can eat a kibbeh in any bar in the city of Ilh\u00e9us, the most famous being that of Bar Ves\u00favio, which appears in Gabriela<\/i> and actually existed, and still does until this day in the city,\u201d he explains. \u201cThose immigrants adapted themselves to local culture very fast,\u201d says Andr\u00e9.<\/p>\n
It is precisely this integration that the writer\u2019s literature reflects. \u201cCharacters such as Nacib and Fadul Abdala, another character filled with humour and joy, represent two values that constitute the Brazilian nation, in the author\u2019s opinion: labour and solidarity,\u201d says Ana. \u201cTo the author, the sentiment of national identity is formed through diversity,\u201d she explains. The same diversity that enabled Bahia and Jorge Amado to welcome the Arabs with arms open.<\/p>\n
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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