Al-Hilal: The Oldest Periodical in the Arab World

According to the Iran Book News Agency (IBNA), the 19th narrative from the series “Exploring the Treasury of the National Library of Iran” is dedicated to introducing the Arabic-language literary and cultural monthly “Al-Hilal,” one of the oldest periodicals in the Arab world, whose publication began in Egypt in 1892.

The “Exploring the Treasury of the National Library of Iran” series aims to introduce prominent and sometimes lesser-known resources from the treasury of manuscripts, printed materials, and periodicals of the organization. Each installment presents one of the outstanding works from this collection to the audience. The 19th narrative of this series, published by the Library Deputy of the organization, is dedicated to introducing the historical periodical “Al-Hilal.”

“Al-Hilal” is an Arabic-language literary and cultural monthly whose publication history dates back to 1892 AD (1310 AH). It is recognized as one of the oldest literary and cultural periodicals in the Arab world. This magazine was founded in Egypt by the initiative of Jorji Zaydan (1861–1914), a Lebanese historian, novelist, and journalist. Alongside “Al-Muqtataf,” it became one of the pioneering and high-circulation periodicals in Arab countries, playing a significant role in establishing the new literary movement in Egypt and other Arab and Islamic lands.

The content of this monthly is organized into several distinct sections: a section titled “Famous Events and Great Men” introduces important events and prominent figures with images; a section dedicated to “Articles” includes writings by the publisher, magazine managers, and contemporary writers and thinkers; the “Narratives” section recounts customs and events of the East with a historical and literary approach, far from purely journalistic aspects; in the “Monthly History” section, events of the previous month across the world, especially Egypt and Syria, are briefly reflected; and finally, a selection of news, opinions, suggestions, acknowledgments, and miscellaneous materials is included.

Three historical reasons are cited for naming this periodical “Al-Hilal”: a symbolic reference to the Ottoman crescent as the emblem of the then-government, an emphasis on the monthly publication of the magazine, and the optimism of the founders regarding the gradual growth of the periodical until it shines like a “full moon” in the sky of Arab culture.

The periodical “Al-Hilal” (document number 1012068) is preserved in the periodicals repository of the National Library of Iran. Researchers of press history, contemporary Arab literature, and intellectual developments in the Arab world can benefit from its content by referring to this treasury.