Peace Prize of the German Book Trade for Navid Kermani
The German-Iranian Middle Eastern studies expert and author Navid Kermani is to receive the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade.
His works touch upon the fundamental questions of human existence, while his scholarly books explore the Qur’an and Islamic mysticism: the writer Navid Kermani, described as “one of our society’s most important voices” is to be awarded the 2015 Peace Prize of the German Book Trade. In explaining its choice, the Board of Trustees stated that Kermani’s novels, essays and reportage from war-torn areas show “the extent to which he is committed to the dignity of all individuals, but also to garnering respect for all cultures and religions and to fostering an open European society that provides shelter for refugees and space for all humanity”.
Intervention in social debate
Born to Iranian parents in 1967, Navid Kermani grew up in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. By the age of 15, he already began writing for regional newspaper Westfälische Rundschau. After leaving school he read Islamic studies, philosophy and theatre studies at universities in Cologne, Cairo and Bonn. His thesis entitled “God Is Beautiful. The Aesthetic Experience of the Quran” caused quite a stir in the feature pages of German newspapers as well as in the international specialized press. After working for the features section at German daily newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, at the Theater an der Ruhr in Mühlheim and at the Schauspielhaus theatre in Frankfurt, as well as at the Institute for Advanced Study Berlin, Kermani decided in 2003 to work as a freelance writer. Nonetheless, he qualified as a professor of Middle Eastern studies at the University of Bonn in 2005.
As well as writing books and essays, Navid Kermani repeatedly comments on political and social debate in his speeches, lectures and newspaper articles. In particular, he is committed to ensuring that the European project is further developed. He has already won numerous awards for his work, the most important of which is the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade, which is endowed with 25,000 euros. The prize has been awarded since 1950 by the German Publishers and Booksellers Association.
Awarding of the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade on 18 October 2015 at St. Paul’s Church in Frankfurt