Ibrahim Mahmoud

A Kurdish-Syrian researcher, writer, and thinker, born in 1956, Ibrahim Mahmoud is an influential intellectual known for his bold and groundbreaking explorations of topics in philosophy, anthropology, literature, history, and cultural criticism. He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from the Faculty of Arts, Damascus University, in 1981. Over the years, Mahmoud has devoted himself to research and writing across diverse fields, with a special focus on the anthropology of the body, societal taboos, and critical studies.

Academic and Professional Background

• Participated in literary and cultural seminars both in Syria and abroad.

• Delivered lectures in European cities during 2005, 2006, and 2009.

• Since 2013, he has lived as a refugee in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, where he works at the Bashkchi Center for Humanitarian Research at the University of Dohuk.

• Contributed to numerous literary and cultural events in Dohuk, Erbil (Hawler), and Sulaymaniyah.

• Published several books during his time in the Kurdistan Region, starting in March 2013.

• His articles and studies have appeared in leading Arab magazines and newspapers such as Al-Maseera, Al-Adab, Aalam Al-Fikr, Al-Wahda, Dirasat Arabiya, Al-Mustaqbal Al-Arabi, Al-Fikr Al-Arabi, Al-Nahj, Al-Safir, Akhbar Al-Adab, Jasad, Al-Ghawoon, Al-Bayan, and Al-Thawra. He has also contributed to numerous online platform.

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Literary Contributions

Ibrahim Mahmoud has published over seventy books in critical, historical, and literary fields, with an emphasis on anthropological studies. He has a reputation for exploring sensitive and unconventional topics, such as gender, sexuality, societal taboos, and the intersections of culture and the body. His works include research, novels, essays, and studies, and he has also written introductions and annotations for French philosophical works, particularly those of Jacques Derrida.

Selected Works

Philosophy, Anthropology, and Critical Studies

1. The Adventure of Structural Logic (Structuralism as It Is), Center for Socialist Studies in the Arab World, Damascus, 1991.

2. The Image of Kurds in Arab Perception After the Gulf War, Lebanese Book Company, Beirut, 1992.

3. Sex in the Qur’an, Riyad Al-Rayyes, London (1st ed. 1994, 2nd ed. 2000), Vision Publishing, Cairo, 2016.

4. Migration to Islam, Dar Al-Fikr, Damascus, 1995.

5. The Kurds in the Winds of History, Kurd Press, Beirut, 1995.

6. Imams and Sorcerers: Searching for Musaylima the Liar and Abdullah bin Saba in History, Riyad Al-Rayyes, London (1996 and later editions).

7. Geography of Pleasures: Sex in Paradise, Riyad Al-Rayyes, Beirut, 1998.

8. The Sacred Sedition: The Mentality of Conflict in the Arab-Islamic State, Riyad Al-Rayyes, Beirut, 1999.

9. The Forbidden Pleasure: Homosexuality in Arab History, Riyad Al-Rayyes, Beirut (1st ed. 2000, 2nd ed. Vision Publishing, Cairo, 2017).

10. Sacred Lust: Astronomical Symbols in Qur’anic Texts, Riyad Al-Rayyes, Beirut, 2000.

Cultural and Anthropological Studies

1. Masks of a Bloodthirsty Society, Dar Al-Hiwar, Latakia, 2001.

2. Nostalgia for Colonialism, Dar Al-Yanabee, Damascus, 2001.

3. The Aesthetics of Silence: On the Origins of the Hidden and Repressed, Center for Civilizational Development, Aleppo, 2002.

4. The Forbidden Desire: Anthology of Censored Texts, Riyad Al-Rayyes, Beirut (2002 and later editions).

5. The Crooked Rib: The Woman and Her Lost Sexual Identity, Riyad Al-Rayyes, Beirut, 2004.

6. The Tribe in Limbo: The Kurds in Arab-Islamic Literature, Riyad Al-Rayyes, Beirut, 2007.

7. The Body Between Shaking the Belly and Shaking the Body, Riyad Al-Rayyes, Beirut, 2009.

Fiction and Literary Works

1. One of Them is Wooing My Wife (Novel), Dar Al-Yanabee, Damascus, 2008.

2. The Mongolian or the Stranger of the Wind (Novel), Dar Al-Yanabee, Damascus, 2009.

3. Animals Recover Their Memory (Short Stories), Klawes, Sulaymaniyah, 2013.

Recent Works

• Islam: A Sexual Introduction, Riyad Al-Rayyes, Beirut, 2013.

• Women in the Game of Men, Dar Tamuz, Damascus, 2018.

• The Arab Aversion to Onions: Study in Linguistic Imaginings, Dar Sutoor, Baghdad, 2019.

• Cane’s Tree Trilogy, Dar Sutoor, Baghdad, 2019:

  - Iraq: One Mother and Many Husbands

  - Syria: Living Under a Stepmother’s Rule

  - Kurdistan: Widow and Warring Brothers

• One Thousand Drops of Blood: A Study in Genocide, Anfal Center, University of Dohuk, 2019.

• The Saintly Yazidi: Biki and Her Long History (Anthropological Study), Lalish Center, Dohuk, 2023.

• The Devil No Longer Lives Among Us: Study in Incest, Al-Khayyat Publications, Washington, D.C. 2023.

• Shakira’s Hips: Study in the Playful Body, KHAYAT Publications, Washington, 2023.

• Adam’s Confessions: Expelled from Paradise (Novel), KHAYAT Publications, Washington D.C., 2023.