A much-needed work which will undoubtedly enrich the Arabic library and will become a valuable reference for any student, scholar, and researcher of the Arabic language and culture. This book is the harvest of years of research and documentation by the author, and I am privileged to have accompanied him as a friend throughout a part of his rewarding journey. Dr. El-Barouki is a scholar in his own right and has dedicated some twenty years to the completion of this treasured reference book. He is certainly qualified to lead the way in promoting this genre for all those interested in a better understanding of Arabic idioms and their intricate nuances, critical importance, and meanings.
George Nicolas El-Hage, Ph.D.
Professor of Arabic and Comparative Literature
Foazi Y. El-Barouki was born in Damascus, Syria. He received his initial college and university-level education in Cairo, then moved to the United States where he earned his master's degree at Temple University, Philadelphia, PA., and his doctorate degree from the University of San Francisco, CA.
Forty-four years of Dr. El-Barouki's professional experience is foxed on foreign language teaching, curriculum development, testing, managing departments and evaluating faculty, at the following US educational institutions: University of Wisconsin-Madison; Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Monterey Peninsula College; Monterey Institute of International Studies and Language Institute-Foreign Language Center, Monterey, California. He retired as Professor in 2017.
During his lifetime, Dr. El-Barouki has published articles and studies on topics in the fields of literature, cross-cultural communication, language and history in "Our World," "Our Heritage," "DOCO Newsletter," and "Dialog on Language Instruction." He is married to Ghufran El-Barouki, and they have three sons and four grandchildren. He lives a quiet life as a retiree in Marina, CA. His favorite hobbies are writing and taking walks.