Syrian literature

Syrian literature is modern fiction written or orally performed in Arabic by writers from Syria since the independence of the Syrian Arab Republic in 1946. It is part of the historically and geographically wider Arabic literature. Literary works by Syrian authors in the historical region of Syria since the Umayyad era are considered general Arabic literature. In its historical development since the beginnings of compilations of the Quran in the 7th century and later written records, the Arabic language has been considered a geographically comprehensive, standardized written language due to the religious or literary works written in classical Arabic. This sometimes differs considerably from the individual regionally spoken variants, such as Syrian, Egyptian or Moroccan spoken forms of Arabic.

In Arabic, bilad ash-sham refers to the region of the eastern Mediterranean known in Europe as the Levant. The individual areas of this region have close historical, geographical and cultural similarities and during the Ottoman Empire there were only administrative divisions. Especially between the larger cities such as Beirut, Tripoli, Aleppo and Damascus, there has been active cultural exchange both in the past and present.

The modern states of Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel as well as the Palestinian autonomous areas only came into being in the mid-20th century. Therefore, Syrian literature has since been referred to by literary scholarship as the national literature of the Syrian Arab Republic, as well as the works created in Arabic by Syrian writers in the diaspora. This literature has been influenced by the country's political history, the literature of other Arabic-speaking countries and, especially in its early days, by French literature.

Thematically, modern Syrian literature has often been inspired by social and political conditions during the different stages of the country's recent history. Other prominent themes have been everyday life in major cities including Damascus and Aleppo, but also in villages and smaller towns, reflecting the writer's own experience. Especially for women writers, the gender-specific and often dire conditions of life for women have been a central theme. Apart from these specific social settings, general human experiences such as love, sexuality, isolation and existentialist themes have been expressed.

Apart from major literary genres such as Arabic poetry, prose and theatrical works, contemporary Syrian literature also encompasses literature for children and young readers, as well as oral literature and subgenres such as science fiction, including utopian and dystopian fiction.