Arabic short story

With the spread of the printing press in Egypt and the Levant by the early 19th century,^[1] Egyptian, Lebanese and Syrian newspapers and magazines increased the publication of Arabic short stories and sections of original or translated novels, influenced by the Western world. During that time, Arab writers referred to this type of creative writing as Riwaya (novel), Qissah (story), or Hikayah (tale) to denote more specific types of what is known today as modern Arabic novels and short stories.