Najat Abdul Samad

Najat Abdul Samad
Najat Abdul Samad
Born	1967; As-Suwayda, Syria
Occupation(s)	Novelist, poet, gynecologist
Years active	2010–present
Known for	La Ma' Yarweeha (No Water to Quench Their Thirst)

Adapted from the English Wikipedia article Najat Abdul Samad, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 1 December 2025

Najat Abdul Samad, alternatively spelled Najat Abed Alsamad (, born in 1967 in As-Suwayda, Syria), is a Syrian novelist, poet, and practicing gynecologist. She is the author of multiple novels, notably La Ma' Yarweeha (No Water to Quench Their Thirst), which won the 2018 Katara Prize for Arabic Novel and was subsequently translated into German. She currently lives in Berlin, Germany.

Education and career

Originating from As-Suwayda's Druze community, Abdul Samad pursued medical training in gynecology and obstetrics at the University of Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, before obtaining a degree in Arabic Language and Literature from Damascus University.

In a 2017 interview, she discussed her work treating women subjected to various forms of violence during the Syrian conflict. She witnessed firsthand the severe injuries sustained by patients in Deraa amid the early stages of the uprising following military assaults.

Her first novel, Bilad al-Manafi (Lands of Exile) (2010), delves into the hardships faced by young refugees coping with displacement and difficulties securing employment. The short story collection Syrian Guernicas reflects on war’s effects on families, focusing particularly on women who shoulder increased responsibilities due to the absence or loss of men. Another anthology, In the Tenderness of War, draws upon her experiences as a gynecologist and humanitarian volunteer to reveal the personal stories behind conflict headlines, providing stark portrayals of trauma and violence.

Both Lands of Exile and No Water to Quench Their Thirst portray the challenging landscape and social fragmentation of As-Suwayda province, shaped by historical unrest dating back to Ottoman times. In 2018, La Ma' Yarweeha received the Katara Prize for published Arab novels and was translated into German in 2023 under the title Kein Wasser stillt ihren Durst. The novel centers on a woman’s defiance against Druze societal traditions, employing oral storytelling to illuminate women’s struggles within patriarchal systems. Abdul Samad’s third novel, The Pendulum Thread, published in 2022, addresses themes surrounding social responsibility and caregiving.

In addition to her original works, Abdul Samad has co-translated Mikhail Bulgakov’s short story A Young Doctor's Notebook from Russian into Arabic.

Critical reception

Selections of Abdul Samad’s work, translated by Syrian scholar Ghada Alatrash—Assistant Professor at Alberta University of the Arts, Canada—have been featured in the Los Angeles Times, with discussions broadcast on Public Radio International and Studio 360.

In January 2016, PBS NewsHour characterized her writing as "poetic and rich in imagery," emphasizing "the urgency of life in Syria and families’ efforts to maintain stability amid war."

Ghada Alatrash’s 2020 analysis explored Abdul Samad’s depiction of war and displacement within the Syrian diaspora, highlighting her distinctive perspective on diasporic narratives through contributions to Lebanese media outlet An-Nahar.

American attorney and diplomat Beth Van Schaack cited Abdul Samad's poem When I Am Overcome by Weakness in her 2020 publication Imagining Justice for Syria. This poem was also showcased by Al Jazeera as part of a contemporary wave of Syrian poetry emphasizing a unified Syrian identity beyond religious affiliations.

In June 2021, literary translator Sawad Hussain recommended translating Abdul Samad’s short story collection In The Tenderness of War, describing it as a compelling testimony that uncovers "the humans behind the headlines" and serves as "a form of personal therapy."

German author Volker Kaminski reviewed No Water to Quench Their Thirst, acknowledging its intricate narrative while praising it as "a grandiose, highly literary novel." In spring 2024, the literary institution LitProm selected it among the seven finest recently translated works into German.

Selected Publications

Bilad Al Manafi (Lands of Exile), novel, Dar al-Rayyis, 2010
Ghornikat Suria (Syrian Guernicas), collection of short stories, 2013
Fi Hananya Al Harb (In the Tenderness of War), short story compilation, Madarek Publishing House, 2015
La Ma' Yarweeha (No Water to Quench Their Thirst), novel, 2016
Manazel al-Awtan (Home of Nations), Bayt al-Muwaten al-Souri, Beirut, 2018
Khayṭ al-bandūl (The Pendulum Thread), novel, Dar Nofal, Beirut, 2022

Honors and Recognitions

2018: Awarded the Katara Prize for Arabic Novels in the published novels category for La Ma' Yarweena
2021: Recipient of the Translation Prize in Fiction
2024: Included in LitProm’s list of recently best-translated works for the German edition of the aforementioned novel

Academic Sources

Abed Alsamad, Najat; Alatrash, Ghada (2020). "Exploring Syrian Diasporic Identities via Selected Syrian Literary Texts," Journal of Contemporary Issues in Education, 15(2), pp. 3–22.
Alatrash, Ghada (2016). Stripped to the Bone: Portraits of Syrian Women (Women of Syria),, Petra Books, pp. 27–28.
Abed Alsamad, Najat (2016). "If" (translated by G. Alatrash). In E. Strang, N. Hunt & C. Chapman (Eds.), Dark Mountain (10th edition), The Dark Mountain Project.

External Resources