The Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre (ALC) at the Department of Culture and Tourism — Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) has signed a strategic agreement with Brill Publishing House to publish an Arabic journal entitled 'Al Markaz': The Journal of Arab Studies, with the deal agreed at the 30th edition of the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair (ADIBF), which is currently running at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre. The journal will be the first to be fully published in Arabic by Brill, one of the most prestigious European publishing houses working with Arabic language, literature and culture, with a focus on various historical and critical issues as well as Arabic book reviews. The partnership between the two entities will include the creation of a peer-reviewed journal, which will focus on topics covering the Arabic language, literature and culture from the pre-Islamic period to the present day, and include critical reviews of books and events concerning Arab studies. Readers will be able to gain deep insight into subjects including classical Arabic language, spoken dialects, written and oral Arabic heritage, poetry and prose, as well as intermediate and comparative studies. There will be two editions of the journal, with the first slated for publishing in January 2022, followed by the second in June 2022. The agreement stipulates the publishing of the content both in print form and online. Dr. Ali Bin Tamim, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Centre for Arabic Language, said: "Brill is one of the established European publishing institutions, with a long history of publishing academic journals, and we are delighted to be collaborating with this prestigious institution. "We are looking forward to working with them as we focus on Arab literature and culture covering more than 14 centuries. This initiative will contribute to the efforts of the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre and to achieving our goals of enhancing the presence of the Arabic language in various fields." Mouza Al Shamsi, acting executive director of the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre and director of ADIBF, said: "The publication of the Journal of Arab Studies is the result of our collaboration efforts alongside Brill Publishing House, which has become an inspirational partner in our programs. We hope to hold more important initiatives with major institutions in the near future that serve the vision, mission and objectives of the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre." — SG
