Afifa Iskandar
Afifa Iskandar | |
|---|---|
Afifa Iskandar at an Alshaab Hall party in Baghdad in the 1950s | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Afifa Iskandar Estefan 10 December 1921 |
| Origin | Armenian |
| Died | 21 October 2012 (aged 90) |
| Cause of death | Cancer |
| Genres | Iraqi maqam |
| Occupations | Singer, actress |
| Instrument | Vocal |
| Years active | 1935–2011 |
| Labels | Shahrora, monologist |
Afifa Iskandar Estefan (Arabic: عفيفة إسكندر إصطيفان, 10 December 1921[1] – 21 October 2012) was an Iraqi singer and actress, active from the mid-1930s to the first decade of the 21st century.
She was considered one of the best female singers in Iraqi history. She was nicknamed the "Iraqi Blackbird".[2]
Biography
Afifa Iskandar was born in Mosul to an Armenian father and a Greek mother.
She lived in Baghdad, and started singing at the age of five. At her first party in 1935,[3] she sang Iraqi maqam music.
At the age of twelve, she married an Armenian man, named Estafan Iskandar, and took his last name.
Iskandar also worked as an actress and appeared in many productions.[4]
In 1938, she traveled to Egypt to work with Badia Masabni, Taheyya Kariokka, and Mohamed Abdel Wahab.
Iskandar died of cancer on 21 October 2012 in Baghdad.[5]
Tribute
On 10 December 2019, Google celebrated her 98th birthday with a Google Doodle.[6]
Singles
Iskandar sang nearly 1,500 songs.[7] These include:
- "Ya aqqid alhajibayn"[8]
- "Ikhlas meni"[8]
- "Ya sokari ya assali"[9]
- "Ared Allah yebain hobty behom"[9]
- "Qaleb qaleb'"[7]
- "Jani alhlo labs sobhyat aledd"[9]
- "Nem wa sadek sadri"[9]
- "Msafren"[9]
- "Qsma"[9]
- "Helal eid"[9]
References
- ^ ""شحرورة العراق"... تعيش أوضاعاً صحية مأسوية". Alrai Media. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
- ^ "Afifa iskandar عفيفة اسكندر – MP3 Écouter et Télécharger GRATUITEMENT en format MP3". Maghreb Space. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
- ^ "ما لايعرفه الناس عن عفيفة إسكندر – ملاحق جريدة المدى اليومية 9.ز". 23 September 2015. Archived from the original on 29 September 2015. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
- ^ Taleb, Omaral. "موسوعة أعلام الموصل في القرن العشرين للدكتور عمر محمد الطالب / حرف العين". Archived from the original on 27 May 2016. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
- ^ الدباغ, أحمد. "في ذكرى وفاتها.. شحرورة العراق عفيفة إسكندر جالست الملوك وماتت وحيدة منسية". الجزيرة نت (in Arabic). Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- ^ "Afifa Iskandar's 98th Birthday". Google. 10 December 2019.
- ^ a b "Google Honours Afifa Iskandar – But Who Was She?". CairoScene. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
- ^ a b Aidasani, Naina (12 December 2019). "Today's Google Doodle celebrates this Iraqi singer". Mashable ME. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Google Doodle Celebrates Affifa Iskandar's Birthday | Sada Elbalad". see.news. Retrieved 30 April 2023.