Abd al-Wahhab al-Bayati (December 19, 1926 – August 3, 1999) was an Iraqi Arab poet.

Biography

al-Bayati was born in Baghdad. One of his friends, Ahmed Abdel-Moeti Hegazi, said urban centers of "hotels and institutions, cafés and airports" were actually his temporary residences. He attended Baghdad University, and became a teacher after graduating from Dar Al-Mu'allimin (the Teacher's College) in 1950, the same year that he released his first collection of poems, Mala'ika wa Shayatin (Angels and Devils).

Sufis

Al-Bayati was influenced by the Middle Eastern Sufi figures. One example is a poem by Al-Bayati entitled "A’isha's Mad Lover" in his book, Love Poems on the Seven Gates of the World (1971): "In this context Al-Bayati’s poetry becomes Sufi in default, since he assumes the position as a modernist whose aspirations for an earthy paradise have not materialized."

Works

Original volumes

Translated volumes

Anthologies with only works by Abd al-Wahhab Al-Bayati

Anthologies with works by Abd al-Wahhab Al-Bayati and other poets