Naguib Mahfouz (Arabic: نجيب محفوظ, romanized: Najīb Maḥfūẓ, IPA: [næˈɡiːb mɑħˈfuːzˤ]; 11 December 1911 – 30 August 2006) was an Egyptian writer who won the 1988 Nobel Prize for Literature.[1] He is regarded as one of the first contemporary writers of Arabic literature, along with Taha Hussein, to explore themes of existentialism.[2] He published 34 novels, over 350 short stories, dozens of movie scripts, hundreds of op-ed columns for Egyptian newspapers, and five plays over a 70-year career. Many of his works have been made into Egyptian and foreign films.