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Contribution to the Development of Nations 2014
Dr. Saeed Abdullah Al Soyan
Saudi Arabia
Professor Dr. Al Soyan is a Saudi academic and veteran researcher who holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology and a master’s degree in anthropology from the USA’s University of Northern Illinois and received a Ph.D. in anthropology, folklore and Oriental Studies from the University of California at Berkeley.
Dr. Al Soyan began his career as an assistant professor at King Saud University and then worked as a supervisor at the university’s Folklore Museum in the Faculty of Arts. He served as Chairman of the social studies department, until 1989, when he received a scholarship from Germany’s University of Erlangen-Nurnberg to conduct research and interview specialists in Oriental studies.
In 2003, he returned to work at King Saud University where he was promoted to a professor a position he still holds.
During his prosperous academic career, Dr. Al Soyan has worked on a number of important projects, including the collection of Nabati poetry from oral sources, a project funded by the research center at the Faculty of Arts at the University of King Saud. He has also worked on a documentary about King Abdulaziz Al-Saud, and the traditional culture of Saudi Arabia.
Dr. Al Soyan has a number of books published on the history and indexing of Nabati poetry and oral traditions, along with many scientific papers and articles in Arabic and English.