Mostafa El-Abbadi's 94th Birthday

Today's Doodle celebrates the 94th birthday of Mostafa El-Abbadi, a prominent Egyptian historian and professor of Greco-Roman studies. His work helped create the second great library of Alexandria. 

El-Abbadi was born in Cairo, Egypt on this day in 1928. His father was the founder of the College of Letters and Arts at the University of Alexandria, which sparked a young El-Abbadi's interest in academia. At age 22, he graduated with honors from the University of Alexandria and the Egyptian government awarded him a scholarship to attend the University of Cambridge. El-Abbadi studied under distinguished historians while working toward his doctorate in ancient history.

After completing his degree, El-Abbadi returned to the University of Alexandria where he worked as a lecturer and later as a professor of Greco-Roman studies. He was especially interested in the Library of Alexandria, the first universal library built in ancient Egypt that held an estimated half-million books from a variety of countries and languages. El-Abbadi became a leading authority on the topic and gave lectures on the Library of Alexandria around the world. He documented his findings and research in the critically-acclaimed book, Life and Fate of the Ancient Library of Alexandria.

In his lectures he often encouraged a modern recreation of the great universal library. El-Abbadi convinced the Egyptian government and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to support his project. After nearly 15 years of conception and construction, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina opened its doors in 2002. The library is home to over eight million books, seven floors, four museums, and a planetarium! It also functions as a research institute that’s open to the public.

El-Abbadi served as president of the Archaeological Society of Alexandria and received the Order of the Nile, Egypt's highest state of honor.

Happy 94th birthday, Mostafa El-Abbadi!