Background
Qustaki al-Himsi was born on February 4, 1858 in Aleppo. Al-Himsi lost his father when he was 15 years old. He was raised by his mother Sousan Dallal in a highly educated community.
Qustaki al-Himsi was born on February 4, 1858 in Aleppo. Al-Himsi lost his father when he was 15 years old. He was raised by his mother Sousan Dallal in a highly educated community.
The origin of his family is from the al-Mashrouqi family of the Syrian city of Homs. Al-Himsi's ancestors have migrated to Aleppo during the first half of the 16th century and embraced the al-Himsi surname. He received his preliminary education in the Roman Catholic school of Aleppo.
Al-Himsi became a wealthy and successful tradesman, visiting Marseille and Paris and other French cities for several occasions. He mastered the French language during his long stays in France. He left his commercial activities in 1905.
The cultural knowledge and wealth of al-Himsi was prompted through his vast collection of Arabic and European books and publications, as well as his great love of reading the works of the elite European poets. He was known as the Voyager Poet due to his frequent visits to France, England, Italy, Egypt, Beirut and Constantinople. Despite of his great love for travel, al-Himsi lived and worked in Aleppo throughout his life until his death in 1941.
Qustaki al-Himsi was honoured in his native city of Aleppo by renaming a street at the centre of the city after him. His statue was erected in 1971 at the centre of the Liberty Square of Aziziyah district in Aleppo.The home of Qustaki al-Himsi in Aleppo was turned into a house-museum by the efforts of his grandson.
After the 1908 revolution in the Ottoman Empire, he was elected as a member of the Aleppo city council for many times and once as the assistant of the head of the council. In 1922, he was appointed member of the Scientific Academy in Damascus.
