Abbas Shakir Judi al-Baghdadi
1951–2023 · Baghdad & the United States
Abbas Shakir Judi al-Baghdadi was born in Baghdad; sources give 1949, 1950 or 1951. He won the Baghdad prize for young painters in 1969, worked for publishing houses in Baghdad from 1975 to 1980, and taught calligraphy for the Iraqi Calligraphers' Association from 1975 to 1990. From 1988 to 2003 he was head of Iraq's calligraphers. He designed the lettering of Iraqi banknotes, passports, identity cards and nationality certificates, and the state emblem. Between 1997 and 2000 he wrote a complete Qur'an copy commissioned by the Iraqi government. He wrote mainly jali thuluth and naskh, and published Mizan al-khatt al-'Arabi (1986), a study of the proportions of thuluth. Al Jazeera notes that he held no formal certificate in calligraphy. After 2003 he taught in Jordan and then at the International Institute of Islamic Thought in Virginia. He died in the United States on 2 May 2023.
Achievements
- Designed the lettering of Iraqi banknotes, passports, civil identity cards, nationality certificates and the state emblem.
- Head of Iraq's calligraphers from 1988 to 2003.
- Taught calligraphy for the Iraqi Calligraphers' Association in Baghdad, 1975-1990.
- Wrote a complete Qur'an copy commissioned by the Iraqi government, 1997-2000.
- Published Mizan al-khatt al-'Arabi on the proportions of thuluth (1986).
- Won the Baghdad prize for young painters in 1969; later taught at the International Institute of Islamic Thought in Virginia (2009).
His work
Died in 2023: the works are still protected by copyright, so we show them only with the permission of those who hold the rights.
Write in the tradition this hand shaped.
Write in this tradition now →Living calligraphers you can buy from — signed originals on paper, from AED 550: Anwar Alhulwani (Thuluth) · Ahmed Alhawary (Jali Thuluth, Naskh) · Rasha Kasim (Kufi) — or every Thuluth piece the store makes: Thuluth collection.
Sources
- Arabic Wikipedia: 1951 - 2 May 2023, designs (ID card, nationality certificate, currency, passport, emblem), head of calligraphers 1988-2003, Qur'an 1997, Jordan 2003-2008, IIIT Virginia 2009, Baghdad prize 1969, publishing houses 1975-1980, Association teacher 1975-1990, jali thuluth and naskh, Mizan al-khatt; footnote on 1949/1950 ar.wikipedia.org
- Al Jazeera encyclopedia (5 May 2023): born 1949 Baghdad, died 2 May 2023 in the USA, funeral at Adam (ADAMS) Islamic Center Virginia, no formal certificate, posts and years, designs, Qur'an 1998-2000, Mizan al-khatt al-'Arabi 1986 aljazeera.net
- Alsumaria (2 May 2023): death on Tuesday 2 May 2023 aged about 74, born Baghdad 1949, designs, state emblem, official Qur'an 1998 alsumaria.tv
- The Muslim 500: born 1951 Baghdad, classical approach themuslim500.com
- Wikidata: b. 1951 Baghdad, d. 2023-05-02 wikidata.org
Written by the MASHQ studio · last updated 2026-10-05. Further reading, the standard references in English: Sheila S. Blair, Islamic Calligraphy (Edinburgh University Press, 2006) · Annemarie Schimmel, Calligraphy and Islamic Culture (New York University Press, 1984) · Yasin Hamid Safadi, Islamic Calligraphy (Thames and Hudson, 1978).