Georgetown University

Washington, D.C. – Georgetown University alumnus Anthony Edwards (C’08), of Lake Forest, Calif., was selected by the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board to receive a Fulbright award to study Arabic in Syria.

“The integrity and purity of the Arabic language is a key element of the Arab identity,” Edwards wrote in his application. "I propose to examine the role that modern ishtiqâq (the derivation of new words using Arabic lexical roots and patterns) plays in the preservation of Arabic linguistic purity and the promotion of the Arab identity in the Internet Age."

At Georgetown, Edwards was the Graduate Representative of the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies, involved with the ‘Arabic Table’ Conversation Table, and Georgetown University Southwest Quad Community Council Member. He worked as a teaching assistant for Arabic classes. Edwards received his bachelor’s degree in Arabic and his master’s degree in Arabic Linguistics both from Georgetown.

"Not only does he have a genuine skill for grasping the subtleties of the language, but he has an uncompromising commitment to his goals in pursuing graduate studies in Arabic," said Amin Bonnah, professor of Arabic language and literature at Georgetown University. "He is a very hard-working student, committed and loyal to the tasks at hand."

Congress established the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board for the purposes of supervising the Fulbright Program and certain programs authorized by the Fulbright-Hays Act and for the purpose of selecting students, scholars, teachers, trainees and other persons to participate in the educational exchange programs. Appointed by the president of the United States, the 12-member Board meets quarterly in Washington. The Board maintains a close relationship with both the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) at the U.S. Department of State and the executive directors of all the binational Fulbright Commissions. Since its inception more than 30 years ago, nearly 300,000 Fulbrighters have participated in the program. More information is available here: http://fulbright.state.gov/.

About Georgetown University

Georgetown University is the oldest and largest Catholic and Jesuit university in America, founded in 1789 by Archbishop John Carroll. Georgetown today is a major student-centered, international, research university offering respected undergraduate, graduate and professional programs in Washington, D.C., Doha, Qatar, and around the world. For more information about Georgetown University, visit www.georgetown.edu.