19 moments
Birth in Kafr Tahla
· Kafr Tahla, Qalyubia Governorate, Egypt
El Saadawi was born in the Nile Delta village that remained important to her early experience and later medical work.
Entered medical school
· Cairo University, Giza, Egypt
She began medical training at Cairo University, beginning the professional education that led to her work as a physician and public-health official.
Village doctor in her birthplace
· Kafr Tahla, Qalyubia Governorate, Egypt
After qualifying as a doctor, El Saadawi returned to Kafr Tahla to practice medicine, an experience that informed her writing and activism concerning rural women's health.
Public-health study at Columbia
· Columbia University, New York City, New York, United States
El Saadawi attended Columbia University and earned a master's degree in public health.
Research at Ain Shams University
· Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
Following her dismissal from government health posts, she conducted research on women and neurosis at Ain Shams University's Faculty of Medicine. The source supports a 1973–1976 period; the card date marks its beginning.
Imprisonment at Qanatir Women's Prison
· Qanatir Women's Prison, Qanater El Khayreya, Qalyubia Governorate, Egypt
Egyptian authorities arrested El Saadawi in the September 1981 crackdown and took her to the women's prison at Qanatir, where her incarceration later informed her prison memoir. Coordinates are a representative point for Qanater El Khayreya; the source spells the place Kanater.
Visiting professorship at Duke
· Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States
Wikimedia Commons · Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic · file After leaving Egypt amid threats and political persecution, El Saadawi taught at Duke University with Sherif Hetata from 1993 to 1996. The card date marks the start of the documented 1993–1996 appointment.
Return to Egypt
· Egypt
Wikimedia Commons · Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic · file After several years teaching in the United States, El Saadawi moved back to Egypt and resumed her public work there. The source identifies Egypt but not a city; coordinates represent the country.
Personal-status court case
· Cairo, Egypt
El Saadawi defended herself in Cairo's Personal Status Court against a lawsuit seeking to compel her divorce on allegations of apostasy. The source identifies Cairo as the court location but does not specify the courthouse.
Lecture at UC Berkeley
· University of California, Berkeley, California, United States
El Saadawi delivered a lecture at the University of California, Berkeley's Center for Middle Eastern Studies addressing the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan and U.S. foreign policy. The source supports the year but not a more precise lecture date.
North–South Prize ceremony
· Lisbon, Portugal
El Saadawi received the Council of Europe's 2004 North–South Prize in Lisbon, recognizing her human-rights and women's-rights advocacy. Coordinates represent the Portuguese Parliament area in Lisbon, where the ceremony was held.
Speech at Scripps College
· Scripps College, Claremont, California, United States
During her brief 2005 presidential campaign, El Saadawi spoke at Scripps College about women's equality and the role of media. The article was published in March 2005 and identifies the speech as having occurred the preceding Tuesday; month precision is retained.
UNAM keynote lecture
· Ciudad Universitaria, National Autonomous University of Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
Before receiving an honorary doctorate from UNAM, El Saadawi gave the keynote lecture “Creativity, dissidence and women” at Ciudad Universitaria.
Tahrir Square protests
· Tahrir Square, Cairo, Egypt
El Saadawi joined anti-Mubarak protesters in Tahrir Square during the Egyptian revolution. A contemporary obituary places her participation in February 2011; the source quoted here supports the year.
Stig Dagerman Prize at Älvkarleby
· Älvkarleby, Uppsala County, Sweden
El Saadawi traveled to Älvkarleby to receive the Stig Dagerman Prize, awarded for work supporting freedom of expression and human rights. The Swedish source was published on 18 May 2012 and reports her presence in Älvkarleby.
At home in Cairo
· Cairo, Egypt
Wikimedia Commons · CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication · file A dated photograph documents El Saadawi at her home in Cairo late in her life. The exact home address is not supplied; coordinates represent Cairo.
Africa Writes appearance
· British Library, London, England, United Kingdom
El Saadawi appeared at the Africa Writes literary festival in London for a conversation with Margaret Busby on being a woman writer. Festival reporting and associated posts identify the event as 2 July 2016 at the British Library.
Göteborg Book Fair seminar
· Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre, Gothenburg, Sweden
Wikimedia Commons · Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported · file El Saadawi attended the Göteborg Book Fair and spoke in a seminar concerning Egypt and the Middle East after the Arab Spring. The source supports attendance during 27–30 September 2018 but not a single event day; month precision is used.
Death in Cairo
· Cairo, Egypt
El Saadawi died at a hospital in Cairo, ending a career that combined medicine, writing, and feminist activism. The hospital is not identified; coordinates represent Cairo.