A01427 - Khalifa Tillisi, Libyan Historian, Translator and Linguist

Khalifa Mohammed Tillisi (b. May 9, 1930, Tripoli, Italian Tripolitania – d. January 13, 2010, Tripoli, Libya) was a well-known Libyan historian, translator, and linguist.

Tillisi was born in Tripoli, Italian Tripolitania (present-day Libya), on May 9, 1930, where he first became a teacher then entered politics. In 1952, he worked in the Libyan Parliament where he became its Secretary General in 1962. He reached the peak of his political career when he became a minister for information in the cabinets of Mahmud al-Muntasir and Hussein Maziq from 1964 to 1967, and Libya's Ambassador to Morocco in from 1967 to 1969.

After the political change in Libya in 1969, Tillisi was arrested and tried by the Libyan People's Court.  He was sentenced to four years in prison. The sentence was suspended and he was forced into an early retirement at the age of 39. In 1974, he founded a Libyan - Tunisian publishing company (an Arabic book house). He was the first president of the Libyan Literature and Writers association in 1977 and was appointed the Secretary General of the Arabic Writers Association in 1978. In 1981, he became the Secretary General of the Arabic Publishers Association.

Tillisi is well remembered among the Libyan people for his renowned contributions to literature and his relaxed kind-hearted nature.  A total of 49 titles are attributed to Khalifa Tillisi. The following are some of his works:

• As Author:

1. "Echebbi wa Gibran", 1957.
2. "Rafik sha'er al watan", 1965.
3. " Mu'jam Ma'arik al Jihad fi Libia", A Dictionary for Italian Colonial Battles on the Libyan Soil 1911–31, 1972.
4. " Ma Ba'd Al Qurdabiya", A History of Italian Colonial Battles in Tripolitania and Fezzan 1922–1930, 1973.
5. " Hakatha Ghanna Tagore", 1991.
6. "Qamoos Itali-Arabi", Italian-Arabic Dictionary, 1984.
7. "An Nafees", Arabic Dictionary.

• As Translator (from Italian to Arabic):

1. "Qisas Italiya", Luigi Pirandello, 1967.
2. "Popolazione della Tripolitania, Enrico De Agostini, 1975
3. "Popolazione della Cirenaica, Enrico De Agostini, 1990.
4. "Cirenaica Verde", Attilio Teruzzi, 1991.
5. " Memoria della mia vita", Giovanni Giolitti, 1976.
6. " L'esplorazione Geografica Della Libia: Rassegna Storica Bibliografia", Attilio Mori, 1984.

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