Marcel Kurpershoek is a Dutch diplomat and an Arabist whose speciality lies in his lifelong research of the Bedouin life and society. He has several books and translations to his credit reflecting his passion and interest in oral poetry and narratives of central Arabia and life in the region. Among them, he has authored five volumes on Oral Poetry and Narrative from Central Asia.
Among his other non-fiction books, Jerusalem, and In Limbo: On the Borders in the Middle East reflect on the unique political social and religious realities of the region. His book roughly translated into English as The Tragopan of Kohistan: On Climbing, Faith, and the Great Game is a reflection of his physical and intellectual journey through the Himalayas, Hindu Kush, and Karakoram ranges in Pakistan.
He joined the Netherland Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1974 after completing his masters in Arabic Language and Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Leiden. During his diplomatic career, he held several ambassadorial assignments in Pakistan, Turkeyi Poland besides taking on other responsibilities.
Between 1996 and 2001, he also taught as a professor in the University of Leiden where a special chair was created for him on Interaction between Politics and Literature in the Arab World.
In 2016, he presented for and designed for Al Arabiya TV in Dubai an eight-part television documentary on Bedouin poetry titled “The Last Traveler” based on his book Arabia of the Bedouins. He was a Senior Humanities Research Fellow at New York University Abu Dhabi and alter a non-resident visiting scholar from 2022-2025.
