Bibliography & Sources
A working bibliography
A reference of Ahmatjan Osman’s published books, his translations into Uyghur, and the anthologies and periodicals that carry his work — assembled for readers, scholars, the press, and prize committees. Names are also recorded under the spellings Ekhmetjan and Exmetjan Osman.
Where a barcode/ISBN or publisher could be verified it is listed; some early Arabic editions are recorded by title and year pending fuller catalogue details.
Download Press Kit (PDF)Poetry & Essays
- 01
The Second Fall
Al-Suqût al-thânî
1988 · Arabic
- 02
The Mystery of Weddings
Lughz Al-a'araas
1990 · Arabic
- 03
Ode to a Uyghur Girl
ئۇيغۇر قىزى لېرىكىسى
1992 · Uyghur
- 04
Season of the Soul
روھ پەسلى
1996 · Uyghur
The Uyghur title “Roh Pesli” translates as “the season — or era — of the soul.”
- 05
Guardian of the Self
Al-wasiy Ala Al-thaat
1997 · Arabic
- 06
As Though
Ka'an
1998 · Arabic
- 07
In Ruins of Sumer Where I Reside
Fiy Atlaar Somar Haythu Oqiym
2003 · Arabic
- 08
My Share of the Night
Hissaty Min Al-layl
2007 · Arabic
- 09
Selected Poems of Ahmatjan Osman
Ehmetjan Osman Tallanma She'irliri
2015 · Uyghur · Published in Turkey
A 239-page selection of 87 poems, prepared by Muqeddes Khanım with an introduction by Mamtimin Ala.
- 10
Poetry, What HowEssays
شېئىر نېمە، قانداق
2024 · Uyghur · World Uyghur Writers Association
His most recent book — a 260-page volume of essays on poetics and the nature of poetry. An English translation is currently in progress.
View source
In Translation
- 01
Uyghurland, the Farthest Exile
2015 · English translation · Phoneme Media / Deep Vellum
Translated by Jeffrey Yang with the author. The first collection of Uyghur poetry ever translated into English; long-listed for the 2016 PEN Award for Poetry in Translation.
View source - 02
Oh, Land of Uyghurs
ああ、ウイグルの大地
2015 · Japanese translation · Sayusha
Translated by Mukai Dice and Makoto Kawai — a collection of his Uyghur verse rendered into Japanese.
- 03
Uyghur Poet: Selected Poems of Ahmatjan Osman
ウイグルの詩人 アフメットジャン・オスマン選詩集
2015 · Japanese translation · Sayusha
A dedicated Japanese volume of his selected poems, translated by Mukai Dice and Makoto Kawai.
Translations into Uyghur
Beyond his own poetry, Osman has carried the voices of world literature into the Uyghur language — among them the classical Arabic mystic al-Niffari, rendered directly from the Arabic.
Muhammad ibn Abd al-Jabbar al-Niffari
The classical Arabic Sufi mystic’s book of spiritual stations — rendered into Uyghur from the Arabic.
Adonis (Ali Ahmad Said Esber)
Selected poems of the Syrian master, an early admirer of Osman’s own Arabic verse.
Jalal al-Din Rumi
Poems of the great Persian Sufi poet, carried into Uyghur.
Paul Celan
The German-language poet of memory and exile.
Octavio Paz
The Mexican Nobel laureate’s poetry.
Fernando Pessoa
The Portuguese modernist and his many voices.
Anthologies & Periodicals
- 01
Technicians of the Sacred (Third Edition)
Anthology2017
Edited by Jerome Rothenberg · University of California Press. The landmark global poetry anthology — a touchstone since 1968 — includes Osman’s “The Moons of Childhood,” placing his work among the world’s essential poetries.
Read at source - 02
Granta (Issue 169)
Periodical2024
“Ancestors,” translated from the Uyghur by Joshua L. Freeman, in the journal often regarded as the home of new international writing.
Read at source - 03
Uyghur Poems (Everyman’s Library Pocket Poets)
Anthology2023
Edited by Aziz Isa Elkun · Alfred A. Knopf. The first English-language anthology of Uyghur poetry includes a ghazal by Osman — “the wolf of life begins to howl each time I take you in my arms.”
Read at source - 04
The Contest of the Fruits
Anthology2021
Slavs and Tatars · MIT Press. A book on Uyghur language, politics, and humor — departing from a 19th-century Uyghur satirical poem — that features his poetry.
Read at source - 05
Ziyouz · Uyghur Poetry Anthology (Uzbekistan)
PeriodicalOnline
Uzbekistan’s state-registered literary portal presents him — as “Ahmadjon Usmon” — among the notable voices of Uyghur modern poetry for Uzbek readers.
Read at source - 06
The Heart of Strangers: A Field Guide to Exiles
Anthology2020
Edited by André Naffis-Sahely · Pushkin Press. An anthology of exile literature gathering his work among writers of displacement across centuries.
- 07
Words Without Borders
Periodical2012
“The Nights Passing Endlessly through Scheherazade’s Mouth,” translated from the Uyghur by Joshua L. Freeman, in the September 2012 issue.
Read at source - 08
Sinoturcica
Periodical2011
“Three Poems by Exmetjan Osman,” translated and introduced by Joshua L. Freeman — including “Sadir in Search of His Five Orphaned Children” (1986).
Read at source - 09
Yang Lian · Poetry Crosses Conflict (Taiwan)
Anthology2015
The exile poet Yang Lian translated “The Nights Passing Endlessly through Scheherazade’s Mouth” into Chinese and wrote an accompanying essay, published in his book 发出自己的天问 1978–2015 (Showwe Publishing, Taipei).
- 10
Al-Quds Al-Arabi
Periodical2004
His Arabic poetry appeared in the pan-Arab daily (London), placing his voice within the wider Arabic literary world.