Alawi bin Hashem bin Hussein bin Hashem Al-Hashemi was born in the
Fareej el-Makharqa neighborhood of
Manama in 1948 and grew up in a large Hasina family, descended from the Banu Hashim tribe. His father was a modest merchant, but his mother was a Hasina from the family of Syed Salman Al Sharaf; thus, he was given the name “Alawi,” since his Hasina relatives are said to have been descended from the imam
Ali. He enrolled at the Eastern School (Al Sharqiyah) in 1954, then transferred to the Western School (
Al Raja School) in 1956, from which he graduated with the
tawjihi certificate in 1965. He continued his studies by earning a 1968 Diploma in Commerce from the
University of London, a 1972
Bachelor of Arts. in Arabic from
Beirut Arab University, a 1978
Master of Arts in Arabic literature from
Cairo University, and a 1986 Ph.D. in Arabic literature from
Tunis University. He worked several short-lived business jobs, but became better-known for his work with the
Bahrain Radio and Television Corporation as a translator, programmer, broadcaster, and coordinator of
hadith readings. In 1978, he began teaching as an assistant professor at the College of Arts of the University of Bahrain. He entered journalism as editor of the culture section of
Gulf News and
Akhbar Al Khaleej as well as the literary section of
Bahrain Magazine. He also has served as founding treasurer of the Bahrain Writers’ Association and as president it for several terms. ==Career==