Rahman, Sahityaratna Mohammad Najibar

Rahman, Sahityaratna Mohammad Najibar (1860-1923) novelist, was born in the village of Charbeltail in shahjadpur. After his education at the Normal School in dhaka he worked at a n'i'lkuthi (indigo factory) in Jalpaiguri. He then taught at Bhangabari Middle English School in sirajganj, Salanga Minor School and Rajshahi Junior Madrasa. He also worked as a postmaster for some time.

In 1892 Najibar Rahman set up a maktab in his village, which was later turned into a girls'; school. While teaching at Salanga he protested against the local Hindu zamindar';s ban on killing cows and eating of beef. As a result the zamindar withdrew the order.

Najibar Rahman was inspired by ismail hossain shiraji (1880-1931) to engage in literary activities. A'nw'a'r'a (1914), his first novel, earned him considerable fame. Among his other novels are Premer Sam'a'dhi (1915), Ch'a'ndt'a'r'a (1917), Pari'na'm (1918), Gar'i'ber Meye (1923), Duniy'a' 'A'r Ch'a'in'a (1924) and Meherunnis'a. His two books of essays are Bil'a't'i' Barjan Rahasya (1904) and S'a'hitya Prasa'b'ga (1904). In his novels he portrays the lives of rural Muslim families. In recognition of his literary contributions, he was conferred the title of 'Sahityaratna';. Mohammad Najibar Rahman died on 18 October 1923 at Hati Qumrul village in Raiganj. [Mahbubul Haque] [Haque, Mahbubul Professor of Bangla, Chittagong University]