What Is Love? The Harper’s Bazaar Arabia April 2025 200th Anniversary Issue Celebrates Love In All Its Guises
The 200th anniversary edition of Harper’s Bazaar Arabia highlights love’s infinite complexity through portraits of iconic Arab celebrities – husbands and wives, mothers and daughters, best friends, cousins – each capturing moments of intimacy, laughter, tenderness, and authenticity unique to our region…
What is love, if not the dazzling jewel of human experience – a rare gemstone forged from the sands of time, polished by life’s journeys, and beautifully set into the intricate tapestry of our heritage? Like the finest diamonds, love in the Arab world is multifaceted: endlessly complex, breathtaking in its depth, and profound in its authenticity.
In the Middle East, love has always been deeply intertwined with culture and tradition. Poetry, the very soul of Arab expression, has long been love’s cherished messenger. From the timeless verses of Rumi and Khalil Gibran to contemporary voices like Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish and Syrian writer Nizar Qabbani, love resonates across generations, blending passion with wisdom, spirituality with daily life. Their words, both ancient and modern, have influenced how love is expressed and celebrated today, bridging centuries with eloquence and emotional resonance.
In its most obvious form, there’s romantic love. It finds expression in the lyrical beauty of classical Arabic poetry, where love is profound, soulful, and passionate – mirroring the intricate details of Mashrabiya latticework or the delicate facets of a finely cut gemstone. Romantic love here is a dance of veiled subtleties and fi ery declarations, from quiet whispers shared beneath moonlit desert skies to vibrant celebrations at joyous weddings filled with music, dance, and tradition. Consider contemporary celebrity couples such as the iconic Egyptian actress Youssra and her husband Khaled Selim, whose long-standing partnership beautifully exemplifies the enduring depth, mutual respect, and sincerity inherent in Arab romantic traditions.
Familial love in Arab societies is deeply rooted, resilient, and unwavering. It echoes through bustling family gatherings, where stories are shared over cups of aromatic Arabic coffee and wisdom is passed down alongside treasured recipes. This love is as enduring and precious as heirloom jewellery, symbolising strength, nourishment, and shelter. Family love here emphasises loyalty, respect, and honour, holding communities together with the strength and brilliance of an unbreakable bond.
Friendship, too, holds special resonance in our local culture. Bonds of friendship are built on hospitality, generosity, and profound trust, much like carefully chosen gemstones that complement and enhance one another in perfect harmony. Friends are often considered family, warmly welcomed into homes with traditional hospitality, symbolised by the ceremonial pouring of coffee, each cup representing a layer of trust and friendship deepening over time.
Love also finds its links within extended families. Relationships between cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents are vibrant threads woven intricately into life’s fabric. These relationships sparkle like carefully set jewels at family celebrations, filling spaces with warmth, laughter, and endless storytelling. Observing the warmth and mutual admiration shared by cousins Tara Abboud and Kira Yaghnam, whose close relationship both on and off -screen enriches their portrayals and resonates publicly, highlighting the strength and authenticity of familial bonds and shared cultural traditions.
Yet perhaps the most subtly transformative love is self-love – finding harmony within oneself, a concept richly reflected in Arab culture’s tradition of introspection, meditation, and spiritual reflection. Inspired by the contemplative poetry of Sufism, self-love is seen as a pathway to understanding the divine, encouraging compassion, self-awareness, and inner peace. Modern Arab icons such as Tara Emad and Ahmed Malek emphasise the importance of self-care and authenticity, reinforcing the idea that like the rarest gems, true self-love requires careful nurturing, attention, and patience.
The brilliance of love lies in capturing these profound emotional narratives – engagements sealed with promise, anniversaries celebrated with elegance, milestones cherished with timeless symbols. Similarly, love itself, whether romantic, familial, friendly, or deeply personal, weaves into our life’s story, enhancing our identity, heritage, and humanity.
This special edition of Harper’s Bazaar Arabia highlights love’s infinite complexity through portraits of iconic Arab celebrities – husbands and wives, mothers and daughters, best friends, cousins – each capturing moments of intimacy, laughter, tenderness, and authenticity unique to our region. Each pair represents a distinctive facet of love, shining uniquely yet contributing to the brilliance of the human connection we all aspire to discover.
What is love, then? Perhaps its beauty lies in the question itself, forever unfolding like the subtle gleam of gemstones, each movement revealing new patterns, new beauty, new truths. Love is an ongoing journey, universal yet distinctly personal, expansive yet intimate – a celebration of the soul’s richest treasures.
Editor-in-Chief: Olivia Phillips. Acting Editor-in-Chief: Sophia Serin. Creative Director: Marne Schwartz, Tamim Mortaza; Vice President: Farrah Taylor. Group Managing Editor & Words: Natasha Faruque. Art Director: Paul Solomons. Photographer: Mattia Guolo, Vladimir Marti. Movement: Jamie Neale, Adrien Galo. Production: Steff Hawker, Jean-Marc Mondelet. Make-up Direction: Anna Sadamori, Raffaele Romagnoli. Set Styling: Camille Rousseau. Videography: Maycon Dehan. Fashion: Gabriela Cambero, Charlotte Marsh-Williams. Hair Direction: Jean-Luc Amarin, Adam Garland. Nail Artist: Nafissa Djabi, Leyla Mistry. Photography Assistants: Alessia Azzolini, Alessio Spanu, Manfredi Prestigiacomo, Macky Navarro; Videography Assistants: Larissy Leandro. Production Manager: Gijo Thomas. Image Editor: Jemima Joy. Production Coordination: Erin Steel, Chloe Christodoulou, Marina Moravenova. Hair Assistants: Tracey Nguyen, Yihan Jen, Ziyan Zhang, Wenting Zhangn, Bella Hudgell. Make-up Assistants: Ismahane Benabbou, Natalia Bokan, Roberto Meloni, Sitara Nash, Gabriel Leggieri. Nail Assistants: Yasmine Hilali. Editorial: Milli Midwood, Meeran Mekkaoui.
