Born in Mèze (France) on September 26, 1929. Died on December 27, 2022.
Education
- 1950–1953: Graduate of the École normale supérieure
- 1953: Received the Agrégation in grammar
- 1953–1954: Scholarship recipient at the French Institute of Arab Studies in Damascus
- 1954–1955: Military service
- 1967: Doctor of Letters
Professional Career
- 1955–1956: Secretary-General of the French Cultural and Archaeological Mission in Ethiopia
- 1956–1957: Teacher at the Blaise-Pascal High School in Clermont-Ferrand
- 1957–1961: Head of the Africa-Asia Division at the Directorate General for Cultural and Technical Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
- 1961–1962: Head of the French Academic and Cultural Mission to the United Arab Republic
- 1962–1964: Assistant Professor of Arabic Language and Literature at the University of Aix-en-Provence
- 1964–1968: Assistant Professor of the Sociology of Arabic Language and Literature in Section VI of the École Pratique des Hautes Études
- 1968–1970: Lecturer at the University of Vincennes (Paris-VIII)
- 1970–1976: Associate Professor of Arabic Language and Literature at the University of Paris-III
- 1976–1997: Professor at the Collège de France in the Chair of Classical Arabic Language and Literature
- 1984–1987: General Administrator of the National Library
- 1991–1997: Chairman of the Collège de France
Honors
- Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor
- Officer of the National Order of Merit
- Commander of the Order of Academic Palms
- Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters
Awards
- March 22, 2010: International Translation Prize, awarded by the Servant of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Ibn Abdelaziz of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
- December 15, 2010: “Doha, Arab Cultural Capital” Award
- 2019: Muhammad ibn Rashid Arabic Language Award, presented by the Emirate of Dubai
