Mustafa Wahbi Tal

Mustafa Wahbi Tal (May 1899 – May 24, 1949) was a Jordanian poet, writer, teacher, and civil servant who was widely recognized as Jordan's most renowned poet and one of the best-known Jordanian poets among Arab readers.

Tal was born on May 25, 1899, in Irbid, Ottoman Empire, and completed his basic education there before moving on to Damascus to finish his high school education. His rebellious and uncompromising personality would emerge during his high school years in Damascus, when he was banished numerous times by Ottoman officials for participating in school strikes against their policies in the region. Tal was imprisoned and banished multiple times as an adult for democratic action or insulting high-ranking officials by the governments of the Arab Kingdom of Syria and, following its demise, the administration of the Emirate of Transjordan.

His first work was as an Arabic literature instructor at Karak, Transjordan. In the 1920s, Tal was named Administrative Governor of Wadi Al-Seer and Shoubak. He earned a law degree in 1930 and worked in the judiciary before being appointed Chief of Protocol at the Emir's Court. Tal was subsequently fired from his position and imprisoned for 70 days after a confrontation with a Prime Minister who was in office at the time. This would be the latest in a long line of exiles and imprisonments he had endured. Tal became desperate, and his alcoholism intensified, ultimately leading to his death on May 24, 1949.

Tal discovered in the Nawari community fairness, equality, and a lack of classism, which he considered was lacking in Transjordan's cities. Many of his writings mirrored these beliefs, as well as lauding Jordan's lands while harshly criticizing its government's practices. He also composed poetry condemning British policies that promoted Zionism in Palestine, as well as British colonial officers in Transjordan.

Tal is Jordan's most famous poet. His city of Irbid hosts an annual literary festival in his honor, and he is the recipient of the country's most prestigious literary award. The house where he used to live in Irbid has been turned into a museum, which attracts hundreds of tourists each year. Wasfi Tal, his eldest son, served as Jordan's Prime Minister for many terms in the late 1960s and early 1970s before being assassinated in 1971.