My involvement in the Arab world began when I started reading Arabic at St Andrews University in 1978. Led by the mercurial and magnificent Dr John Burton, the Arabic department comprised other great figures, including the late Dr David Jackson, Douglas Galloway and Richard Kimber, and complemented by the outstanding, now Professor Hugh Kennedy.

On leaving St Andrews, I completed a year’s further study at Damascus University. Since then, my various career appointments have all been focussed on the Arab world, first in the public sector and later in banking. At Crown Agents, I oversaw the implementation of donor aid programmes in countries including Sudan, Egypt and Palestine. At United Bank of Kuwait, I managed a fund which was invested in the stock markets across the Arab world. For the most part, the annual reports and accounts were in Arabic, and they were my daily diet. More recently, working under the supervision of Dr Salma Khadra Jayyusi, I have translated and ‘style’ edited a number of literary books. I have also done translation of a complex technical and legal nature for the ITU and others.

Crucially, I combine an ability to write clear, simple English with a wide-ranging academic, professional and personal experience of the Arabic language. I will not merely render your Arabic texts in English words, but I will translate them in a way which is accurate and lucid.