Abdel Halim Hafez

Abdel Halim Isma'el Shabana (Arabic: عبدالحليم إسماعيل شبانة) commonly known as Abdel Halim Hafez (Arabic: عبد الحليم حافظ) (June 21, 1929 – March 30, 1977), was one of the most popular Egyptian singers and a

Abdel Halim Isma'el Shabana (Arabic: عبدالحليم إسماعيل شبانة) commonly known as Abdel Halim Hafez (Arabic: عبد الحليم حافظ) (June 21, 1929 – March 30, 1977), was one of the most popular Egyptian singers and actors not only in Egypt but throughout the Middle East from the 1950s to the 1970s. He is widely considered to be one of the four 'greats' of Egyptian and Arabic music. Abdel Halim's music is still played on radio daily in Egypt and the Arab world. His name is sometimes written as 'Abd el-Halim Hafez, and he was also sometimes known as el-Andaleeb el-Asmar (the Dark Nightingale, Arabic: العندليب الأسمر).

He was born Abdel Halim Ali Ismail Shabata in El-Halawat, in Ash Sharqiyah Governorate, 80 kilometres (50 miles) north of Cairo, Egypt. Abdel Halim was the fourth child of Sheikh Ali Ismail Shabana. He had two brothers, Ismail and Mohammed, and one sister, Aliah. Abdel Halim's mother died from complications after giving birth to him, and his father died five months later, leaving Abdel Halim and his siblings orphaned at a young age. Abdel Halim was raised by his aunt and uncle in Cairo.