Afifa Iskandar Estefan (Arabic: عفيفة إسكندر إصطيفان, 10 December 1921[1] in Mosul, Iraq - 21 October 2012) was an Iraqi singer throughout the middle of the 20th century. She was considered one of the best female singers in Iraqi history. She was nicknamed the "Iraqi Blackbird".[2]
Afifa Iskandar | |
|---|---|
 Afifa Iskandar at an Alshaab Hall party in Baghdad in the 1950s | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Afifa Iskandar Estefan |
| Born | 10 December 1921 Mosul, Mandatory Iraq |
| Origin | Armenian |
| Died | 21 October 2012 (aged 90) Baghdad, Iraq |
| Genres | Iraqi Maqams |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, actress |
| Instrument(s) | Vocal |
| Years active | 1935–2011 |
| Labels | Shahrora, monologist |
Biography
Afifa Iskandar was born in Mosul to an Armenian father and a Greek mother. She lived in Baghdad, and started singing at the age of 5. At her first party in 1935,[3] she sang Al maqam. At the age of 12, she married an Armenian man named Iskandar Estefan and took his last name. She also worked as an actress and appeared in many productions.[4] In 1938, she traveled to Egypt to work with Badia Masabni, Taheyya Kariokka, and Mohamed Abdel Wahab. She died of cancer on 21 October 2012 in Baghdad.[5]
Tribute
On 10 December 2019, Google celebrated her 98th birthday with a Google Doodle.[6]
Singles
Iskandr sang nearly 1500 songs.[7] These include: