Haji Noor Deen

Master Calligrapher

Thuluth & Naskh Scripts

Arabic Calligraphy in the Chinese Style

Haji Noor Deen is a renowned master of Arabic calligraphy. He was born in Yucheng, in the Shandong Province of China, in 1963.

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In 1997, he became the first individual from China to be awarded the Certificate of Arabic Calligrapher in Egypt after studying the calligraphic arts there for over ten years. In 2017, after a period of study in Istanbul with Ottoman calligraphic master Hasan Celebi, Haji Noor Deen was honored with an Ijazah in the Ottoman Arabic Thuluth and Nasikh scripts, again becoming the first-ever Chinese person to do so. His work focuses on writing Arabic using a combination of traditional Chinese calligraphic tools and techniques to fuse the Chinese and Arabic visual arts uniquely.

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Haji Noor Deen is also responsible for the formal codification of the ancient Arabic writing system in the Chinese tradition. In 2019 for the first time in China, he honored 30 students with an Ijaza in Arabic Calligraphy in the Chinese style.

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His work has been displayed in galleries and museums worldwide, including the British Museum, the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, the National Museum of Scotland, and the Center for Government and International Studies (CGIS) at Harvard University. He was also awarded the Dubai Islamic Economy Development Center 2016 Islamic Economy Award in the category of Islamic Arts.

Shahrayanshah Sirajuddin

Master Calligrapher

Thuluth, Naskh,

Diwani Jali, Diwani,

& Riq'a Scripts

Shahryanshah Sirajuddin was born in Sangkulirang, Indonesia (b.1986) and graduated from the faculty of Islamic Law of Al-Azhar University-Egypt in 2009.

In Egypt, he received his Ijazah for Riq’a, Diwani, and Diwani Jali scripts from Sheikh Belaid Hamidi. With the recommendation of his master, he came to Turkey in 2010 to further his studies in calligraphy. He practiced Thuluth and Naskh under the guidance of a number of masters like Hasan Çelebi, Ferhat Kurlu and Mümtaz Seçkin Durdu. He also received calligraphy lessons from various masters in Istanbul, including Savaş Çevik, Ali Toy, Davut Bektaş, Mehmed Özçay, and Osman Özçay. This led him to receive his Ijazah in Arabic calligraphy during the ceremony organized by IRCICA (Research Center for Islamic History, Art and Culture)

Shahryanshah is also undertaking a Magister program in the Fine Arts Department at Fatih Sultan Mehmet Vakif University.

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Shahryanshah has taken part in multiple calligraphy competitions and has also won many of them. His calligraphic works have found homes in various galleries and exhibitions. Shahryanshah Sirajuddin Hoca and Fatma Ulusoy Hoca continue to produce magnificent works of illumination and calligraphy work together in Istanbul.

Fatma Ulusoy Sirajuddin

Master Tezhip Artist

Manuscript Illumination/Tezhip

Fatma Ulusoy Sirajuddin was born in Istanbul (b.1988) and graduated from European Islamic University Faculty of Islamic Sciences in 2012 and Anadolu University Open Education Faculty of Theology in 2016. Fatma continued her education with her husband Shahryanshah Sirajuddin in Riq’a and Diwani scripts until 2015, when she decided to focus on illumination with Ayşe Gülcan Özbalak.

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During the summer of the pandemic, Fatma Hoca joined the Deen Arts team and began teaching students the art of Islamic manuscript illumination, or tezhip. Fatma Hoca is fluent in Turkish and Malay. However, due to her exposure and engagement with English-speaking students, she has begun to comprehend the English language as her students learn Turkish in class.