Lebanese writer Amin Maalouf has been elected as the new permanent secretary of the French Academy. He replaces Helene Carrere d'Encausse who passed away on August 5th. Maalouf beat out his rival for the position, French doctor and former diplomat Jean-Christophe Rufin. The competition was unique in that both Maalouf and Rufin are former winners of the prestigious Prix Goncourt literary prize. Maalouf won the prize in 1993 for his novel Rock of Tanios while Rufin won in 2001 for his novel Brazil Red.

Born in Beirut in 1949, Maalouf made a name for himself as a journalist and author. He has been a Member of the French Academy since 2011 and has received honorary doctorates from four universities: Louvain (Belgium),Tarragona (Spain),Evora (Portugal),and Beirut's American University. In 2007-2008, he was appointed by the European Commission to chair a committee to study the importance of linguistic diversity and its impact on the strengthening of the European Union. His latest book, published this year, is titled Les desorientes (The Disoriented).