Hartmut Fähndrich was born in Tübingen, Germany, in 1944, and in 1972 moved to Switzerland, where he still lives. He studied Comparative Literature and Islamic Studies in Germany and the USA.

Since the mid-’80s he has been translating contemporary Arabic literature and in 2008 achieved the publication of his fiftieth literary translation – novels and short stories – mainly from Palestine, Lebanon, Egypt and Libya.