Maha Bayrakdar Al-Khal (alternatively: Bayraqdar, Bairakdar,[1] Birqidar,[2] Birdkar,[3] Arabic: مها بيرقدار, born on 26 February 1947) is a Syrian and Lebanese poet and artist.
Bayrakdar sketched and wrote poetry at an early age; she completed fine arts studies in her native Damascus before obtaining a business administration degree in Munich, Germany.
In 1970 Bayrakdar married the Lebanese-Syrian poet Yusuf al-Khal and has two children with him, Ward and Youssef, both of whom are acclaimed actors in the Middle East.
Maha was born and raised in Damascus on 26 February 1947 to a Syrian father major Mohammad Khayr Bayrakdar, a police officer, and a Lebanese mother Nazmiyya al-Amin who was a painter.
[4][5] She attended the Khadija al-Kubra school in Damascus before her family started moving during her formative years due to the nature of her father's work.
During the move, Bayrakdar was exposed to the beauty of the Syrian hinterland and began sketching and painting at an early age.
[4] Bayrakdar published a number of poetry books ʿeshbat al-Meleh (The Salt Herb, 1989), Rahil al-ʿanaser (The departure of the elements -1995), as-Samt (The silence - 2004), and Dawat ar-ruh (The cure of the soul - 2011).
[16] In 2010 and 2013 respectively she wrote Noktet Hobb (A drop of love) and Kharej Az-Zaman (Beyond time) which featured both Ward and Youssef in leading roles.