Occupation(s) Singer, Actress Role Singer Name Affifa Iskandar | Labels Shahrora, monologist Instruments Vocal Genres Maqam al-iraqi | |
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Birth name Affifa Iskandar Estefan Associated acts Badia Masabni, Taheyya Kariokka Similar People Salima Pasha, Nazem Al‑Ghazali, Saleh and Daoud Al‑Kuwaity, Yas Khidr, Seta Hagopian | ||
Affifa Iskandar Estefan (Arabic: عفيفة إسكندر إصطيفان ) was an Iraqi singer throughout the middle of the 20th century. She was born on 10 December 1921 in Mosul, Iraq. She was considered one of the best female singers in Iraqi history. She was nicknamed the "Iraqi Blackbird" (شحرورة العراق).
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Biography
Affifa Iskandar was born in Mosul to an Iraqi-Armenian father and a Greek mother. She lived in Baghdad, and started singing at the age of 5. At her first party in 1935, 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. 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.
Singles
Iskandr sang nearly 1500 songs. These include: