The Grande dame of Palestinian letters, is considered as one of the best Arab contemporary poets. The sister of poet Ibrahim Tuqan, she was born in Nablus in 1917. She began writing in the traditional forms, but was one of the leaders of the use of the free verse in Arabic poetry. Her works deal with feminine explorations of love and social protest. After 1967, she also began writing patriotic poems. Her autobiography published in 1985, A Mountainous Journey, was translated into English in 1990.