Who is Tawhida Ben Cheikh? Google Doodle pays tribute to celebrated Tunisian doctor

The physician's portrait was added to a banknote in Tunisia last year

Tunisia's Tawhida Ben Cheikhwas a pioneer in women's medicine. Courtesy Google

Google has shone a spotlight on the achievements of Tunisian physician Tawhida Ben Cheikh, making the women's health pioneer the subject of a new illustration.

The late doctor was honoured with a Google Doodle on Saturday, marking the one-year anniversary of her appearance on Tunisia's 10-dinar bill.

The artwork shows the doctor, who died in 2010, with a stethoscope around her neck as she examines female patients and children.

The doodle appears on the search engine in numerous countries around the Mena region, including Morocco, Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Who was Tawhida Ben Cheikh?

The doctor and activist, born in Tunis in 1909, is widely credited as the first female physician in the North African country.

After earning her medical degree in France, Ben Cheikh opened her own free clinic in Tunisia in 1936 and also established Leila, the first Tunisian, French-language magazine for women.

"A feminist pioneer both in and out of the medical field, Ben Cheikh helped transform Tunisian medicine by providing women better access to contemporary healthcare," said Google as it unveiled the doodle.

"On this day in 2020, the Tunisian government issued a new 10-dinar note emblazoned with Ben Cheikh’s portrait—the world’s first ever banknote to feature a female doctor."

Ben Cheikh specialised in gynaecology and obstetrics, and also worked as head of the maternity department at Tunis's Hospital Charles Nicolle.

"Here’s to a medical trailblazer who made huge strides for gender equality in Tunisia and beyond," added Google.

What are Google Doodles?

Google Doodles feature sporadically throughout the year, transforming Google’s traditional logo into an animation to pay tribute to an important figure or moment in history. The doodles can also mark seasonal or celebratory events.

While certain doodles are only shown to those in specific regions by the search engine, users are able to explore Google’s entire Doodle catalogue by visiting the dedicate Doodle page.

See other Google Doodles made for the Mena region: