Archive for October, 2016

1. Faculty position: Modern Arabic Literature and Literary Theory

The Department of Arabic and Near Eastern Languages at the American University of Beirut seeks applicants for a faculty position in the field of modern Arabic literature and literary theory to begin August 15, 2017.

The position is at the assistant professor level. The Appointment is for an initial period of four years with opportunities for renewal and advancement. The usual teaching load is not more than 5 course a year. The language of instruction in this department (and only in this department) is Standard Arabic (fuṣḥā), but mastery of English is an essential requirement.

Applicants should be well versed in both Arab and Western classical heritages, including Western literary theory. A reading knowledge of French and/or German is highly desirable.

Applicants must have completed their PhD by August 2017. They must be able to teach, in Arabic, service courses in Arabic grammar and modern Arabic thought to native speakers of Arabic. Solid knowledge of the Arabic language and heritage and training in modern Western methodologies are essential.

Interested applicants should submit a cover letter, a CV, and arrange for three letters of reference to be sent directly to:

Nadia Maria El Cheikh, Dean
Faculty of Arts and Sciences
American University of Beirut
c/o 3 Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, 8th Floor
New York, NY 10017-2303, USA

Or

Nadia Maria El Cheikh, Dean
Faculty of Arts and Sciences
American University of Beirut
P.O. Box 11-0236, Riad El-Solh
Beirut 1107 2020, Lebanon

Electronic submissions are highly encouraged and may be sent to:as_dean@aub.edu.lb

For best consideration, please submit all required credentials by the early deadline of October 31, 2016. Visiting scholars will be considered.

 

 

 

2. New book:

Pedersen, Claus V.The Rise of the Persian Novel

From the Constitutional Revolution to Rezâ Shâh. 1910-1927 is out:

http://www.harrassowitz-verlag.de/category_328.ahtml?NKLN=86_B

 

 

 

3. Call for Papers

Journal of Islamic Studies and Culture

ISSN: 2333-5904 (Print) 2333-5912 (Online)

Journal of Islamic Studies and Culture is a peer reviewed international scholarly journal. The journal is dedicated to the scholarly study of all aspects of Islam and of the Islamic world. Particular attention is paid to works dealing with history, geography, political science, economics, anthropology, sociology, law, literature, religion, philosophy, international relations, environmental and developmental issues, as well as ethical questions related to scientific research. The journal is committed to the publication of original research on Islam as culture and civilization. It particularly welcomes work of an interdisciplinary nature that brings together history, religion, politics, culture and law. The Journal has a special focus on Islam in Africa, and on contemporary Islamic Thought. Contributions that display theoretical rigor especially work that link the particularities of Islamic discourse to the enterprise of knowledge and critique in the humanities and social sciences, will find Journal of Islamic Studies and Culture to be receptive to such submissions.

The journal is published by the American Research Institute for Policy Development that serves as a focal point for academicians, professionals, graduate and undergraduate students, fellows, and associates pursuing research throughout the world.

The interested contributors are highly encouraged to submit their manuscripts/papers to the executive editor via e-mail at editor@aripd.org. Please indicate the name of the journal (Journal of Islamic Studies and Culture) in the cover letter or simply put ‘Journal of Islamic Studies and Culture’ in the subject box during submission via e-mail.

The journal is Abstracted/Indexed in CrossRef, CrossCheck, Cabell’s, Ulrich’s, Griffith Research Online, Google Scholar, Education.edu, Informatics, Universe Digital Library, Standard Periodical Directory, Gale, Open J-Gate, EBSCO, Journal Seek, DRJI, ProQuest, BASE, InfoBase Index, OCLC, IBSS, Academic Journal Databases, Scientific Index.

E-Publication First^TM

E-Publication First^TM is a feature offered through our journal platform. It allows PDF version of manuscripts that have been peer reviewed and accepted, to be hosted online prior to their inclusion in a final printed journal. Readers can freely access or cite the article. The accepted papers are published online within one week after the completion of all necessary publishing steps.

DOI^® number

Each paper published in Journal of Islamic Studies and Culture is assigned a DOI^® number, which appears beneath the author’s affiliation in the published paper.

JISC is inviting papers for Vol. 4, No. 2. The online publication date is December 31, 2016. Submission Deadline: October 31, 2016.

For any additional information, please contact with the executive editor at editor@aripd.org

 

 

4. Two 2-year Post-Doctoral Religious Studies Research Fellowships in the Project “Striking from the Margins: Religion, State and Disintegration in the Middle East”, Central European University, Budapest

The fellowships will be offered to young researchers who wish to conduct original research and who have already extensive experience with and in the region. Eligible applicants should have held a doctoral degree for a period of less than five years.

Deadline for application: 1 November 2016. Information: https://hro.ceu.edu/vacancies/two-2-year-post-doctoral-research-fellowship-positions; contact Esther Holbrook, Coordinator (HolbrookE@ceu.edu)
 

 

 

5.  National University of Singapore:

a) Tenured Associate or Full Professorship in the Political Economy of the Middle East, National University of Singapore
Advanced Assistant Professors are also welcome to apply. Expertise in the relations between business and politics, and their ramifications in the wider society, is especially welcome.

Deadline for application: 30 November 2016.  Information: https://mei.nus.edu.sg/index.php/web/new-job-opening_tmpl/tenured-associate-or-full-professor-in-the-political-economy-of-the-middle

b) Tenured Associate or Full Professorship in Legal Pluralism and the Middle East, National University of Singapore
Our interest is in appointing a scholar whose work focuses on the interaction between different legal systems, traditions or norms, whether in 1) colonial, national, customary, guild, tribal non-state, sub-state and state contexts; or 2) supra-state or global ones such as Islamic law and global finance etc. would be a distinct advantage.

Deadline for application: 30 November 2016.  Information: https://mei.nus.edu.sg/index.php/web/new-job-opening_tmpl/tenured-associate-or-full-professor-in-legal-pluralism-and-the-middle-east

c) Professorship in Middle East-Asia Studies at any rank, National University of Singapore
We are interested in scholars whose work connects the Middle East with any other part of Asia, in any field or discipline (e.g., history, geography, anthropology, literature, sociology, economics, religion). Knowledge of two or more countries, regions or languages in the Middle East and Asia would be a distinct advantage.

Deadline for application: 30 November 2016.  Information: https://mei.nus.edu.sg/index.php/web/new-job-opening_tmpl/open-rank-up-to-tenured-full-professor-in-middle-east-asia-studies
 

 

6. Papers for Special Issue: “Theory and Practice: How Islam Alters the Modern World”, Journal of Political Theory and Journal of Humanities and Cultural Studies

Whether or not cultures can coexist, the cause(s) of terrorism, whether religio-national identity can change and adapt, are key questions that this issue will analyze. The scope looks at the interactions between different types of peoples (as a product of migration) through a theoretical lens.

Deadline for submissions: 10 February 2017. Information: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2016/09/28/call-for-papers-special-issue-theory-and-practice-how-islam-alters-the-modern-world

 

 

 

7. Papers for Special Issue on: “Installing Islamic Art: Interior Space and Temporal Imagination” for International Journal of Islamic Architecture (IJIA)

Papers are invited that explore the history, culture and politics of the interior space in the field of Islamic art and architecture from the eighteenth century to the present, as well as to those that extend discussion into the future.

Deadline for abstracts: 31 January 2017. Information: https://networks.h-net.org/node/7636/discussions/143810/cfp-installing-islamic-art-interior-space-and-temporal-imagination

 

 

8. ARIT Fellowships in the Humanities and Social Sciences in Turkey, 2017–2018

The fields of study cover all periods of history in the general range of the humanities and include humanistically oriented aspects of the social sciences, prehistory, history, art, archaeology, literature, and linguistics, as well as interdisciplinary aspects of cultural history.

Information: http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/ARIT/NEHFellowships.html

_____________

 

 

9. BIPS Mailing List

Sign up to be on the mailing list of the British Institute of Persian Studies (BIPS), at: http://www.bips.ac.uk/

 

 

10. CALL FOR PAPERS | SYMPOSIA IRANICA

THIRD BIENNIAL CONFERENCE ON IRANIAN STUDIES

Hosted by the University of Cambridge at Pembroke College, Cambridge, UK, 11-12 April 2017

***Deadline: 2 December 2016***

We welcome proposals that engage with any aspect of Iranian studies within the arts, humanities, and social sciences. These include but are not limited to prehistory through to contemporary history; historiography; art and architecture history; anthropology; archaeology; cultural heritage; film studies; music; new media and communication studies; the performing arts; poetry and literature; languages and linguistics; Diaspora studies; international relations and political science; social and political theory; law and legal studies; economics; sociology; philosophy; religions and theology. Comparative themes and interdisciplinary approaches are also very welcome.

SUBMISSIONS

Proposals are open to postgraduate students and early career post-doctoral researchers from any disciplinary background:

1. Postgraduate students (MA, MPhil, MSt, etc. who are currently enrolled or graduated in 2016);
2. PhD students/candidates at any stage of their degree; and
3. post-docs subject to graduation within the last three years (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016).

Persons falling into any of these categories are eligible to submit proposals for an individual paper or pre-arranged panel. PDF forms can be downloaded from the website.

The language of the conference is English. All submissions will undergo double-blind peer review.

ABOUT US

Symposia Iranica is Iranian studies’ leading forum for early career scholars. A dedicated, multidisciplinary, peer-reviewed platform open to emerging scholars working on any aspect of Iranian or Persian Studies within the arts, humanities, and social sciences, our two previous conferences were hosted by the University of St Andrews at St Mary’s College in 2013 and the University of Cambridge at Downing College in 2015.

The full call for papers is on our website: symposia-iranica.com

Regular updates will be posted to our Facebook page: facebook.com/SymposiaIranica

SPONSORS

We gratefully acknowledge the continued support of principal sponsors the British Institute of Persian Studies and the Soudavar Memorial Foundation, and of Pembroke College, Cambridge, the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies and the Shahnama Centre for Persian Studies at the University of Cambridge, and The Islamic Manuscript Association.

 

 

11. Old Dominion University – Islamic World – Assistant Professor of History
http://www.h-net.org/jobs/job_display.php?id=53795

 

 

Card

CEIAS EHESS, 190-198 avenue de France, Paris 75013
Contact: Iqbal Akhtar (iakhtar@fiu.edu)

1.Call for Papers, 2^nd workshop

RECOVERING ‘LOST VOICES’:

THE ROLE AND DEPICTION OF IRANIAN/PERSIANATE SUBALTERNS FROM THE 13TH CENTURY TO THE MODERN PERIOD

A multi-year research project funded by the British Institute of Persian Studies (BIPS).

The second of four workshops – on subalterns across the entire Persianate world in the Safavid and Afsharid periods – will be held at the University of Edinburgh, UK, on 19-21 May, 2017.

Read more at:

http://www.shii-news.imes.ed.ac.uk/projects/the-subalterns-project/

Accommodation will be provided. Limited funding support for travel and other expenses is available, especially for PhD students and unaffiliated scholars.

Prospective presenters should submit a 500 word abstract, with an indicative list of the primary sources on which the paper will draw, to a.newman@ed.ac.uk by Friday, 6 January, 2017. The final composition of the workshop will be announced by mid-February, 2017.

Presentations will be filmed and archived and selected papers from the project will be published.

 

2. CFP – Journal of Islamic Perspective and Culture

by Ugur Bakan

Journal of Islamic Perspective and Culture is a refereed journal dedicated to publishes high quality, peer-reviewed multidisciplinary scholarly articles on all aspects of related to Islam and Muslim societies offered in a variety of other disciplines as well, such as culture, history, geography, art, law, anthropology, political science, philosophy, literature, sociology, economics, and women, gender and sexuality studies, architecture and international relations. Research papers should be original, substantial and unpublished research that can describe work-in-progress systems, frameworks, standards and evaluation schemes.

The journal aims to promote a constructive and critical understanding of the role of Islam and Muslims at different perspective such as the history of Muslim nation, arts and sciences in Islam, Islamic cultural heritage, Islamic Law, Islamic Theology and Islamic philosophy, Islamic economics and finance, Islamic sociology and Islamic psychology, Islamic literature, Islamic art and architecture and all other aspects of Islamic culture and civilization.

The scope of the journal includes the study of a variety of different in knowing and understanding of the religion, comprehensive knowledge of Islamic intellectual history and civilization of Islam as well as a closer comprehension of today’s world and interdisciplinary studies that are cross national and comparative.

If you would like to discuss your paper prior to submission, or seek advice on the submission process please contact the Editorial Office, at the following email address: jipc@macroworldpub.com

Submission and Publication Information:
Submission deadline: November 10th, 2016
Final manuscript submissions to publisher: Jan, 2017

Submission to first decision:  3 weeks

Submission to final decision: 6 weeks
Number of papers: 7 to 10 papers

See: https://networks.h-net.org/node/7636/discussions/146722/cfp-journal-islamic-perspective-and-culture

 

 

3. Conference – Islamic Art: Reception Processes in Middle Ages and Modern Times (Zurich, 4 Nov. 2016)

University of Zurich, Rämistrasse 59, Room RAA-E-29, November 4, 2016
Registration deadline: Nov 1, 2016

Workshop “Islamic Art – Reception Processes in Middle Ages and Modern
Times“

Looking closely at medieval and modern transfer and reception processes
within Islamic art, the aim of the workshop is to discuss and analyse
theoretical approaches, methods and concepts dealing with such
processes. A range of significant case studies presented by Magdalena
Valor (University of Sevilla), Yuka Kadoi (Edinburgh) and Maximilian
Hartmuth (University of Vienna) will provide the opportunity to examine
interesting overlaps, theoretical innovations and methodological
challenges. Attendants are hereby invited to contribute a short
presentation / poster-presentation on their personal ongoing research
projects dealing with transfer and reception processes.
The interdisciplinary workshop is open to MA, PhD and post-docs
students. It is organized by members of the Institute of Art History,
the Institute of Asian and Oriental Studies and the University Research
Priority Program Asia and Europe at the University of Zurich.

Program

08:30 Welcome and registration

09:00 Katrin Kaufmann, Helena Lahoz Kopiske and Elika Palenzona-Djalili
(Universität Zürich): Opening Remarks

09:25 Magdalena Valor (Universidad de Sevilla): “The Iberian Medieval
Conquered Space: The Transformation of Religious Buildings”

Coffee Break

10:45 Yuka Kadoi (Edinburgh): “Image Transfer, Object Exchange: The
Case of the Mongol Empire”

12:00 Lunch

13:30 Maximilian Hartmuth (Universität Wien): “‘Austro-Islamic
Architecture’ and ‘Moorish Style’ in Habsburg-ruled Bosnia”

14:20 Poster and short Presentation Session. MA Students, PhD and
Post-docs

Coffee Break

15:50 Plenary Discussion and Final Remarks

17:00 Aperitif

For more information see:
http://www.asienundeuropa.uzh.ch/en/events/conferences/reception.html

 

 

4. Jobs:

 

Florida State University – Assistant Professor, Islamic World

http://www.h-net.org/jobs/job_display.php?id=53718

 

Oberlin College – Assistant Professor of Art / Architecture of the Islamic World

http://www.h-net.org/jobs/job_display.php?id=53730

 

American University – Beirut – Faculty position in world literature

and global film and visual culture

http://www.h-net.org/jobs/job_display.php?id=53752

 

New York University – Visiting Research Scholar Program

http://www.h-net.org/jobs/job_display.php?id=53735

 

 

5. 2016 MEM Graduate Student Prize

The Board of Directors of Middle East Medievalists (MEM) offers a prize of $250 for the best graduate student paper on a medieval topic. Although modest in amount, it is hoped that this award will provide encouragement to graduate students with an interest in the medieval period. One need not be a member of MEM to be considered for this prize. The prize will be awarded in Boston at the annual meeting of the Middle East Studies Association. Graduate Students who  wish to have their contributions considered for the 2016 prize should submit a copy of their paper (not to exceed 20 pages!) to Antoine Borrut, MEM secretary, at: aborrut@umd.edu

The deadline for submissions is October 31, 2016. 

 

 

6. Thu 20 Oct, 2016 – Sat 22 Oct, 2016 Historians of Islamic Art Association 2016 Biennial Conference

Regionality: looking for the local in the arts of Islam

The Courtauld Institute of Art, Somerset House, Strand, London

For further information and the programme, see:

http://courtauld.ac.uk/event/regionality-looking-local-arts-islam

 

 

 

7. EHESS

Séminaire « L’Asie centrale dans tous ses États : questions et méthodes »

Responsables : Stéphane Dudoignon (CNRS/CETOBAC), Carole Ferret (CNRS/LAS), Isabelle Ohayon (CNRS/CERCEC), Julien Thorez (CNRS/M2I)

2^es lundis du mois de 13h00 à 16h00 – 190-8, av. de France – 75013 Paris

Les 10 octobre & 14 novembre : salle 1 – À partir du 12 décembre : salle du Conseil B

Lundi 10 octobre 2016

Aftandil ERKINOV (Institut des études orientales, Tachkent, Ouzbékistan)

Le grand tremblement de terre du début du xx^e siècle à Andidjan

Muzaffar OLIMOV (Centre Sharq, Douchanbeh, Tadjikistan)

Les radicalisations actuelles dans le domaine postsoviétique :

l’exemple du Tadjikistan

Venez nombreux !

Contacts : stephane.a.dudoignon@ehess.fr, carole.ferret@college-de-france.fr, isabelle.ohayon@cercec.cnrs.fr, julien.thorez@cnrs.fr

 

 

8. 2^nd GIS Congress

« Middle East and Muslim Worlds »

7 July 2017

INALCO, Paris

Preorganized Panel

Irrationality in the Middle East and Islām

Description

If rationality denotes what complies with the mind, irrationality, by contrast, deals with all that, at first sight, can’t be explained and controlled by the ʿaql. In other words, irrationality is a negatively defined notion marked by lack or loss (ʿadam-, ġayr– ou lā-ʿaql), distance (ibʿād) or deviation (inḥirāf) from the intellect, or even it is the result of reduced rationality (qillat al-ʿaql).

An irrational behaviour is considered rather strange, abnormal, and sometimes contrary to sound norms and moral principals. Consequently, this is the case of liminal states or of more or less voluntary marginal conducts: the insane and the mental ill, the drunk or the intoxicated, the silly, the foolish, the madly in love with beloved or with God, etc.

In other cases, irrationality can be defined either by the temporary loss of self-control (anger, violent attack, fear, etc.), or by the lack of moderation and the inability to abstain from the pleasures of the flesh (uncontrolled appetite, a more or less licit sexual pleasure, etc.).

However, irrationality also bears a specific knowledge, which is beyond the control of the logic, a vision of an alternative world and a different reality along with a set of spiritual insights that cannot be controlled and that are between the sensitive world and the unconscious: emotions, gratification of the senses, dreams, the world of magic and sorcery, divination, prophecy, superstition, miracle, the hereafter, ecstasy, mysticism, love, hallucination, imaginary, etc.

Propositions aimed at analysing all the historical periods of the Middle East and Islām and involving different areas (philosophy, theology, literature, social sciences, anthropology, Islamic law, history, medicine, sciences, mysticism, arts, etc.) are invited to participate.

Panel information

This panel will take place Friday the 7th of July 2017 from 1:00 to 3:30 pm, room 3.26 at Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales (INALCO), Pôle des Langues et Civilisations, 65, rue des Grands Moulins, 75214 Paris.

Participation

Candidates who wish to participate are kindly requested to send an abstract (300 words, including a provisional title) and a CV (200 words), in French or English, to Danilo Marino (danilo.marino@inalco.fr) by Sunday the 30th of October 2017.

Registration Fees

The registration to the Congress will open in January 2017 through AGIS (Association des Amis du GIS). The cost of registration is 20 euros per person except for PhD and post-doctoral students without employment contract. The registration fee authorises access to the Congress panels, round-tables and shows (except the concert).

Expenses for travel or stay will be at participants’ charges

Panel organizer

Danilo Marino, CERMOM, Inalco, Paris, danilo.marino@inalco.fr

 

 

9. Authority and Identity in Medieval Islamic Historiography: Persian Histories from the Peripheries. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2016.
Mimi Hanaoka, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Religious Studies
University of Richmond
http://www.cambridge.org/9781107127036

******************************

DESCRIPTION

Intriguing dreams, improbable myths, fanciful genealogies, and suspect etymologies. These were all key elements of the historical texts composed by scholars and bureaucrats on the peripheries of Islamic empires between the tenth and fifteenth centuries. But how are historians to interpret such narratives? And what can these more literary histories tell us about the people who wrote them and the times in which they lived? In this book, Mimi Hanaoka offers an innovative, interdisciplinary method of approaching these sorts of local histories from the Persianate world. By paying attention to the purpose and intention behind a text’s creation, her book highlights the preoccupation with authority to rule and legitimacy within disparate regional, provincial, ethnic, sectarian, ideological and professional communities. By reading these texts in such a way, Hanaoka transforms the literary patterns of these fantastic histories into rich sources of information about identity, rhetoric, authority, legitimacy, and centre-periphery relations.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Introduction
2. Methodologies for reading hybrid identities and imagined histories
3. Contexts and authorship
4. Dreaming of the prophet
5. Holy bloodlines, prophetic utterances, and taxonomies of belonging
6. Living virtues of the land
7. Sacred bodies and sanctified cities
8. Prophetic etymologies and sacred spaces
9. The view from Anatolia
10. Lessons from the peripheries.

 

 

10. Important New Developments in Arabographic Optical Character Recognition OCR
https://www.academia.edu/28923960/Important_New_Developments_in_Arabographic_Optical_Character_Recognition_OCR_

May be of interest to those interested in OCR (Optical Character Recognition) for Persian (i.e., turning all of those old PDF scans in digital, searchable texts!).

Above all, emailing this out because we are very interested in collaborating with Persianists who want to help expand the Persian training data set and have their texts OCRed in the process. Please get in touch!
—

Matthew Thomas Miller
Roshan Institute Research Fellow
Associate Director, Roshan Initiative in Persian Digital Humanities (PersDig@UMD)
University of Maryland, College Park
PersDig@UMD website: http://persdig.umd.edu/
Professional website: http://www.matthewthomasmiller.com/
Academia.edu Page: https://umcp.academia.edu/MatthewThomasMiller

 

 

Intellectual Interactions in the Islamic World: The Ismaili Thread | The Institute of Ismaili Studies

For the the full programme, registration and webcast details, see the website.

 

1.The Department of Comparative Literature and Middle East/South Asia Studies Program at the University of California, Davis invite applications for the Bita Daryabari Presidential Chair in Persian Language and Literature at the Associate or Full Professor level, effective 7/1/2017.

For full consideration, complete applications should be received no later than November 1, 2016.

For more information and to apply, see

https://recruit.ucdavis.edu/apply/JPF01059

 

 

 

2. CNRS: Mondes iranien et indien

Atelier

Vendredi 7 octobre, 9h-12h, salle 3.15

INaLCO, 65, rue des Grands Moulins PARIS

« Etymologie et emprunts dans l’histoire des langues iraniennes »

Interventions de

 

Agnes Korn :            « Noms de parenté en baloutchi : une famille recomposée »

Thomas Jügel :         « Calquing the Iranian verbal system: the case of Neo-Aramaic »

Sebastian Heine :      « Influence of other languages on Kurdish »

Johnny Cheung :      « Shedding light on the history of the speakers of Kurdish »

Matteo De Chiara :   « Recherches sur la lexicologie et la lexicographie du pashto »

 

 

3. Open Access Journal

Mizan, Journal for the Study of Muslim Societies and Civilizations

A Bi-Annual, Peer-Reviewed, Open Access Journal of Islamic Studies Border Graphic

E-ISSN 2472-5919

http://www.mizanproject.org/journal/

 

 

 

4. Ebooks from the American Numismatic Society,

http://numismatics.org/digitallibrary/results?q=genre_facet:%22e-books%22

 

 

 

5. Séminaire ‘Sociétés, politiques et cultures
du monde iranien’

Séance du 6 octobre 2016, 17h-18h30

Sebastian Heine, Bonn University

« Pashto Influence on the other Indo-Iranian languages in Afghanistan »

Persian and Pashto are the most important Iranian Language in Afghanistan, and also the two official languages of the country. While the deep impact of Persian Loans on the rest of the Iranian Group is evident, from a phonological, lexical as well as from a morphological point of view, until now lesser attention has been paid to the role of Pashto as a contact language with the remaining of the Indo-Iranian languages, i.e. languages belonging to the three subgroups of the Iranian languages, Indo-Aryan languages and Nuristani languages.
On the basis of some selected examples, Pashto influence on several dialect groups (Ormuri, Parachi, Yidgha-Munji, Pashai, Nuristani) will be explained.

Lieu : INaLCO, 65 rue des Grands Moulins, salle 3.03 (3e étage), 75013, Paris.

Organisateurs :
Matteo De Chiara (INaLCO), Denis Hermann (CNRS), Fabrizio Speziale (Paris 3 – CNRS), Julien Thorez (CNRS).

 

 

 

6. The Aga Khan University’s Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations (ISMC) and Graduate School of Media and Communications (GSMC) will be holding an academic conference entitled, Media in Muslim Contexts: Inventing and Reinventing Identities, at its London campus (210 Euston Road, NW1 2DA) on Nov 3-4, 2016.

There is no registration fee but places are limited.

https://www.aku.edu/ismc/research/activities/Pages/Media-in-Muslim-Contexts.aspx

 

 

 

7. The Margaret B. Ševčenko Prize in Islamic Visual Culture

Submission deadline: November 15, 2016
The Historians of Islamic Art Association (HIAA) is pleased to invite submissions for the 2017 Margaret B. Ševčenko Prize for the best unpublished article written by a junior scholar (pre-dissertation to three years after the Ph.D. degree) on any aspect of Islamic visual culture. Awarded annually by HIAA, this prize is named in memory of Margaret Bentley Ševčenko, the first and long‐serving Managing Editor of Muqarnas, a journal devoted to the visual culture of the Islamic world and sponsored by the Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture at Harvard and at MIT.
The competition is open to HIAA members only. As well as receiving an award of $500, the recipient of the prize will be announced at HIAA’s annual business meeting. The winning essay will also be considered for publication by the Muqarnas Editorial Board.
Submission must include the paper in both Word and PDF format, and a separate sheet with the author’s contact information (address, telephone number, and email address). A letter of recommendation for the paper should be sent separately by the author’s adviser or referee.
All materials should be submitted by email to urustem@jhu.edu by November 15, 2016.
 

 

8. Fashioned from Holy Matter.
A cross-cultural workshop on the semantics of image-making

Call for Papers
Deadline: 30 November 2016

Florence, Kunsthistorisches Institut in Florenz – Max-Planck-Institut
6–7 July 2017

This workshop draws attention to a particular type of image, which has not been studied yet as a group: images that were made of or shaped from holy matter, such as earth, stone, blood, sweat or wood. These materials might have been used as a support for painting, colour itself, as a modelling substance or as building material. The image-relic relationship—in particular, the insertion of relics into images/icons or reliquaries—and the miraculous properties of images in general have been the subject of sustained scholarly interest. In addition, the material properties of images and materiality, more broadly, are now major areas of study in both art history and a number of related disciplines. Yet little work has been devoted to the creative use of matter already perceived as holy or, vice versa, the later attribution of holiness to the substance of images.

The workshop seeks to explore from a cross-cultural and interreligious perspective how holy material becomes semantically charged and/or redefined through the process of artistic creation. How is meaning attained through the interaction between holy substance and image and how is the value of the holy matter communicated to various audiences (through inscriptions or legends for instance)? Does the image authenticate its holiness and, if so, what visual strategies were used? How might written descriptions or representations of  images also make this holy presence known? A related objective of the workshop will be to analyse the implications of meaning: how does it contribute to the function, use and activation of such images—in both sanctioned and unofficial devotional and ritual practices—, which might be informed by possible transcultural and transhistorical dynamics. Further, how might the meanings ascribed to fashioned matter express apotropaic, pharmacological or other concerns?

Papers from all fields, from earliest to contemporary times, are welcome.
Please send proposals of max. 500 words and a short Curriculum vitae by 30 November 2016 to the organisers:

hoffmann@khi.fi.it and jessica.richardson@khi.fi.it

 

 

 

9. Conference: “Envisioning a Post-Crisis Regional Order in the Sharq Region – Sykes Picot 100 Years”, Istanbul, 8-9 October 2016

Registration and Program: http://sharqforum.org/events/envisioning-a-post-crisis-regional-order-in-the-sharq-region/

 

10. Colloque annuel du Cercle des Chercheurs sur le Moyen Orient (CCMO) : « Complots, mukhabarats, conspirationnisme : le Moyen-Orient du secret », Hôtel de Ville de Paris, 26 octobre 2016

Inscription obligatoire à inscriptions.ccmo@gmail.com. Information: https://cerclechercheursmoyenorient.wordpress.com/
 

 

11. International Conference: “Religion: Bridging Gaps and Breaking Paths – Contemporary Approaches towards Discourses of Religion and Knowledge Production in Transdisciplinary Perspective”, Berlin, 2-4 February 2017

This conference is hosted by the Doctoral Program “Religion – Knowledge – Discourse” of the Humboldt-University.

Deadline for abstracts: 31 October 2017. Information: http://www.rwd.hu-berlin.de/de/aktuelles/cfp-conference

 

 

 

12. Tenure-track Position in Sociology, American University in Cairo

The position is beginning in the fall of 2017. Candidates with a PhD in sociology and any area of expertise are welcome to apply, while a focus on the Middle East and/or community development would be an asset.

Deadline for application: 10 November 2016. Information: http://www.aucegypt.edu/faculty/services/faculty-vacancies
 

 

 

13. Arabic Language Teaching & Learning in UK Higher Education

Tuesday 28^th March 2017

Call for Papers

The purpose of the conference is to bring together academics and language teachers working in UK Universities to discuss the nature and challenges presently faced in the field.  This is in the context of a recent rapid growth of demand for Arabic language learning, in particular across University Wide Language Programmes.  There are now (2016) almost 60 UK Universities teaching Arabic language, including 12 who offer degree programmes (single or joint honours, undergraduate or postgraduate) in Arabic Studies.  The Conference intends to:

1. Provide a forum for all teachers of Arabic in Higher Education in the UK to come together, and to act as a catalyst for collaboration across all institutions
2. To support the closer integration of the teaching & learning of Arabic with the teaching & learning of other languages in UKHE
3. To provide a forum for development of collaborative ideas amongst participants, leading to collaborative projects through external funding

The conference will include two external keynote speakers, and will close with a panel discussion. There will also be parallel sessions to receive presentations on topics of principal interest, a small exhibition and a space for posters. The focus will be towards Arabic teaching and learning in UK universities, submissions from outside the UK will be accepted. We now invite abstract submissions and/or posters that relate to the following sub-themes:

 

1. Pedagogical Approaches to Arabic Diglossia and Language Variation: This may include research  findings, presentations on the integrated approach and the questions of MSA versus Dialect.
2. Arabic Language Resources, Technology and Innovation: This would allow discussions on textbooks and technology T&L resources.
3. Approaches to Assessment and Proficiency Level Bench-marking: This can include discussions on proficiency scales for Arabic language, assessment of the different language skills and the different Arabic varieties and the use of innovative approaches to assessment.
4. Arabic Students and Teachers Aspirations: This can include learning motivations as well as opportunities for teacher training and professional development.

Confirmed Plenary Speakers

Zeinab A. Taha, American University in Cairo

Munther A. Younes, Cornell University

Abstract Submission

Papers are allotted thirty-minute slots followed by 10 minutes of discussion. Please submit your abstract (In English, 250 words maximum) to ArabicConference@leeds.ac.uk, by 9^th December 2016. A scientific committee will review the abstracts and acceptance will be confirmed by 13^th January 2017.

Key Dates:

Abstract submission deadline: 9^th December 2016
Notification of acceptance: 13^th January 2017
Registration opens: 16^th January 2017.
Registration deadline: 13^th March 2017.

For more information, please contact ArabicConference@leeds.ac.uk