Archive for 2017

EGYPT, For the People or Against the People? – Shia Rights Watch

While the history of Shia Muslims in Egypt is long and extensive, anti-Shiism is prevalent in this nation. Once called the forgotten minority, Shia Muslims in Egypt are lost amidst country’s political unrest. Shia numbers are always undermined in state-issued reports in aims of suppressing the population.

For the rest of the SRW’s recent mailing, including ‘Incidents of Anti-Shiism in May, 2017’, see here.

SEMINAR TO COMMEMORATE THE MARTYRDOM OF IMAM ALI (as) – Muhammadi Trust

Date/Time Date(s) – 18/06/2017 / 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm Category(ies)No Categories Event Details You can download a pdf version of the above programme by clicking on the link below: Imam Ali Seminar 2017

 

1.CfP: Empires: Towards a Global History

The proposed conference is premised on the idea that empires drew their strength from a global systemic architecture of hegemony and dominance.  The objective of the conference is designed to emphasize how imperial interactions served to reinforce empires within their global scaffolding. “Towards a Global History of Empires” seeks to delineate different strands and interconnected themes that explain both empires’ persistence as well as their mutations over time.

The themes that we propose for the conference shall include:

• Political construction of empires and their dissolution
• Circulation within and between empires of ideas, techniques, institutions
• Circulation of goods and trade links between empires
• Movement of people within and between empires
• Empires as discursive formations
• Plural cultures and imperial centers
• Micro history and empire

We invite papers addressing the above themes from all periods of history. We are looking for work that looks at empire from a global history approach that emphasizes connections and encourages comparisons. Advanced research students as well as senior scholars are invited to apply for the conference.

Coordination:

Department of History, University of Delhi, India

Weatherhead Initiative on Global History, Harvard University, USA

Support: Department of History (UGC-Centre of Advanced Study), University of Delhi; Volkswagen Foundation , Germany; and Weatherhead Initiative on Global History, Harvard University.

Contact Info:

Jessica Barnard

Program Administrator, Weatherhead Initiative on Global History

Harvard University

Contact Email:

wigh@fas.harvard.edu

URL:

http://globalhistorynetwork.net/event/global-history-network-conference-empires-towards-global-history

 

 

2. The Problem of Evil: Ibn Sina’s Theodicy

By Shams Inati

Hardback, 201 pp.
978-1-4632-0654-3

Website: https://www.gorgiaspress.com/the-problem-of-evil-ibn-sinas-theodicy

 

 

 

3. Open Rank Faculty Position in Islamic Studies, Stanford University

The successful applicant must demonstrate substantial evidence of creativity and excellence in research and scholarship as well as a commitment to excellence in teaching and advising students at both graduate and undergraduate levels. The appointment would begin 1 September 2018.

Deadline for application: 15 September 2017. Information: http://mesana.org/professional-opportunities/employment.html#Stanford-IslamicStds

 

 

 

4. The 5th Perso-Indica Conference

Science and Philosophy: Translation, Transmission and Interaction between Persianate and Hindu Traditions

The Fifth Conference of Perso-Indica (see: www.perso-indica.net) looks at the forms of interaction and translation between Persian and Hindu cultures in the scientific and philosophical fields. Persian scientific studies in South Asia acquired important distinctive features compared with the treatises produced in Iran and the rest of the Muslim world during the post-Abbasid period. In the multicultural context of South Asia, where Muslims remained a minority of the population, a number of treatises dealing with Indian scientific materials were written in Persian: Persian language and texts became new means of expression and transmission of Hindu scientific knowledge and practices, allowing them to circulate beyond the networks of Hindu scholars. Persian translations of Sanskrit sources appeared from the Sultanate period, especially from the early 14th century, and the production of these texts lasted until the colonial period. Many of them were compiled by and for the Muslims; however, from the Mughal period onward, Persian scientific texts — dealing with both Hindu and Greco-Arabic materials — were also written by Hindu scholars and for Hindu noblemen. Certain sciences seem to have fulfilled specific demands of the ruling elite: such as astrology, prognostication and the treatises on the horse. Differently, the large amount of Persian texts dealing with Ayurveda and pharmacology chiefly emerged and developed outside the courts. The production of these texts does not seem to have been a homogeneous trend but rather a polycentric phenomenon in which the regional spaces occupied a key role.

In the scope of this conference we aim to explore especially the following topics:

Which were the common cross-disciplinary aspects and practices of scientific translation, and which were the non homogeneous features that characterized the reception of different Indian sciences in the Persianate environment, either from an historical, geographical or social perspective?

Which were the historical, geographical, regional and dynastic contexts in which these scientific studies emerged and developed?

Which were the symmetric features of these interactions? How did Hindu scholars assimilate scientific notions drawn from Muslim sources? Did Muslim scientific materials circulate through translations and become incorporated into Sanskrit sources, and which disciplines were concerned? How and to what extent did Persian-speaking Hindu scholars appropriate Muslim sciences by reading the sources in the original languages?

Which genres of Persian texts on Indian sciences were produced, and how did the role of different types of texts evolve or change according to the requirements of different disciplines? What was the influence of direct translations from Sanskrit and other Indian languages and what was the role of new Persian treatises on Indian sciences? Moreover, how were Indian notions and practices incorporated and transmitted in Persian works which dealt chiefly with Greco-Arabic knowledge?

How were the source terms and notions translated in the lexicon and the concepts of the target culture? Which Indic terms were incorporated in Persian texts? Did their transliteration into Persian script follow common patterns or evolve? What was the role of intermediate translations in vernacular languages in the production of these Persian texts, and how did this influence translation?

Which were the non textual, oral and social aspects of the interaction? How was knowledge taught and transmitted between masters and students of different religious groups and networks of scholars, and how did these interreligious pedagogical interactions emerge and develop?

What were the impact and the legacy of these interactions and of the corpus of Persian texts for Indian sciences? Did these studies propose conceptual changes compared to the Greco-Arabic tradition? Did they have a reflexive impact that could redefine certain concepts of the target culture which were involved in translation? In a wider perspective, did these Persian studies circulate also outside South Asia, and into which languages were they translated?

 

Date: 1st and 2nd February 2018.

Venue: Friedrich-Wilhelm University Bonn, Germany

Scientific coordination: Eva Orthmann (Friedrich-Wilhelm University, Bonn) – Fabrizio Speziale (Sorbonne Nouvelle, Paris)

Contact for information: Soraya Khodamoradi: skhodamo@uni-bonn.de

Deadline for submission of abstract proposals: 1st August 2017, abstract proposal must be sent to: skhodamo@uni-bonn.de. The abstracts will be assessed by peer review.

Web page: http://www.perso-indica.net/events-news/31

 

 

 

5. The Aga Khan University’s Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations based in London (AKU-ISMC) is inviting experienced scholars to join the Institute as a visiting scholar within the 2017-2018 academic year.

We are looking to host two categories of visiting scholars. Between September and December 2017 we would be open to hosting scholars from one to three months. We are also looking to host one or two visiting scholars for periods of three to twelve months throughout the academic year.

The Institute aims to focus on issues of relevance to Muslim societies and is seeking to attract voices from Muslim contexts through its visiting scholars programme. The Institute focuses on three broad research themes:

The Construction of Knowledge about Muslim Cultures and Societies
Understanding the Processes of Social Change in Muslim Cultures and Societies
Governance for the Public Interest in Muslim Contexts
A key outcome of the visiting scholars programme will include the organisation of a public event or workshop which will be funded by the Institute. Other expected outcomes will depend on the duration of the visit and may include:

Public lecture(s)
Research workshop(s)
Teaching within the Institute’s Masters’ and/or Professional Programmes
Publication (for longer term positions)
Visiting scholars would also be expected to engage in discussions about their work and that of colleagues at the Institute as well as dialogue through seminars with students.

Requirements:
The Institute invites applications from experienced scholars and researchers with an international reputation and strong academic knowledge who will offer distinctive perspectives on a particular area of study relevant to the Institute’s research interests.

Candidates should have:

A PhD linked to one of the areas of interest to the Institute
Extensive scholarly publications and experience within the field
Demonstrated research and teaching experience within Muslim majority contexts
Proficient communication skills in English
Salary level

Depending on the candidate’s academic profile, the Institute will pay gross salaries based on its current scales ranging from £50,000 to £65,000 per annum pro rata. Where applicable, an economy class return flight will be paid. Please note that accommodation in London will need to be independently organised by the researcher(s). Other benefits include: office space, access to computer facilities and access to the Library.

Application Procedure

Interested candidates should send their CV and a proposal for a public event/workshop (maximum 2 pages) to ismc.personnel@aku.edu

The proposal should include a timeline for the public event/workshop, potential participants, budget and outputs.

Application Deadline: 15th June 2017

Shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend interviews (either in person or online, as appropriate) during the month of July 2017.

More information about AKU-ISMC’s research themes can be found on our website.

Note: We will only contact candidates short-listed for interview. If you have not heard from us within four weeks after the closing date, please presume that your application has not been successful.

By submitting an application to AKU-ISMC you provide your consent to the Institute under the Data Protection Act 1998 for the Institute to share the contents of your application with relevant colleagues based at other locations of the University (including in Pakistan and East Africa), and with its nominated agents for the purpose of completing this recruitment exercise.

 

Apply through: http://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/BBQ150/call-for-visiting-scholars-2017-18/ 

 

 

 

6. Announcement and Call for Applications: Iran Graduate Student Workshop

May 25, 2017

To build bridges across Persian and Iranian Studies programs, scholars
from New York University’s Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies Department
and the Gallatin School (ISI-NYU), Princeton University’s Center for
Iran and Persian Gulf Studies, and the University of Pennsylvania’s
Middle East Center announce the */Iran Graduate Student Workshop
/(IGSW)*. The workshop will provide a valuable venue for academic
exchange and production, giving distinguished young scholars of the
field an unrivalled opportunity to present and promote their research.

On *_May 4-5, 2018_*, the University of Pennsylvania will host the
second gathering of this joint workshop, to be followed by similar
meetings at the other campuses every two years. This second workshop in
2018 will consist of PhD students that are near ABD status and preparing
their dissertation proposals (i.e., typically in their 2nd or 3rd year
of graduate work). In addition, the first cohort will participate again,
as discussants, in the 2018 workshop, as they approach the end of their
graduate work.

Applicants for the second round, in 2018, must focus on modern Iran
(roughly 18^th -20^th centuries), other countries of the Persianate
world, or diasporas, or conduct relational histories and comparative
work; and will be drawn from disciplines and programs in the humanities
and social sciences, including anthropology, art history, economics,
history, literature, politics, sociology, and related fields.

* *

*IGSW Purpose:*

•   To provide graduate students with intellectual feedback on their
research, encompassing both 
area studies and disciplinary critiques,
twice in their graduate student careers.

•   To ensure that graduate students of Iran are aware of, and make
their work accessible to, 
scholars from other parts of “their” area
(i.e., the Middle East broadly defined) as well as from 
their own
discipline, whether it be history, literature, or the social sciences.

•   To use the above points to make sure that graduating scholars who
focus on modern Iran will 
continue to be placed, if not more frequently
placed, in both area studies and disciplinary 
departments.

•   To help doctoral students improve skills in scholarship and teaching.

To apply, please send the materials below by */_August 15, 2017_/*//to
igsw2018@gmail.com <mailto:igsw2018@gmail.com>:

•   One letter of recommendation from an advisor or committee member
supporting the research project and attesting to the student’s good
standing in their program of study.

•   Curriculum vitae

•   Research proposal of 1,000 words on argument, methods, and evidence
to be used in 
dissertation 
Decisions on applications will be sent out
by */_September 30, 2017_/*. If selected by the IGSW committee,
participants will be expected to attend workshops in years 2018 and
2020. Travel and accommodation for accepted applicants will be provided
by the IGSW.
 

 

 

7. Call for application: Summer School Reading and analysing Ottoman manuscript sources

Summer School

Beirut, Lebanon, 27th to 30th of August 2017

Description

The French Institute of the Near East (Ifpo), the Orient-Institut Beirut (OIB), the University of Balamand, the Lebanese University (Doctoral School of Literature, Humanities and Social Sciences), the Center for Turkish, Ottoman, Balkan and Centralasian Studies (CETOBaC), the Ankara Sosyal Bilimler Üniversitesi, the İbn Haldun Üniversitesi, and the Japan Center for Middle Eastern Studies (JaCMES) with the support of the Open Jerusalem project are organising a summer school devoted to reading and analysing Ottoman manuscript sources. This is the second edition, following the summer school of 2016 in Amman, Jordan.

During the four-day programme we will introduce young researchers (mostly MA and PhD candidates, but postdocs may also apply) to reading, combining and analysing manuscript sources from various archives of the Ottoman era, produced at local, provincial and imperial levels. We concentrate mainly on materials from the 16th and 20th centuries, but welcome also explorations into earlier archives. Our summer school offers future researchers introductory presentations of the archival situation, various types of sources and basic research tools and workshops with a focus on the actual work with texts. The aim is to overcome the initial difficulties researchers often face when working with archival material from the Ottoman period, one of which is an administrative terminology no longer in use today.

For more info: http://www.ifporient.org/node/1935

 

Bahrain Dissolves Wa’ad, Last Major Opposition Society – Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain

31 May 2017 – A Bahraini court today approved the dissolution of Wa’ad (also known as the National Democratic Action Society), the country’s largest secular, leftist opposition group. Wa’ad was the last major opposition group officially operating in Bahrain following the July 2016 dissolution of Al-Wefaq National Islamic Society. Americans …

In wake of Trump visit, Saudi-led Sunni bloc already splintering

Author: Bruce Riedel The Saudi-orchestrated bloc of Sunni Muslim states celebrated at US President Donald Trump’s visit to Riyadh is splintering less than two weeks after the summit. There is growing unease with the summit’s intense animosity toward Iran and increasing concerns that the Saudis are inflaming the sectarian divide between Sunnis and Shiites.

SAFAVIDS BEFORE EMPIRE: TWO 15TH-CENTURY ARMENIAN PERSPECTIVES | International Journal of Middle East Studies | Cambridge Core

SAFAVIDS BEFORE EMPIRE: TWO 15TH-CENTURY ARMENIAN PERSPECTIVES – Volume 49 Issue 2 – Thomas A. Carlson

President Trump and the Muslim World

In an ostentatious conference hall in Riyadh, President Trump lectured a group of bizarrely deferential leaders from 50 Muslim majority nations, while actually telling them he was “not here to lecture”. Magically changing the campaign rhetoric of “I think Islam hates us.”

Trump’s Alignment with Sunni Autocrats Masks Shallow Understanding of Region

President Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia has engendered endless press reporting and analysis. Two key points stand out in the media coverage. First, the trip was mostly show than action. Second, the Saudis played up to Trump’s craving for adulation and narcissism. They knew he was a fickle showman and acted accordingly.

1.Jobs:

Postdoctoral Teaching Scholar, North Carolina State University, Raleigh
The scholar will be expected to teach two classes (Middle Eastern History) per semester in the Department of History. Qualifications: Ph.D. in Middle Eastern History; experience as a teaching assistant or instructor; etc.
Deadline for application: 22 May 2017. Information: https://jobs.ncsu.edu/postings/85717 

 

Columbia University – Lecturer in Arabic Language
http://www.h-net.org/jobs/job_display.php?id=54920

 

 

 

2. MESA Graduate Student Paper Prize
Graduate student research papers on any aspect of post 600 CE Middle East studies are sought for this blind review. Winner is awarded $250.

Deadline for application: 15 August 2017. Information: http://mesana.org/awards/student-paper-prize.html

 

 

 

3. Malcolm H. Kerr Dissertation Awards

Students completing their dissertations between July 1, 2016 and June 30, 2017 may submit entries for this award. The competition is to recognize exceptional achievement in research and writing for/of dissertations in Middle East studies. Winner in each category (social sciences and humanities) is awarded $1000.

Deadline for submissions: 1 July 2017. Information: http://mesana.org/awards/malcolm-kerr-dissertation.html
 

 

4. Articles for the “Australian Journal of Islamic Studies (AJIS)”

Contributions for this double-blind peer-reviewed journal are encouraged in Islamic theology, philosophy, sociology, jurisprudence, contemporary studies, comparative religion, spirituality, Qur’anic and Sunnah studies, history and art.

Deadline for submissions: 1 September 2017. Information: http://www.ajis.com.au/
 

 

5. LC Offers Largest Release of Digital Catalog Records in History

The Library of Congress announced today that it is making 25 million records in its online catalog available for free bulk download at loc.gov/cds/products/marcDist.php. This is the largest release of digital records in the Library’s history.

The records also will be easily accessible at data.gov, the open-government website hosted by the General Services Administration (GSA). Until now, these bibliographic records have only been available individually or through a paid subscription.

 

 

 

6. Director of the HRH Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Centre for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World

Vacancy Ref: :  039922

The University of Edinburgh is seeking to appoint an outstanding Director of the HRH Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Centre for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World.

The HRH Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Centre for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World (www.alwaleed.ed.ac.uk) is a Centre within the University of Edinburgh, established in 2010, devoted to research, outreach and knowledge transfer, in the field of Islamic Studies. It is part of a network of Centres established by the HRH Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Foundation, currently two in the United States (Harvard and Georgetown), two in the United Kingdom (Edinburgh and Cambridge), and two in the Middle East (the American University of Beirut and the American University in Cairo), which are devoted to the improvement of mutual understanding between the Muslim World and the West. Further details of the Objectives, Staff, and activities of the Edinburgh Alwaleed Centre can be found at www.alwaleed.ed.ac.uk.

As Director, and in consultation with Head of College and Head of School and other stakeholders, you will set a strategic vision for the Centre’s development covering research, outreach and impact to raise the Centre’s international profile, build research and teaching partnerships across the University, and creatively engage with a broad range of external individuals and organisations.

A successful track record of leadership, strong intellectual credentials, and the ability to command credibility amongst senior figures in academia and beyond is essential. A successful candidate for this position will be appointed, if suitably qualified and as appropriate, to a Chair at the University at the same time.

For a confidential discussion, please contact Professor Jeremy Robbins, Head of School, Literatures, Languages and Cultures – Tel: +44 (0)131 650 3638.

This is a full time, open ended position based on 35 hours each week. Salary will be negotiable depending on track record and experience.

Closing date: 5pm (GMT) Wednesday 14th June 2017.

Further information and details on how to apply can be found at the following link: https://www.vacancies.ed.ac.uk/pls/corehrrecruit/erq_jobspec_version_4.jobspec?p_id=039922