Archive for 2020

Anti-Shiism Hinders the Combat of Corona virus in Pakistan – Shia Rights Watch

While the world struggles to combat the novel Coronavirus, Anti-Shiism in Pakistan quells life-saving efforts. On June 17th, the family of a Coronavirus patient in critical condition reached out to the community in search of a recovered Coronavirus patient to donate blood plasma with antibodies. With much effort, a donor was found.

Colour, Light and Wonder in Islamic Art – Saqi Books

Colour, Light and Wonder in Islamic Art Home> Books> Saqi>Colour, Light and Wonder in Islamic Art The experience of colour in Islamic visual culture has historically been overlooked. In this new approach, Idries Trevathan examines the language of colour in Islamic art and architecture in dialogue with its aesthetic contexts, offering insights into the pre-modern Muslim experience of interpreting colour.

The seventeenth-century Shah Mosque in Isfahan, Iran, represents one of the finest examples of colour-use on a grand scale. Here, Trevathan examines the philosophical and mystical traditions that formed the mosque’s backdrop. He shows how careful combinations of colour and design proportions in Islamic patterns expresses knowledge beyond that experienced in the corporeal world, offering another language with which to know and experience God. Colour thus becomes a spiritual language, calling for a re-consideration of how we read Islamic aesthetics.

“Bahrain: Unrest, Security, and U.S. Policy” Updated June 26, 2020

1.POSTPONED: International Conference of the Academic Research Institute in Iraq (TARII): “From Ancient to Modern: The Current State of Research on Iraq“, Washington, DC, 9 October 2020. Postponed to 1 October 2021

This conference will bring together American, Iraqi, and international scholars to present their findings and exchange their ideas in any subject area.

Information: https://www.tarii.org/conferences

 

 

 

 

2. Professorship (W3) in “Islam Studies: Arabic“, Heidelberg University

The professorship focuses on intellectual history and religious studies with regard to the Islamic world. The successful applicant is expected to master the full range of the subject as qualified above, and be experienced in the study of classical as well as modern literary and scholarly texts in Arabic, as evidenced by excellent publications. In addition, a good knowledge of Persian is especially appreciated.

Deadline for applications: 31 July 2020. Information: https://adb.zuv.uni-heidelberg.de/info/INFO_FDB$.startup?MODUL=LS&M1=1&M2=0&M3=0&PRO=29033 (English text at the end)

 

 

 

 

3. Research Fellow (3 Years) for Project “Religion for Peace: Identifying Conditions and Mechanisms of Interfaith Peace”, German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA), Hamburg

Requirements:  Very good MA in political science, economics, or other social sciences, sound quantitative methodological skills, including advanced statistical skills regarding cross-country time-series,  keen interest in the topic of religion, peace and conflict in Africa and beyond.

Screening of applications will begin on 6 July 2020. Information: https://www.giga-hamburg.de/sites/default/files/md_pdf/GIGA-20-05_ResearchFellow_Religion-for-Peace-DFG.pdf

 

 

 

 

4. Tenure Track Full Professor of Islamic Origins (1.0 FTE), University of Groningen

What we ask: a PhD degree in Islamic Studies, Religious Studies, Theology, or another field appropriate to the position;  experience and proven success in teaching; an exemplary research record demonstrated by publications in monographs and articles in top journals; success in acquiring external funding; fluency in the English language; etc.

Deadline for applications: 31 August 2020. Information: https://www.academictransfer.com/en/292492/tenure-track-full-professor-islamic-origins-10-fte/?utm_source=ATemailalert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=job_click

 

 

 

 

5. Junior Researcher/Researcher on the Geopolitical Situation in the MENA Region, Afro-Middle East Centre (AMEC), Johannesburg

Requirements:  At least a Master’s degree in either International Relations, Political Science, or a related field;  Experience in research design, analysis and in writing policy papers on the MENA region;  Fluency in written and spoken English. Knowledge of Arabic, Turkish and/or Persian will be an advantage.

Deadline for applications: 8 July 2020.

Information: http://www.actionappointments.co.za/uploads/1/5/3/7/15374534/ad_amec_researcher_1.pdf

 

 

 

 

6. Chapters for Edited Book on “Rethinking Islamism beyond jihadi Violence: Fighting Ideas Leaving the Sword Aside“ (Vernon Press)

This volume seeks original contributions investigating the following issues: The origins of Islamism and the differences with jihadism; The evolution of Islamism over time and places; The role played by non-jihadist Islamist organisations in different national contexts and their appeal.

Deadline for abstracts: 30 August 2020. Information: https://networks.h-net.org/node/73374/announcements/6203814/call-book-chapters-%E2%80%98rethinking-islamism-beyond-jihadi-violence

 

 

 

7. Open Access – Taliban Sources Repository

The Taliban Sources Project (TSP) is one of few Taliban documentation projects in existence and is the only collection to include the cultural, social, and legal output for the years 1979-2011.

The TSP has transformed a large private collection of Taliban documents into an enduring and usable intellectual resource for scholars of Afghanistan, Taliban and Asian history.

Compiled between 2006 and 2011 by researchers based in southern Afghanistan, the TSP collection is one of only a few such private documentation projects in existence, and is the only collection to include Taliban’s cultural, social and legal output for the years 1979-2011.

Original documents and English translations.

Open Access site:

https://www.hf.uio.no/ikos/english/research/taliban-sources-repository/

 

 

 

8. Postponed – The HIAA (Historians of Islamic Art Association) Biennial Symposium, originally planned for October 2020, has been rescheduled due to the COVID-19 outbreak to April 15–17, 2021.

For the final symposium program and other details, see the symposium website, at:    https://lsa.umich.edu/histart/hiaa-symposium.html

 

 

 

9. The International Journal of Islamic Architecture (IJIA) invites readers and potential authors – researchers, graduate students, university faculty, and professionals in architecture and related fields (i.e., art history, urban planning, landscape design, sociology, anthropology, preservation, archaeology, etc.) – to join its editorial staff for a conversation and workshop on Friday July 24 12:30–1:30 EST for an open conversation on research and the publication process. The informal session will provide an opportunity for a discussion, questions and answers regarding the state of publication in the field, potential avenues for publishing success, and the journal’s perspective on the future of architectural studies in the Islamic world.

Founded in January 2012, IJIA publishes bi-annually, peer-reviewed articles on the urban design and planning, architecture and landscape architecture of the Islamic world. IJIA aims to encourage dialogue and discussion between practitioners and scholars. Articles that bridge the academic-practitioner divide are highly encouraged. The journal is specifically interested in contemporary architecture and urban design in relation to social and cultural history, geography, politics, aesthetics, technology and conservation. Spanning across cultures and disciplines, IJIA seeks to analyze and explain issues related to the built environment throughout the regions covered. The audience of this journal includes both practitioners and scholars.

Please use the following URL by July 17 in order to register for this free event and for access to the Zoom session link: https://temple.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJIuduGtrD0tE9w5F92q_KBbzVyuTxpLlyub

 

 

 

 

10. Richard Piran McClary, The Medieval Monuments of Central Asia, Qarakhanid Architecture of the 11th and 12th Centuries,Edinburgh University Press, 2020. 344 pages, 184 colour illustrations, ISBN 9781474423977

https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-medieval-monuments-of-central-asia.html

 

 

11. The Manuscript Collection of Sir William Jones (British Library)

Nizami, Rumi, Jami, Urfi Shirazi, Tajalli, Ghani Khasmiri, Mirza Jalal Asir, Fighani, Asafi, Ibn Sayyid al-Nas, Ibn Matruh, al-Sharif al-Radi, Mahmudd ibn Fahd al-Halabi,

 

Protecting the Citadel of Islam in the Modern Era: A Case of Shiʿi Mujtahids and the Najaf Seminary in Early Twentieth‐Century Iraq

The concept of protecting the Citadel of Islam ( Hifẓ Bayzat al‐Islam) , is common in the lexicon of Shiʿi political jurisprudence. It refers to those Islamic principles and foundations without which the existence of Islam and the Muslim community would be in danger.

1.Loyola University – Maryland – Lecturer in Middle Eastern and North African History
http://www.h-net.org/jobs/job_display.php?id=60167

The History Department at Loyola University Maryland invites applications for a one-year Visiting Assistant Professor/Lecturer in Middle Eastern and North African history, with the possibility of a renewal. The successful applicant will teach four undergraduate courses a semester (ordinarily two preparations), including a survey of modern Middle Eastern history. Basic departmental or university service is expected. We seek candidates who display a strong commitment to excellence in teaching, including an appreciation of or engagement in high impact practices in History. The appointment will begin on August 24, 2020. Ph.D. in hand and teaching experience preferred but not required

Closing date: Sept 16, 2020.

 

 

 

 

2. MENAdoc has thus far digitized (with open access) 412 out-of-print titles of Schwarz Verlag’s Islamkundliche Untersuchungen.

https://menadoc.bibliothek.uni-halle.de/iud

 

 

 

3. New online pedagogical resource, Teaching Medieval Slavery and Captivity (http://medievalslavery.org/).

This website offers a collection of primary sources in English translation as well as images and selected bibliographies of scholarly work to help those who want to incorporate the history of slavery and captivity into their classes. The scope of the collection is global and covers the 4th through 17th centuries.

 

 

 

 

4. Christian-Muslim Relations. A Bibliographical History Volume 16 North America, South-East Asia, China, Japan, and Australasia (1800-1914)

https://brill.com/view/title/57203

 

 

 

 

5. Open Access Journal – Anthropology of the Middle East

https://www.berghahnjournals.com/view/journals/ame/ame-overview.xml

 

 

 

 

6. Persianisms: Cultural Encounters in the Anglophone World Call for Papers

 

We invite proposals for an interdisciplinary colloquium on the topic of Persianisms: Cultural Encounters in the Anglophone World to take place virtually at the University of York across the period 10-12 December 2020.

 

This colloquium is underpinned by our conviction that relationships between Iran and the West are as important and urgent as ever. It aims to explore the range and depth of the exchanges and encounters that connect Anglophone and Persian cultures across centuries of contact from antiquity to the present-day manifest in poetry, diplomacy, religious polemic, scholarship, travel narratives, material culture, art, and curatorship.

 

We invite proposals from all disciplines and all career stages, including postgraduate, and early career researchers. We welcome proposals for traditional short papers, or for presentations that exploit the online format in other ways, e.g. short discussions of single images, objects, or texts, or group roundtable discussions. As a guide, the contribution of any individual should not exceed 20mins.

 

In particular we solicit proposals that speak to, or cross over, our three main themes: literature and language, material culture and political culture, including the following:

 

• The roles and functions that “Persia” (as it was known by Europeans before the 1930s) has played in the imagination of English-speaking writers, scholars, commentators, and artists.
• How notions of Persia and Persian have shaped the English language and its cultures.
• Representations of Iran in English poetry, fiction and travelogues.
• The influence of Persian and Islamic models in the history of the English book.
• Cultures of scholarship including Orientalisms, Islamic studies and Indo-European philology.
• The expressions and legacies of Persian culture in the Anglophone world through collectors and curators and the role of galleries, libraries, museums, and archaeological collections.
• The extent of ‘Persian’ distinctiveness within spheres of material exchange and interaction across the Middle East and India and between those regions and Europe.
• The histories of encounters between Anglophone and Persianate political and economic interests including the reception and representation of Persian history over time.
• Conflicts, revolutions, flashpoints and radical change, from the Mongol invasions to the Great Game, oil and the 1979 Revolution.
• Cultural and historical expressions of Perso and Islamo-phobia and -philia.
• Histories of religious and political polemic.
• The cultural life of Islam in its various forms, including Shi’ism and Sufism, in the Anglophone imagination.
• The dynamics of gender, race, sexuality, and power at work in cross-cultural encounters and exchanges.

 

Confirmed speakers include Prof Lloyd Ridgeon (Reader in Islamic Studies, University of Glasgow) and Dr Nur Sobers-Khan (Lead Curator, South Asian Collections, British Library).

 

Please send proposals of no more than 200 words to persianisms@gmail.com  by Saturday 15 August. Proposals should be accompanied by a 50-word biography, and an indication (if known at this point) of your availability between 10-12 December.

 

Joanna de Groot (History/Centre for C18th Studies/Centre for Modern Studies)

Shazia Jagot       (English/Centre for Medieval Studies)

James Williams    (English/Centre for Modern Studies)

 

 

 

 

7. Piety, Politics, and Everyday Ethics in Southeast Asian Islam

Ed. Robert Rozehnal

London: Bloomsbury 2020.

https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/piety-politics-and-everyday-ethics-in-southeast-asian-islam-9781350170124/?utm_source=Adestra&utm_medium=email&utm_content=&utm_campaign=NL-CT_Now%20in%20Paperback_Jun-20_UK

 

 

 

8. Short Course – Manuscripts in Arabic Script, Introduction to Codicology

14-15 August 2020

This online course (2 days) aims to introduce Arabic manuscripts from a codicological and textual point of view. The first day will provide an overview of the field of codicology and it role in the manuscript field in general and in identifying the key features of the manuscript in particular. The second session will be dedicated to writing supports, the structure of quires, ruling and page layout, bookbinding, ornamentation, tools and materials used in bookmaking, and the palaeography of book hands. The second day will focus on the importance of manuscripts in research. While the first session will cover the Para-textual features in the Arabic manuscripts, the second session will demonstrate the different approaches in editing manuscripts.

This introductory course is intended for students, researchers and librarians who are working in the field of manuscript studies. In the two-days course, a wide range of aspects will be covered for those who are acquiring basic knowledge in this field.

Learning Outcomes

– Basic understanding of the field of manuscript studies in general.

– Identify the role of manuscripts in knowledge production in different areas studies in Muslim cultures.

Length of course

2 days (4 lectures)

Download course structure.

Course Convenor

Dr Walid Ghali is the Head of the Aga Khan Library, London, Assistant Professor at the Aga Khan University’s Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations and a Chartered Librarian of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP). Also, he is a member of the Islamic Manuscript Association, University of Cambridge.

Dr Ghali received his PhD from Cairo University, Faculty of Arts in 2012. His current research projects focus on the Islamic manuscript traditions, particularly in Arabic script, and the history of books. Dr Ghali teaches Sufism, Arabic literature and manuscript traditions.

Before moving to London, Dr Ghali worked in various librarian roles at the American University in Cairo. He has also held several consultancy roles in and outside Egypt, such as the Ministry of Endowment, Qatar University and the Supreme Council for Culture in Kuwait.

Time 

14-15 August 2020, 11.00-14.00

Tickets and Booking

Tickets: £50 per day, £80 two days. Register as soon as possible.

*The course will be delivered via Zoom. Further details will be provided later upon registration. For any questions about the course, please contact walid.ghali@aku.edu .

 

 

9. Posts

Senior Teaching Fellow in Israeli & Middle Eastern Studies
SOAS University of London

The School of Languages, Cultures and Linguistics (LCL) is recruiting a Senior Teaching Fellow in Israeli & Middle Eastern Studies. You will be expected to establish and maintain good working relationships with students, staff, academic peers and external/professional organisations. Flexibility and responsiveness, particularly to the changing education environment is also a key requirement.

Closing date for applications | 29 June 2020
Further information

 

 

Language Tutor in Arabic (Fixed-term)
The University of Manchester

Applications are invited for the fixed-term post of Language Tutor in Arabic, which is tenable from 1 September 2020 to 31 August 2021. You must possess near-native command of both Arabic and English; demonstrate excellent language-teaching skills; and, have an educational background appropriate to the delivery of the specified duties.

Closing date for applications | 8 July 2020
Further information

 

 

 

Postdoctoral Research Assistant
Queen Mary University of London
A Postdoctoral Research Assistant position is available in Dr Isabelle Mareschal’s group to conduct a qualitative study of how children’s learning and education are influenced by participation in a non-formal education intervention and to examine how an education intervention can best be developed and implemented in humanitarian crisis contexts. Because the project involves one-on-one interviews in Jordan, fluency in Arabic and a familiarity with Jordanian and Syrian cultural contexts is required. The successful applicant must be willing to conduct one-on-one interviews with adults and children in Jordan in safe but challenging environments with limited supervision.

Closing date for applications | 12 July 2020
Further information

 

 

 

10. Other opportunities

CBRL 2020 Undergraduate Dissertation Prize
Council for British Research in the Levant (CBRL)
CBRL have announced the undergraduate dissertation prizes in the field of Levantine Studies for the academic year 2020:

• Levantine archaeology or history: the CBRL Prize for a final-year undergraduate dissertation, or major research paper
• Contemporary Levantine studies: the CBRL Prize for a final-year undergraduate dissertation, or major research paper

UK based heads of departments, chairs of departmental examination boards or their representatives can nominate up to one final year dissertaion in each of the above subject areas.
Deadline | 31 July 2020
Further information

 

 

 

Call for Submissions: 2021 Sheikh Zayed Book Award
Submissions are now open for the 15th edition of the Sheikh Zayed Book Award. This is one of the world’s leading Arabic book prizes which annually awards outstanding literary and scholarly works written in Arabic or engaging with Arabic culture. Each year prizes are awarded by an independent jury to authors, translators, publishers, and organisations from around the world. Each winner receives 750,000 UAE Dirhams (£166,000 / $204,000) to support their career and create opportunities for greater scholarship and creativity.

Deadline | 1 October 2020
Further information

 

 

Shi’a Minorities in the Contemporary World

New comparative perspectives on Shi’a minorities outside the Muslim world Key features Provides comparative insights into Shi’a Muslim communities across the globe, set in Muslim minority contexts Makes an important contribution to understanding the glob

Racial Justice in Shia Communities

Causes event by Husayn Center for Social Justice and Shia Racial Justice Coalition on Saturday, June 27 2020

Khandan-i-Ijtihad: Genealogy, history, and authority in a household of ‘ulama in modern South Asia | Modern Asian Studies | Cambridge Core

Revisiting the debate on how Islam’s ‘learned men’ (‘ulama) have sustained their religious authority through changing historical circumstances, this article offers a longue durée account of the so-called ‘Khandan-i-Ijtihad’: a family of renowned scholars and jurists who have held scholarly and popular precedence within South Asia’s Shi’i clerical networks for some 250 years.

Norm and Dissidence: Egyptian Shiʿa between Security Approaches and Geopolitical Stakes

Valter, Stéphane. “Norm and Dissidence: Egyptian Shiʿa between Security Approaches and Geopolitical Stakes.” CIRS Occasional Paper no. 23. Doha, Qatar: Center for International and Regional Studies, 2019.

For access, click here.