Archive for 2021
- April 13, 2021
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Shii News – Academic Items
1.ONLINE Book Introduction “Familiar Futures: Time, Selfhood, and Sovereignty in Iraq” by Sara Pursley, Centre for Middle East Studies, Brown University, AMEWS, 15 April 2021, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm EST
This book considers how the country’s creation under British mandate rule in 1920 through the 1958 revolution to the first Ba’th coup in 1963 reshaped Iraqi everyday habits, desires, and familial relations. Future-oriented discourses about the importance of sexual difference to Iraq’s modernization worked paradoxically, deferring demands for political change in the present and reproducing existing capitalist relations.
Information and registration: https://watson.brown.edu/cmes/events/2021/sara-pursley-familiar-futures
2. ONLINE Conference: “Gulf Research Meeting 2021”, Gulf Research Center (GRC), University of Cambridge/UK, 23-24 July 2021
The workshops cover a wide range of topics in the fields of politics, energy, security, and the wider social sciences as they relate to the wider Gulf region (GCC countries in addition to Iraq and Yemen).
Information: https://www.gulfresearchmeeting.net/
3. Open Panels for the “27th International Congress of the German Middle East Studies Association (DAVO)” Institute for Islamic Theology, University of Osnabrück, 16-18 September 2021
If you are interested in organizing an open panel for this congress and look for paper presenters, you are kindly requested to send the title and summary (up to 300 words) to the General Secretary of the congress, Amke Dietert (amke.dietert@googlemail.com) before 15 April 2021.
Deadline of submissions: 15 May 2021.
Information: https://www.irp-cms.uni-osnabrueck.de/en/events/27th_international_davo_congress.html
4. Conference on “Translation and Transfer” of the Network “Eastern European-Ottoman-Persian Mobility Dynamics”, University of Marburg, 6-9 October 2021
The conference will stress the pragmatic implications of the translation of texts in its narrower sense and the translators involved in activities across or within the Transottoman focus region. For a closer look at this and the multiple projects within this framework, please visit our website at www.transottomanica.de.
For further information, contact florian.riedler@uni-leipzig.de.
5. Seminar “Reassembling Creation: Green Ethics (GE) and the Scholarly Disciplines in the Islamic Tradition”, Research Center for Islamic Legislation and Ethics (CILE), Doha, 12-14 October 2021
The seminar is convened by Dr. Birgit Krawietz (Freie Universität Berlin) in collaboration with Dr. Mohammed Ghaly (CILE). The papers will be published as part of a thematic issue of the “Journal of Islamic Ethics (JIE)” and/or an edited volume in the peer-reviewed book-series “Studies in Islamic Ethics”, both published by Brill.
Extended deadline for abstracts: 30 June 2021. Information: https://www.cilecenter.org/resources/news/call-research-papers-reassembling-creation-green-ethics-ge-and-scholarly-disciplines
6. 3rd ANU Religion Conference: “Religion and Migration: Culture and Policy”, Australian National University, Canberra, 8-10 December 2021
The aim of this conference is to explore the various phenomena related to religion and migration; the political and social transitions impacting upon the transnational religiosity of contemporary communities.
Deadline for abstracts: 21 May 2021. Information: https://hrc.cass.anu.edu.au/events/religion-and-migration-culture-and-policy-0#acton-tabs-link–tabs-0-middle-1
7. 5 PhD Positions (65 %) in Dependency and Slavery Studies (Focus Islamic World)”, Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies, Bonn University (1 October 2021 to 30 September 2024)
Applicants are required to have a Master degree in history, archaeology, philology, theology, sociology, anthropology, law, history and societies of the Islamicate World, Religious Studies etc.
Deadline for applications: 30 April 2021. Information: https://www.dependency.uni-bonn.de/en/career/wissenschaftliche-hilfskraft-whf-mit-ba-abschluss-oder-studentische-hilfskraft-shk-fur-den-bereich-it-19-std.-woche
8. Senior Fellow, Crown Center for Middle East Studies, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA
This position is open rank and open discipline. The successful candidate must hold a PhD (or the equivalent in experience) and show a track record of scholarship on and/or teaching of the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Application deadline: 15 April 2021. Information: https://mesana.org/resources-and-opportunities/2021/03/16/senior-fellow
9. Visiting Assistant Professor in the Arabic Language, Middle East and South Asia St/udies Program, Wake Forest University, North Carolina
Applicants must have a Ph.D. in Arabic linguistics, literature, second-language pedagogy, or a related area. They must have native or near-native fluency in Arabic and English, and experience in teaching Arabic language courses of all levels as well as for specific purposes at the university level.
Review of applications will begin 30 April 2021. Information: https://mesana.org/resources-and-opportunities/2021/04/08/visiting-assistant-professor-of-arabic-wake
10. 2021 Book Award of the “Association for Middle East Women’s Studies (AMEWS)” for Books Published in 2020
The award recognizes and promotes excellence in the field of Middle East gender, women’s and sexuality studies. The award is offered annually to a scholar for a solo-authored book.
Deadline for the nomination of a book: 1 June 2021. Information: https://amews.org/amews-book-award/
11. Book Awards of the Central Eurasian Studies Society (CESS)
This award and a monetary prize of $500 is presented to the author of a research monograph, published in 2020, that: 1) represents the most important contribution to Central Eurasian studies, or 2) that holds the greatest potential for furthering scholarship on the Central Eurasian region.
Deadline for applications: 15 April 2021. Information: https://www.centraleurasia.org/2021/call-for-nominations-2021-cess-book-awards/
12. ONLINE Free Workshop: “An Introduction to Arabic Manuscripts, Centre for Near Eastern Studied, UCLA, 23-27 August 2021
The workshop will equip emerging scholars with the basic tools to conduct research with original handwritten texts in Arabic script. The participants will learn the basics of codicology, palaeography, and manuscript production and circulation, in the context of an expansive vision of current debates in Arabic manuscript research.
Application deadline: 22 April 2021. Information: https://www.international.ucla.edu/cnes/event/14962
13. Chapters for Edited Book on „Marxism in Muslim Contexts: Communist Organizing, Social-ist Movement, and Religious Response“
Proposals investigating Muslim responses to Marxism from historical, anthropological, literary, sociological, cultural, and religious perspectives are welcomed.
Deadline extended to 16 April 2021. Information: dwidmannabraham@ursinus.edu
14. OPenn Primary Digital Manuscripts of the Muslim World Available to Everyone
The digital editions comprise more than 500 manuscripts and 827 paintings from the Islamicate. Together these holdings represent in great breadth the flourishing intellectual and cultural heritage of Muslim lands from 1000 to 1900, covering mathematics, astrology, history, law, literature, as well as the Qur’an and Hadith. The bulk of the collection consists of manuscripts in Arabic and Persian, along with examples of Coptic, Samaritan, Syriac, Turkish, and Berber.
Information: https://openn.library.upenn.edu/html/muslimworld_contents.html
15. Thursday 22 April, 4:30 pm, Michael Sells reads from and speaks about The Translator of Desires
Join the Yale Departments of Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations and Comparative Literature, the Whitney Humanities Center, and the Translation Initiative for a reading and discussion with Michael Sells’s of his new translation of Muhyiddin Ibn ‘Arabi’s The Translator of Desires, on Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 4:30 p.m. EDT, with Feisal G. Mohamed.
Zoom Registration: tinyurl.com/sellsevent
16. The Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali Institute of Iranian Studies Presents:
Women Poets: Gendered Personhood and Displacement
Professor Fatemeh Shams, University of Pennsylvania
Friday April 16, 4:00-6:00 P.M. EST
Zoom Registration: https://uoft.me/IranianStudies
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/765732604290639
- April 13, 2021
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Shii News – Academic Items
1.The Penn Language Center at the University of Pennsylvania invites applications for a part-time Lecturer in Persian starting August 2021.This is a one-year appointment with the possibility of a renewal, contingent upon satisfactory performance, student interest, the availability of funding, and need. Candidates will be expected to teach Advanced Persian language and culture at two levels (one course per semester).
Qualifications: evidence of successful teaching experience at the collegiate level, knowledge of language pedagogy, native or near-native fluency in Persian and English, at least an M.A. in Education, Middle Eastern Studies, or a related field. Candidates must currently be authorized to work in the U.S., without future need of any sponsorship for employment authorization because this is a part-time position.
Please send a letter of application (including a statement of teaching philosophy) and curriculum vitae to Dr. Mahyar Entezari (entezari@sas.upenn.edu). In the letter, please indicate the names and email addresses of three referees who can attest to your pedagogical qualifications.
Review of applications will begin on May 1, 2021, and continue until the position is filled. Preliminary interviews will be conducted via Zoom. The University of Pennsylvania is an EOE. Minorities, women, individuals with disabilities, and protected veterans are encouraged to apply.
2. “The Geopolitics of Womens Rights in the Middle East”, a talk by Dr. Nicola Pratt.
The department of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Edinburgh is delighted to host Dr. Nicola Pratt in this talk, part of our Spring 2021 research seminars. The seminar is open to all and FREE but registration is required.
Date and time: April 19, 5-6 PM, GMT +1.
Please reserve your FREE ticket and details of the Zoom event will be emailed to you directly on the day of the event.
For any questions please contact the seminar organiser, Dr. Ebtihal Mahadeen: ebtihal.mahadeen@ed.ac.uk
Abstract: This paper is based on a chapter of my recently published book, Embodying Geopolitics: Generations of Women’s Activism in Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon (University of California Press, 2020). The book explores the ways in which the legacies of colonialism and ongoing neocolonialism shape the politics of gender and sexuality, with consequences for women’s activism and its effects. Drawing on more than 100 interviews with women activists of different generations, it foregrounds their personal narratives as situated and embodied knowledge about Middle East politics.
This paper explores a geopolitics of women’s rights through a case study of women’s rights activism in the wake of the 2011 Arab uprisings. Rather than viewing gender inequality as a stubborn residue of culture, I contend that it is performative of cultural difference that serves to produce a “sovereignty effect” (Roxanne Doty 1996a: 124) for Middle East states, whose sovereignty is otherwise continuously undermined as a result of their subordinate position within the international state system. The paper considers the ways in which women’s rights demands have posed a challenge to the exercise and organization of geopolitical power, or what Edward Said termed ‘the struggle over geography’ – a struggle ‘not only about soldiers and cannons but also about ideas, about forms, about images and imaginings’ (1993: 7). Viewing women’s rights as integral to the imagining and performance of state sovereignty enables us to understand why regimes may or may not support demands for women’s rights reforms in the Middle East and North Africa region.
Speaker’s bio: Nicola Pratt is Associate Professor (Reader) in the Politics and International Studies Department at the University of Warwick, UK, and Vice President of the British Society for Middle Eastern Studies (BRISMES). She teaches and researches on the international politics of the Middle East, with a particular interest in feminist and decolonial approaches and a focus on ‘politics from below.’ She has written and co-edited a number of books on women and gender in the Middle East. Her most recent monograph, entitled, Embodying Geopolitics: Generations of Women’s Activism in Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon, was published by University of California Press in fall 2020. She has also written extensively on Egyptian ‘politics-from-below’ and is currently co-authoring a book on popular culture and the contested meanings of the 2011 Egyptian revolution; which is also the subject of a multimedia, digital archive that she co-curated: https://egyptrevolution2011.ac.uk/
Link to the Eventbrite page: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-geopolitics-of-womens-rights-in-the-middle-east-tickets-149877364231
3. New BRISMES prizes for students and early career researchers
BRISMES is very pleased to announce the following new prizes for 2021:
BRISMES Early Career Development (ECR) Prize
Eligibility
- The applicant must be a BRISMES member by the time the application is submitted.
- The applicant must have submitted a PhD dissertation in the last 2 years in any disciplinary field, on a topic related to the study of the Middle East and North Africa and must not have a permanent academic position when they receive the grant.
Aims
The aim of the BRISMES Early Career Development Prize is to support activities geared toward strengthening the academic profile and CV of an early career scholar. Two prizes of £2,000 each are available. Eligible activities include (but are not necessarily limited to):
- Developing an article for a peer-reviewed journal
- Developing a book chapter
- Transforming a PhD thesis into a book manuscript
- Developing pilot research for a new project
- Preparing a grant proposal for their own postdoctoral work
The activity must be completed within 12 months of receipt of the prize.
How to apply
Applicants must send a CV (4 pages max) and a statement of interest (1000 words max) to administrator@brismes.org including the following details:
- A description of the activity for which support is requested (include specific details of the timeline/scope of work, target journals, granting bodies, publisher, scope of pilot research, etc…)
- An explanation of how the proposed activity will benefit the applicant’s career path
- A description of the activity’s contribution to the field of Middle East Studies
Deadline
30 April 2021
Reporting
Applicants will submit a narrative summary of completed activities within 3 months after the prize period has ended (500 words max).
BRISMES Conference Student Paper Prize
Eligibility
- The applicant must be a BRISMES student member by the time the application is submitted.
- The applicant must have registered for the Annual Conference.
- The paper must be on the same topic on which the applicant is presenting at the Annual Conference.
- The paper needs to be an original unpublished work from any discipline on any topic related to the study of Middle East and North Africa.
- The only selection criteria is academic excellence.
Aims
To support BRISMES student members in the development of peer-reviewed work. The prize winner will receive £300 and will be mentored through a review process at BJMES by a senior member of the BRISMES academic community. Such a mentor will be identified on the basis of the disciplinary field and topic of the awarded conference paper. In addition, the desk review process will be skipped and the journal will commit to sending the paper directly to external reviewers for the final decision about publication.
How to apply
Send the paper with a short biography (150 words max) and CV to administrator@brismes.org, indicating the disciplinary field to which the paper is contributing.
The estimated word count for a typical paper in BJMES is 10,000 words, inclusive of the abstract, tables, references, figure captions.
Deadline
2 weeks after the end of the Annual Conference in which the paper was presented.
4. Online Zoom webinar on Wednesday, April 14, 12:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada), hosted by the Institute for Advanced Study, School of Historical Studies (Near Eastern Studies) and Digital Scholarship@IAS.
Bibliotheca Arabica – A Digital Home for the Arabic Manuscript Tradition
Verena Klemm (Institute of Arabic Studies, University of Leipzig, Germany) • Stefanie Brinkmann (Sächsische Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Leipzig) • Boris Liebrenz (Sächsische Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Leipzig) • Thomas Efer (Sächsische Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Leipzig)
Arabic literatures are usually studied as purely creative products, a body of texts disembodied from their material life. Bibliotheca Arabica, in contrast, focusses on the context, the production, transmission, and reception of the manuscripts that for centuries carried the works we study today. Knowing what was copied, read, endowed, or owned when, where, and by whom, offers new perspectives on this immensely rich tradition. However, such a research agenda requires the collection, cross-reference, normalization, and visualization of widely diverse data created over more than one and a half millennia.
The long-term perspective of the Academy Program offers a unique environment to tackle such an ambitious task for an extended period. Over 18 years, the collection of data culled from biographical dictionaries, catalogues, and original manuscript research will enable sharply focused studies (the fate of single books or libraries) as well as broader overviews (literary trends and centers). The project’s database as a combination of bio-bibliography and manuscript reference, including a systematic collection and edition of manuscript notes, will provide a versatile tool not only for our own research agenda, but for the field as a whole.
This presentation will offer an overview of the scope, progress, and challenges of Bibliotheca Arabica, illuminated through exemplary case studies of libraries and marginal commentaries. It will showcase the database tools that are being developed as the backbone of our analytical endeavor.
Register in advance for this webinar here. After registering, you will receive an email containing information about joining the webinar.
For additional information contact María Mercedes Tuya by email to ds@ias.edu
5. IASH-Alwaleed Postdoctoral Fellowships 2021/22: Application deadline 30th April
IASH-Alwaleed Fellowships are open to early career researchers with interests in contemporary Islam and the Muslim world. Fellowship can last between three and ten months and come with a maximum stipend of £13,000.
We would particularly welcome applications linked to the themes of the new Institute Project on Decoloniality (IPD’24) taking place at IASH from 2021 to 2024. This project invites scholars from around the world to visit Edinburgh and conduct research on the theme of decoloniality, broadly understood. Projects dealing with other themes in relation to the contemporary Muslim world will also be fully considered for this round of Fellowships.
For further information, including how to apply, please follow this link: https://www.iash.ed.ac.uk/iash-alwaleed-postdoctoral-fellowship
Application deadline 30th April
6. THE ITS RAMADAN DISCOUNT 2021
In celebration of the holy month of Ramadan and the Eid, the Islamic Texts Society is offering a 15% discount on all titles.*
Books from the ITS are an aid to deepening one’s worship in this holy month, and also make an ideal Ramadan and Eid gift for family, friends and loved ones.
In order to take advantage of this offer, please visit our website by clicking on the button below and enter the coupon code, RAMADAN21, on the purchase page. Discount ends at 11:59PM on Sunday 16th May 2021.
*Excluding Arabic-English Lexicon by E. W. Lane. Coupon cannot be used in conjunction with other coupons nor is it applicable to titles that are already on sale.
7. The Manchester Journal of Transnational Islamic Law & Practice (formerly the Journal of Islamic State Practice in International Laws ) is pleased to announce the call for papers and book reviews for its 2021 Issue. Please take a look at the attached calls.
MJTILP is a peer reviewed journal and can be accessed on HeinOnline. It has recently been accepted to be indexed with SCOPUS.
The journal welcomes submission of articles that meet its objectives for consideration with a view to publication. The journal comprises of three sections: (1) Articles, (2) Recent Developments, and (3) Book Reviews. The normal word length for articles is between 5000-15000 words (16000 including footnotes). The journal also welcomes shorter contributions (between 2000 to 3000 words) for its ‘Recent Developments’ section.
The MJTILP is not restricted to any specific field of law and aims to cover a wide range of subjects relevant to Islamic law and practice. Topics of particular interest include: transnational forms of Islamic law; constitutional developments, law reform and application of international law in the Muslim world; application of Shariah in Muslim or non-Muslim States; accommodation of Muslims in non-Muslim State; comparative practices of Muslim majority States; and intersections between Islamic law and international law or other religious and secular legal systems.
The deadline for submissions for the 2021 Issue is June 30th, 2021. The Issue will be published by the end of October 2021.
Please get in touch with the Editor-in-Chief Dr Ahmad Ghouri (a.a.ghouri@outlook.com) if you have any questions with regards to MJTILP or would like to discuss your paper submission.
8. May 20, 2021, 12:00-1:30 pm EST: “Beyond Ethiopia: The Islamic Intellectual History of the Horn of Africa.” Register in advance for this meeting here. IAS Ethiopian Studies Series
Much progress has been made over the past decade in the study of Muslim Ethiopia, and with the ongoing work of digitizing, cataloguing and analyzing the local Muslim manuscript tradition, scholars are in a better position than ever before to assess the intellectual strands prevalent among the Muslims of Ethiopia at any given time in history. Our objective for the webinar is threefold: First, we would like to get a clearer picture of what still needs to be done in terms of salvaging and providing access to the Muslim manuscript tradition of Ethiopia (or Ethiopian provenance) — what are the challenges and what would be the promises? Secondly, we hope to engage in a discussion that will assess the intellectual traditions prevalent among Ethiopian Muslims, e.g. legal traditions, doctrinal stances, and other prevalent expressions of Islamic identity, throughout history. Thirdly, we intend to engage in a discussion that will situate the intellectual history of Muslim Ethiopia beyond its core region and discuss how it intersected over the centuries with other prevalent strands and developments, such as the Horn of Africa (including Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia), Southern Arabia (Yemen), as well as East Africa or even the Indian Ocean network. Lastly, we are eager to think together about where the study of Muslim Ethiopia stands within the larger picture of Ethiopian Studies.
Panelists:
Maria Bulakh (Institute for Oriental and Classical Studies, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow)
Alessandro Gori (University of Copenhagen)
Hassen Muhammad Kewo (Addis Ababa University)
Paul M. Love (Al Akhawayn University)
Anne Regourd (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Paris)
- April 10, 2021
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Shii News – ‘Ibn Abī ʿAqīl and Ibn al-Junayd, “The Two Ancient Scholars,” Retrieved’ – A. Rizek
Part 8/Chapter 33 of
Knowledge and Education in Classical Islam: Religious Learning between Continuity and Change (2 vols)
Editor: Sebastian Günther
Leiden: Brill, 2020
For further information, click here.
- April 08, 2021
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Shii News – ‘Everyday Shi’ism in South Asia’ – K. Ruffle
Everyday Shi’ism in South Asia is an introduction to the everyday life and cultural memory of Shi’i women and men, focusing on the religious worlds of both individuals and communities at particular historical moments and places in the Indian subcontinent. Author Karen Ruffle draws upon an array primary sources, images, and ethnographic data to present topical case studies offering broad snapshots Shi’i life as well as microscopic analyses of ritual practices, material objects, architectural and artistic forms, and more.
Focusing exclusively on South Asian Shi’ism, an area mostly ignored by contemporary scholars who focus on the Arab lands of Iran and Iraq, the author shifts readers’ analytical focus from the center of Islam to its periphery. Ruffle provides new perspectives on the diverse ways that the Shi’a intersect with not only South Asian religious culture and history, but also the wider Islamic humanistic tradition. Written for an academic audience, yet accessible to general readers, this unique resource:
Explores Shi’i religious practice and the relationship between religious normativity and everyday religious life and material culture
Contextualizes Muharram rituals, public performances, festivals, vow-making, and material objects and practices of South Asian Shi’a
Draws from author’s studies and fieldwork throughout India and Pakistan, featuring numerous color photographs
Places Shi’i religious symbols, cultural values, and social systems in historical context
Includes an extended survey of scholarship on South Asian Shi’ism from the seventeenth century to the present.
- April 07, 2021
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- April 06, 2021
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Shii News – Academic Items
1.”Teaching the ‘Long’ 18th Century”
Friday, April 23, 2021; 9-11 am ET
Organized by Sarah Betzer, University of Virginia, and
Dipti Khera, Art History and Institute of Fine Arts, New York University
Roundtable featuring:
Anna Arabindan-Kesson, Princeton University
Nebahat Avcıoğlu, Hunter College, City University of New York
Emma Barker, The Open University, London
Ananda Cohen-Aponte, Cornell University
Prita Meier, Art History and Institute of Fine Arts, New York University
Nancy Um, Binghamton University, State University of New York
Stephen Whiteman, The Courtauld Institute of Art, London
This roundtable brings together scholars from a broad array of geographical foci and institutional perspectives who have been at the forefront of efforts to rethink approaches to thinking, researching, and, crucially, teaching the art and material culture of an interconnected “long” eighteenth century. Convened in conjunction with a session at the 2021 College Art Association conference, the roundtable will appear in distilled form in a dedicated issue of Journal18, forthcoming in Fall 2021.
Two key aims animate the roundtable and its afterlife in Journal18: 1) to reflect upon teaching the “long” eighteenth century, particularly in light of renewed debates on the reparation of objects, revision of histories, and inclusion of colonized and enslaved voices in museums, plantation sites, and public squares; and 2) to compile a list of resources and open-access supporting materials that are pragmatically useful for colleagues engaged in teaching the “long” and “broad” eighteenth century.
Register on Zoom:
https://virginia.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_qPSWyVTlSzCdu6PkVWVUlw
2. Anthony Welch
29 April 1942 – 10 February 2021
It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Dr. Anthony Welch, noted art historian, scholar and academic leader. Tony had a long and distinguished career at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada, beginning in 1971 as a lecturer with the Department of History in Art (now Art History & Visual Studies) and progressing to full professor in 1980. He also served as Associate Dean (1982-1985) before becoming the longest-serving Dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts for a remarkable 13 years (1985-1998).
In the 1960s and early 1970s, there were few opportunities in North America to study Islamic art history. In the US, only Harvard University, New York University and the University of Michigan offered degrees in the subject. When he took up his position at the University of Victoria in 1971, Tony was the first fulltime lecturer in Islamic art history in Canada, and he remained the only one for much of his career.
Despite his administrative duties, Tony continued to teach throughout his career. He was an enthusiastic and inspiring lecturer, whose passion for the field of Islamic art history was immediately evident to all who knew him and which served to motivate and excite his many students. As a teacher, he was kind and encouraging and always willing to take the time to talk to any student individually, even during the years when his administrative duties weighed heavily upon him. He greatly influenced the careers of many of his students, especially those who continued on to study with him at the MA and PhD levels.
Having received his doctorate from Harvard in 1972, Tony’s dissertation formed the basis of his book, Artists for the Shah: Late Sixteenth-Century Painting at the Imperial Court of Iran (Yale University Press, 1976). Between 1972 and 1978, his four-volume catalogue, Collection of Islamic Art: Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan, was privately published by Prince Sadruddin; this was an especially important contribution to the field as it made available material that was at the time little known.
In the early years of his career, Tony curated several exhibitions, each time authoring an accompanying catalogue of the same name. The first of these, entitled Shah ‘Abbas and the Arts of Isfahan, took place at The Asia Society in New York in 1973. A second exhibition, Calligraphy in the Arts of the Muslim World, was unique in its time for its singular focus on calligraphy, specifically the inscriptions found on various media and the inclusion of a translation of each one. This exhibition, too, opened at The Asia Society, in 1979, and then, over the following months, travelled to three other venues in the US. At Harvard, Tony had studied under the supervision of the renowned connoisseur and collector of, and lecturer on, Islamic painting, Stuart Cary Welch, with whom he co-curated the exhibition Arts of the Islamic Book: The Collection of Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan, which was first shown at the The Asia Society, in 1982, and then also travelled to three other venues in the US.
In later years his scholarly interests turned more to South Asia. Despite his increased administrative responsibilities, this engagement led to the publication of important studies on Delhi Sultanate and Mughal architecture, epigraphy, urbanism and landscape design, including, (co-authored with Howard Crane) “The Tughluqs: Master builders of the Dehli Sultanate,” Muqarnas 1 (1984): 123–36; “Architectural patronage and the past: The Tughluq sultans of India,” Muqarnas 10 (1993): 311–22; (co-authored with Hussein Keshani and Alexandra Bain), “Epigraphs, scripture and architecture,” Muqarnas 19 (2002): 12–43; and
“The Emperor’s Grief: Two Mughal Tombs,” Muqarnas 25 (2008): 255-273. He also published on other topics including hydraulic engineering and Indian manuscript painting.
In the latter part of his career at the University of Victoria, he turned his attention also to cataloguing and analyzing the archive of architectural drawings made by Richard Roskell Bayne (1801–78), who worked in the Indian subcontinent, resulting in an article (co-authored with Martin Segger and Nicholas DeCaro) entitled “Building for the Raj: Richard Roskell Bayne,” RACAR: revue d’art canadienne / Canadian Art Review 34.2 (2009): 74-86. Long a student of travelogues and their use for writing art and architectural history, he also edited, annotated, and wrote a substantial introduction for a translation by Clara Bargellini of the journal of a seventeenth-century Venetian traveller: The Travels and Journal of Ambrosio Bembo (University of California Press, Berkeley, 2007).
Throughout his academic career, Tony was a member of numerous departmental, faculty and university committees. As Dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts (1985-1998), he was a significant and influential contributor to the administration and development of the university. Following his tenure as Dean, he served as executive director of the Office of International Affairs (1998-2003), during which time he travelled extensively in Europe, Asia and South America promoting academic agreements between UVIC and various international universities. He also played a role in the wider community, and in 1992 was awarded a Canada 125th Anniversary Silver Medal in recognition of his work (1987-1991) in the development of an Arts Policy for the City of Victoria.
However, it is perhaps Tony’s very particular and subtle sense of humour that will be most fondly remembered by his former students and colleagues.
He is survived by his wife Hyesoon Kim, his son Nicholas, and his daughters Bronwen and Emily.
Submitted by Marcus Milwright and Elaine Wright
(With thanks to Hussein Keshani, Eleanor Sims, Lisa Golombek, Lesley Jessop and Janis Elliott for their comments and input.)
3. ONLINE Seminar “Alternative Dispute Resolution in Islamic and Middle Eastern Law” by Dr Jonathan Ercanbrack (SOAS), London, 8 April 2021, 5 pm – 6:15 pm GMT
The panel of distinguished experts will explore the practice of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) in Islamic and Middle Eastern law and share practical insights on the arbitration practice in Qatar and Turkey. The webinar provides an in-depth opportunity to explore the latest arbitration trends and controversies in the region.
Information and registration: https://www.soas.ac.uk/law/events/08apr2021-alternative-dispute-resolution-in-islamic-and-middle-eastern-law.html
4. ONLINE Roundtable “Umayyads, Early ʿAbbāsids, and Historical Periodization”, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, University of California, Berkeley, 9 April 2021, 11:00 am PST
The temporal specificity of this subject speaks not onlx to the unstable boundary between Eurocentric Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, but more importantly to local schemes of periodization – Islamic, Jewish, and Christian. Likewise, the geographic specificity of empire that is implied by these dynastic subjects extends beyond the Middle East and cannot be contained by that area studies construct. These dual, overlapping frameworks for analysis offer opportunities for investigation and reflection.
Information and registration: https://mcusercontent.com/4eead3c27d77b3e347cf43c18/files/1ff58878-47ec-4036-84d8-30f3fadcb364/CMES_Periodization_Roundtable_papers2.pdf
5. ONLINE Seminar “Islam, Judaism, and Decoloniality” with Santiago Slabodsky and Sanober Umar, Jewish-Muslim Research Network, University of Michigan, 12 April 2021, 10:00 am ET
The authors suggest some paths towards disrupting/decentering (Eurocentric) intellectual epistemic hegemonies in the broadly defined fields of Jewish Studies and Islamic/Muslim Studies. Together, they will reflect on how we can draw on Southern epistemologies to broaden the horizon of Jewish and Muslim studies.
Information and registration: https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/jmrn/upcoming-events/islam-judaism-and-decoloniality-with-santiago-slabodsky-and-sanober-umar/
6. ONLINE International Conference on “Canon and Censorship in the Islamic Intellectual and Theological History”, Berlin Institute for Islamic Theology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 8-10 October 2021
Muslim societies and theologies did not witness the emergence of a single institution that establishes a binding canon for everyone who adheres to Islam. Instead, the constitutional positions are (re)negotiated constantly in a scholarly discourse. Against this backdrop, the conference focuses on the question of how certain texts and positions evolve to a canon while others get lost in time.
7. Annual Conference of the Central Eurasian Studies Association (CESS), Ohio State University, Columbus, 14-17 October 2021
Submissions relating to all aspects of humanities and social science scholarship are invited. The geographic domain encompasses Central Asia, the Caucasus, Iran, Afghanistan, the Black Sea region, East and Central Europe etc.
Deadline for abstracts: 3 May 2021. Information: https://www.centraleurasia.org/conferences/annual/
8. 4th IDEO Conference: “The Cairo Edition of the Qurʾān (1924): Texts, Histories and Challenges”, Dominican Institute for Oriental Studies, Cairo, 16-17 October 2021
The conference examines the Cairo edition of the Qurʾān printed under the authority of the al-Azhar committee in 1924. The edition`s advent bears a significance that goes beyond the sphere of belief and takes an important place in the history of Islamic civilisation, including the history of institutions, material history, history of religious thought and history of Islamic studies. Papers in Arabic, French and English are welcomed.
Deadline for abstracts: 15 May 2021. Information: https://www.ideo-cairo.org/en/2021/03/call-for-papers-the-cairo-edition-of-the-qur%ca%bean-1924/
9. Journée d’études : « Articuler l’histoire sociale et environmental : Proche-Orient, Maghreb, Afrique, XIXe-XXIe siècles », Aix-en-Provence, 20 mai 2022 (date à confirmer)
Cette journée d’études a pour objectif de rassembler des historien-ne-s contemporanéistes spécialistes du Proche-Orient, du Maghreb et de l’Afrique travaillant dans une optique environnementale.
Date limit pour les propositions de communication : 30 avril 2021. Information : https://iismm.hypotheses.org/51458
10. 6th World Congress for Middle Eastern Studies (WOCMES-6), University of La Manouba, Tunis, 19-23 September 2022
Mind this date!
11. Posts:
Lecturer in Arabic Language (2 Years), University of Bayreuth, Germany
Candidate profile: Native or near-native proficiency in Arabic; knowledge of German or English; A. degree or higher in Arabic language and/or linguistics; specialization or certificates in TAFL (Teaching Arabic as a Second Language) are especially welcome; university-level teaching experience.
Deadline for application: 12 April 2021. Information: https://www.uni-bayreuth.de/de/universitaet/arbeiten-an-der-universitaet/stellenangebote/wiss-personal/SZ-Lektor-ArabischDuE/index.html
Postdoctoral Researcher in Islamic Theology, University of Tübingen
Qualification: Doctorate in the field of Islamic Studies, Arabic Studies or Islamic Theology. We are looking for a highly motivated and talented scholar who is interested in conducting research in the field of theological Hadith studies and who is familiar with the relevant areas.
Deadline for applications: 15 April 2021. Information: https://professorpositions.com/postdoctoral-researcher-in-islamic-theology,i19353.html
12. Articles on “The Qur’an in History: The History of the Qur’an: From Canonization to Critique and Semantic Hermeneutics” for Special Issue for Journal “Religions”
This is issue will explore the correlation between the Qur’an and the historical events that in different ways have affected its understanding and interpretation during the thirteen centuries of Islamic history. The main idea is to work on specific verses, precise suwar (part of them), or singular words through a historicized hermeneutical approach which could frame and share facets, insights, and makings which have settled the understanding of this revelation in a specific phase of Islam and human history.
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2021. Information: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/religions/special_issues/QH_HQ_FCCS
13. New “Journal of Late Antique, Islamic and Byzantine Studies (JLAIBS)”, Edinburgh University Press
The JLAIBS as a hotspot for interdisciplinary dialogue aims to disseminate new approaches and methodologies that intend to transform our understanding of broader Late Antique and Medieval phenomena, such as knowledge transfer and cultural exchanges, by looking beyond single linguistic traditions or political boundaries.
Information: https://www.euppublishing.com/loi/jlaibs
14. New Book Series “Islam, Culture and Society” Leuven University Press
Topics that are of particular interest to the series are the interdisciplinary roles of history, social behaviours, religious (and other) identities, local traditions, cultural and legal systems, as well as diversity, inclusion, and tolerance in (re)shaping the plurality, changeability, diversity and global connectedness of Muslim cultures and societies.
Information: https://iismm.hypotheses.org/52884
15. An ‘enhanced’ Qur’an manuscript from Madura
The British Library
16. Digital Archive of Persian Periodicals
In order to facilitate interchanging the ideas using a community service with both private and public messaging features, a Twitter account (@PersianProject) has just been opened for the project as following:
http://twitter.com/PersianProject
You are kindly requested to join now (if your professional limitations allow) and share your comments and queries while following development of the project.
We will be pleased to discuss on your specific concerns.
Kind regards,
Majid Samavi
Head of the Persian Archives Project
17. The American Lafayette of Iran: The Story of Howard C. Baskerville
by Reza Aslan, April 23, 2021 2:00 pm (EST.
You can register here: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_RPfjuWavSGqJ4t02duXPPw
Aslan’s forthcoming book, BASKERVILLE, will be published by W.W. Norton & Company.
18. On April 14th at 6pm EST Dr. John Seyller will be giving the 2021 Ananda Coomaraswamy Annual Lecture on South Asian Art at the MFA, Boston.
His lecture, titled “A Rediscovered Mughal Master,” will present new research on Ilyas Bahadur, a long-overlooked artist active in India in the late 17th century.
For information on the lecture click here. Free registration can be found here.
19. The Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali Institute of Iranian Studies Presents:
Women Depicting Freedom of Movement in Iranian Cinema
Professor Nacim Pak-Shiraz, University of Edinburgh
Friday April 9, 4:00-6:00 P.M. EST
Zoom Registration: https://uoft.me/IranianStudies
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/218454189994463
20. La prochaine séance du séminaire “Littératures d’Asie du Sud” accueillera Marc Toutant (CNRS/CETOBaC)pour une communication intitulée :
Le turk est « la langue des rois »
Nouvelles sources manuscrites sur la description de la langue turke dans l’Inde moghole (XVIIe-XIXe siècles)
Le séminaire se tiendra en visioconférence, le vendredi 9 avril 2021, entre 10h30 et 12h30 (heure de Paris). Les personnes souhaitant y assister devront se connecter sur BigBlueButton à partir du lien suivant :
https://webinaire.ehess.fr/b/cas-it0-7mq
- April 06, 2021
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