Archive for August 5th, 2025

1.”Dissertation Award” of the Tokat Institute for Advanced Islamic Studies

Students who have completed English-language dissertations in any field of Islamic studies in or after 2024 are eligible to apply. Authors must submit their theses, along with letters of nomination from their dissertation advisors. Theses will be evaluated by a committee of senior scholars in Islamic studies and the winning entry will be awarded a cash prize of $1000.

Deadline for applications: 1 January 2026. Information: https://tokatinstitute.org/grants/dissertation-award

2. ‘One Hundred Thousand Greetings!

The Opening Section of Early Judeo-Persian Letters’

H Sheikh

Dabir, 11, 2024, 110-126

https://brill.com/view/journals/dbr/11/1-2/article-p110_5.xml

3. Articles for Journal “State Studies Quarterly (Focus Iran)”

Themes: States and modern technologies at global, regional, and national (Iranian) levels. – _The state and economic development in the world and in Iran today. – _The state and the processes of globalization, mediatization, and cyberization in the world and in Iran today. – _The state and democracy in the world and in Iran today. – _States and religious, ethnic, and racial identities in the world and in Iran today. Etc.

Deadline for submissions: 16 April 2026. Information: https://tssq.atu.ac.ir/news?newsCode=136&lang=en

4. Articles on “Muslim Women and Gender at the Margins” for a Special Issue of the “International Journal of Child, Youth and Family Studies”

Themes: Trans, queer, and non-binary Muslims. – Muslim women who are located outside of Middle Eastern and South Asian regions and culture contexts. Ahmadiyya, Ismaili and Shia women; Black Muslim women; Black African women living on the African continent; Latina Muslim women of any race; Muslim women in/from East Asian contexts; Rohingya and other refugee women and those in conflict zones; Muslim converts/reverts.

Deadline for submission: 1 December 2025.

Information: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/religions/special_issues/Muslim_women_margins

5. Modern Standard Arabic Workbook: Questions, Answers, and Practice

Ayman Ibrahim (Academia), Free PDF Download

With 20 expertly crafted lessons, including in-depth verb exercises, this workbook offers engaging puzzles, real-world vocabulary from the Bible and Quran, and famous Arabic texts to make learning meaningful. No prior knowledge needed – _just start practicing, check your answers, and watch your skills grow! Perfect for self-study or paired with Basics of Arabic for deeper insights. Form daily habits, craft sentences, and unlock the joy of Arabic fluency.

Information: https://tinyurl.com/5saxnpva

6. New Book on “Indo-Persian Elite in the Late Eighteenth to the Early Nineteenth Century” by Gulfishan Khan (Cambridge University Press)

This book explores the intellectual and literary engagements of the Indo-Persianate intelligentsia from the late-Mughal era to the early colonial period. It situates the writings of the Indo-Islamic elite within the broader context of the Mughal empire’s gradual decline and the British colonial ascendancy. Additionally, it examines Indian agency in shaping the Orientalist tradition.

Information: https://tinyurl.com/4s72hpyn

7. Documentary on Rumi and Shams (Part 1)
The documentaryShams and Rumi: The Twined Flames (Part 1), directed byDr. Bahman Solati, is now available here: https://youtu.be/11Jb1m6zHP8?si=qMGmQFy8jJfyX0RJ.

The interviewees are Leili Anvar, Manouchehr Anvar, Robert Darr, Kabir Helminski, Camille Helminski, Jane Lewisohn, Mahmoud Mostafa, Mehmet Serif Ozden, Omid Safi, Bahman Solati, and Navid Saberi-Najafi.

8. New Courses: Introduction to Early Judeo-Persian and Shahname

Introduction to Early Judeo-Persian: Jewish Letters from Xinjiang to Cairo
Dates:September 1–11
Application Deadline: August 24

This online course is designed for students interested in the early stages of th development of New Persian and its manuscript traditions. Aimed at MA and PhD students, it offers a comprehensive introduction to Early Judeo-Persian and its written culture. Participants will learn the Hebrew script used specifically for writing Persian and explore the earliest dated documents inNew Persian. We will delve into documents found in the Cairo Genizah, Xinjiang, and the Bamiyan Papers from Afghanistan.

The course also introduces the relevant academic literature and provides participants with the tools to work independently with these texts.

2. The Shahname: Introduction to the Iranian Epic (Weekly)
   Dates:September 12–October 31
   Application Deadline: September 4

This course is for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the Shahname, Ferdowsi’s monumental epic of Persian kings. Through weekly two-hour sessions held every Friday, participants will engage in a close, analytical study of the language and structure of the Shahname. The course will equip students with the skills to work independently with the text and explore its classical, historical, and poetic dimensions. This time we will be reading the story of Rostam and Esfandyar.

I would be really grateful if you could share these courses with anyone who might be interested.

Update:
The Classical Persian through Living Books: Introduction to Persian Manuscripts online course, previously announced, has been rescheduled to begin on August 18 (instead of August 11). There are still two spots available.

Ferdowsi School of Persian Literature

Yerevan, Armenia

Website: www.ferdowsi.org

9. Zahra Institute:

Student Panel: Why Kurdish Studies?

Our first student panel “Why Kurdish Studies?” taking place on Zoom at 12 pm Central, this Wednesday, August 6, 2025.

Please join us to hear our students’ inspiring journeys, motivations, and experiences — and to find out why they chose to study at Zahra Institute.

📅 Wednesday, August 6

🕛 12PM Central (Chicago) / 1 PM Eastern

🔗 Register here

10. Routledge Handbook on the Sciences in Islamicate Societies

Sonja Brentjes, the editor of the Routledge Handbook on the Sciences in Islamicate Societies (2023), has posted the entire (nearly 900 page!) volume on her Academia.edu page: https://www.academia.edu/143240806/.