Archive for October 11th, 2025
Shii News – Academic Items
1.Nemati Book Award For Studies on Iran’s Minoritized Ethnic and Religious Communities
The Nemati Book Award honors exceptional monographs on Iran’s minoritized ethnic and religious groups. Established in memory of Mrs. Nemati [from Kermanshah in Iran], the award supports inclusive, interdisciplinary scholarship. The UNC-Chapel Hill Persian Studies Program administers this award in collaboration with the Association for Iranian Studies (AIS).
Prize: $1,000 (awarded biennially)
Eligibility: Books published in the past two years (January 1, 2024- December 31, 2025)
Focus: Communities such as Armenian, Assyrian, Jewish, Zoroastrian, Bahá’í, Kurdish, Baluch, Yarsan, and others
Submission: Authors or publishers may submit a digital copy of the book, a nomination letter by authors/publishers, and a CV by January 31, 2026, to yaghoobi@email.unc.edu
2. Special Panel: ALMOST FREE: A Conversation on Kurdish Contemporary Art
Wednesday, October 15, at 12 PM CST / 1 PM EST, for a special online panel, “ALMOST FREE: A Conversation on Kurdish Contemporary Art.” Moderated by Şener Özmen, the panel will feature leading Kurdish artists, curators, and scholars in a discussion on Kurdish contemporary art, the diaspora, and curatorial practices.
Register now via Zoom to be part of this important conversation.
🗓️ Wednesday, Oct 15 | ⏰ 12 PM CST / 1 PM EST
🔗 Register here: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/DtAf2kRwTI6Li7whnixJvA
Hosted by Zahra Institute
🌐 www.zahrainstitute.org (https://www.zahrainstitute.org/)
3. The Department of History at Georgetown University invites applications for a tenure-track position at the rank of Assistant Professor in the history of the Persianate World from the Muslim conquest to the present, to begin in August 2026.
https://apply.interfolio.com/174364
Deadline: 30 October, 2025
4. Open Access – ‘Exploring ‘diversity’ and ‘pluralism’: a sociological analysis of religious education textbooks in the ‘Islamic Republic’ of Iran’
H Godazgar,
BJRE, 2025
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01416200.2025.2451031#abstract
5. 2026 BRISMES Annual Conference
SOAS University of London
23-25 June 2026
Submissions are now open for the 2026 BRISMES Conference
https://www.brismes.ac.uk/conference
To submit:
https://www.brismes.ac.uk/conference/about-the-conference/instructions-for-submission
6. The Department of Spanish and Portuguese, in collaboration with the Middle East and North African Studies (MENA) Program at Tulane University, invites applications for a tenure-line position at the rank of Assistant Professor:https://apply.interfolio.com/174060
Review of applications will begin on November 1, 2025, and continue until the position is filled.
7. The Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali Institute of Iranian Studies at the University of Toronto, in collaboration with the Department of Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Chicago, jointly presents the inaugural webinar on Assessment in Persian Language Pedagogy. This event is a result of our collective effort and commitment to the advancement of Persian language pedagogy.
The webinar on Assessment in Persian Language Pedagogy, a crucial and often understudied topic, will be held beginning in January 2027. It will bring together scholars of Persian language teaching and assessment, aiming to explore the most efficient formative and summative methods of assessment used in Persian language programs across the world. This is a significant step in our field, as different universities have developed their own non-standard tests and exams, which do not necessarily follow the accepted criteria for assessing students’ knowledge and proficiency levels. We aim to bridge this gap by aligning the various methods of assessment used by Persian language educators with the testing standards used in more commonly taught languages to achieve standardization of assessment in Persian.
Panels and speakers are invited to present original research on topics related to Assessment in Persian Language Pedagogy, including (but not limited to):
- Language assessment in multilingual contexts
- Adaptive language assessment
- Assessment and Academic Integrity in the digital and AI era
- Automated scoring and feedback
- Equity and cultural relevance
- Learning-oriented assessment
- Dynamic assessment
- Competency assessment
- Proficiency assessment
- Authentic Assessment
- Assessing Intercultural Competence
- Aligning Assessment with Learning Objectives and Learning Outcomes
- Technology in Assessment
- Validity, Reliability, and Unbiasedness in Assessment
The conference organizers will invite a select number of proposals to present their papers in a monthly webinar co-hosted by the University of Toronto and the University of Chicago. After the webinars, the papers presented will be published in an edited volume by the organizers, Azita H. Taleghani and Pouneh Shabani-Jadidi.
Abstracts are due January 1, 2026. Please send your paper title along with a 250-300-word abstract, a 100-word bio, and your contact information to us at: azita.taleghani@utoronto.ca and pshabanijadidi@uchicago.edu. Be sure to include “Webinar on Assessment in Persian Language Pedagogy” in the subject line of the email. Notification of acceptance will be sent by February 1, 2026.
8. Yale Central Asia Workshop 2026 in Almaty – May 25-26, 2026
The Yale Central Asia Initiative is organizing a workshop next spring for advanced graduate students and early-stage postgraduate scholars to share and develop their work on topics in the study of Central Asia, within any discipline and from any period. The workshop, on May 25-26 2026, will be hosted by KIMEP University in Astana, Kazakhstan. We particularly encourage applications from scholars in or from Central Asia and neighboring countries, including Iran, Afghanistan, Turkey, and the Caucasus.
Full details and the application portal are here
9. Arabic Studies at AUC: an Online Information Session about our MA Degree
29 October 2025, 7–8pm Cairo time
(9am Los Angeles, 12pm New York, 5pm London, Midnight Beijing) over Zoom.
Join here! (ID: 931 7316 8355 Passcode: 017862)
AUC offers students the unparalleled experience of living in Cairo, excellent opportunities to develop Arabic language skills, and explore local archives and sites. The faculty is world-class. Recent alumni have gone on to doctoral programs at the University of Chicago, McGill University, Harvard University, Oxford, and Cambridge, while others are pursuing careers in heritage management, education, journalism, and a wide range of related fields.
AUC offers fellowships and scholarships for graduate students and most of our graduates receive at least partial support during their years of study.
The Arabic Studies MA degree offers concentrations in:
- Arabic Language and Literature
- Islamic Art and Architecture
- Middle Eastern History
- Islamic Studies
Apply by December 15, 2025 for Fall 2026 Admission!
During the information session, faculty in Arabic Studies will discuss the department’s diverse course offerings, doing research with Arabic primary sources, and opportunities for professional development.
We look forward to answering any questions you or your students may have during the Online Information Session. You’re also very welcome to direct questions to us by email: aric@aucegypt.edu
10. “Modern Short Stories and Poems: Authentic Texts as a Tool for Teaching Persian as a Foreign Language”
Dr. Nima Mina
Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn
Saturday, October 18, 2025, 1:00 p.m. EDT
Zoom Registration Link:
https://utoronto.zoom.us/meeting/register/rJS6O8qgTkqDnOa-scg49A
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
11. Seminar (In-Person and Online) – Visualizing Music: from Iconography to Notation – Owen Wright
ReSIA (Research Seminar in Islamic Art)
Thursday 23 October 2025, 6PM
Room RG01, SOAS, University of London
Convenor: Professor Anna Contadini
Presents
Prof. Owen Wright, Emeritus Professor of Musicology of the Near and Middle East, SOAS, University of London
Visualizing Music: from Iconography to Notation
Click here to register on Eventbrite:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/resia-presents-prof-owen-wright-tickets-1757924612839
Past and future ReSIA talks can be found on our YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1z_PGhPjwcqXOrrMPQeQS_OJ0Bd4OHEN
We may be tempted to think of music as an exclusively aural phenomenon, one that cannot be smelt, felt, or seen. But it is socially grounded, and its participants, listeners, singers, instrumentalists, and dancers can be observed and represented. It is also an object of thought, so that various aspects of it can be shown schematically, for example in the form of diagrams, or expressed through metaphors; and for performers it can be represented symbolically, translated into visual code to provide an aide-mémoire. Some of these various approaches and techniques will be explored, drawing especially upon representations in paintings and in theoretical texts.
Owen Wright took his first degree in French (at Leicester University) and a second BA in Arabic at SOAS University of London, where he also completed his PhD in musicology and pursued his academic career. He was appointed Lecturer in Arabic, then Reader in Arabic and finally Professor of Musicology of the Near and Middle East and was at various times Head of the Department of the Near and Middle East and Chair of the Centre of Music Studies. His research concentrates on the historical development of the art-music traditions of the Islamic world, with at its core an engagement with both the theoretical literature, initially in Arabic and subsequently also in Persian and Turkish, and the extant documentation of practice as recorded in notations and song-text collections.
A publication in his honour appeared in 2018: Theory and Practice in the Music of the Islamic World. Essays in Honour of Owen Wright, edited by Rachel Harris and Martin Stokes, Routledge. Prof. Wright is the recipient of the 2025 British Academy Derek Allen Prize for Musicology.
His latest publications include: The Ottoman classical repertoire in historical perspective. Abingdon and New York: Routledge (in press); ‘The modal road: Bokhara – Baghdad – Cairo’, Zeitschrift für Geschichte der Arabisch-Islamischen Wissenschaften 2024; ‘Persian perspectives: Chardin, Kaempfer and De la Borde,’ Rast Musicology Journal, Special Issue 2019/7(2): 2050-83; Music theory in the Safavid age. The taqsīm al-naġamāt wa-bayān al-daraj wa-’l-šu‘ab wa-’l-maqāmāt. Abingdon and New York: Routledge, 2019; ‘The peregrinations of panjgāh’, Annali di Ca’ Foscari 55, 2019: 73-119; ‘Bridging the Safavid-Ottoman divide’, in Reinhard Strohm (ed.), The music road. Coherence and diversity in music from the Mediterranean to India (Proceedings of the British Academy 233), Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2019, pp. 168-93.
URL
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/resia-presents-prof-owen-wright-tickets-17579246…
12. UCLA – Hybrid
Pourdavoud Lecture Series
‘Zoroastrianism in the Religious Context of the Arsacid Empire’
Lucinda Dirven
Wednesday, November 5, 2025 at 4:00 pm Pacific Time
Royce Hall 306 and Via Zoom
To register for inperson or zoom:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc2x1NaeS5tntf4y3KwewyAVQaLY1TBINdl2TjFmhthndNktw/viewform
13. Hybrid AGM Lecture Webinar: ‘The Idea of Persia’
With Ramin Jahanbegloo
British Institute of Persian Studies (BIPS), 20 November, 2025, 6.45 pm UK Time
Location:
The British Academy, 10-11 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1Y 5AH & Online on Zoom
The event will take place in person at the British Academy, London, and online on Zoom. The event is free to attend, but booking is necessary. In person bookings are currently closed and members will be notified once they have opened.
The lecture will take place between 6:45-8PM and it will be followed by a light reception.
In 1721, the French philosopher Montesquieu posed the question, “Comment peut-on être persan?” in the title to his famous Persian Letters (Lettres persanes). After centuries of invasion, murder, destruction, authoritarian rule, decay of political theory, and increasing dissolution in Iran’s politics, this volume is an investigation into what the answer to that question might be today. The Idea of Persia explores the notion of what it is to be Persian, but not as it has been constituted in the past, with reference to the political experience of antiquity, nor as an affirmation of the secular-rational project of modernity. Rather, the book examines the question of what it is to be Persian against the backdrop of centuries in which a common, plural subjectivity of Persian-ness has been continually delayed by those who, with or without ideologies, believed in politics only as a means of ruling or of being ruled. The historical battle for social and political freedoms is still underway in Iran, and as the nation wrestles with the possibility of an extended period of political, social, and cultural decline, it is a timely moment to return to the perspective embodied in the enlightened thinking of figures such as the writer and three times prime minister of Iran Mohammed Ali Foroughi (1877–1942) and his vision of a country possessing rational and moral capabilities, and to a possible renaissance of social and political institutions. The idea of Persia as it is presented here sees hope in the future as the means by which Iranians may liberate themselves from the duality of heroes and saints and remake their political mentality while staying true to an age-old idea of Persia.
Zooms registration:
14. Position in Arabic Studies: The Department of Arabic and Translation Studies at American University of Sharjah invites applications for a faculty positionat the rank of Assistant Professor to begin in Fall 2026, subject to budgetary approval. A PhD in Arabic Studies, Arabic Literature or allied areas is required. The willingness and ability to teach entry-level Arabic heritage classes is essential. The ability to offer courses on the history, culture and society of the United Arab Emirates will be a distinct advantage as is the integration of new technologies in teaching and research. Candidates should also indicate any interests, qualifications or experiences related to course and program design/development. We seek candidates with a passion for both teaching and research in any relevant area of specialization to join our faculty. UAE nationals are encouraged to apply.
Successful applicants will have native or near-native proficiency in Arabic and English. The language of instruction at AUS is English, however, candidates able to teach courses in both Arabic and English are preferred. Strong scholarly record/potential and relevant teaching experience are expected. Familiarity with western models of higher education is preferred.
Applicants are requested to submit their CV including a list of three referees, a cover letter outlining their areas of expertise, teaching philosophy, research interests and how they fit with the position. Salary and benefits are highly competitive.
Please submit the required documents in PDF format through https://acg-apps1.aus.edu/cas/empapp/apply.php?p=ATS-26-01 by November 30, 2025. We may request additional information from candidates who make it to the next stage of evaluation.
Online interviews with shortlisted candidates will take place on a rolling basis.
Candidates are welcome to contact the department at <ATS@aus.edu> with any questions about the position, American University of Sharjah or expatriate life in the UAE.
15. ONLINE Seminar “Local Expertise? A Postcolonial History of Heritage and Preservation in Qatar” by Trinidad Rico (Rutgers University), Centre for Gulf Studies, Exeter, 14 October 2025, 18:00 – 19:30 CET
What does it mean to study ‘locally-grown’ heritage traditions Responding to postcolonial calls in the field of heritage studies for more diverse, inclusive, and situated or localized approaches to heritage and preservation, the speaker addresses the rise of a heritage preservation tradition in Qatar as an example of resistance to a monolithic universal heritage ethos by what was once a ‘marginal’ player.
Information and registration: https://www.exeter.ac.uk/events/details/index.php?event=15107
16. ONLINE Seminar “Local Expertise? A Postcolonial History of Heritage and Preservation in Qatar” by Trinidad Rico (Rutgers University), Centre for Gulf Studies, Exeter, 14 October 2025, 18:00 – 19:30 CET
What does it mean to study ‘locally-grown’ heritage traditions Responding to postcolonial calls in the field of heritage studies for more diverse, inclusive, and situated or localized approaches to heritage and preservation, the speaker addresses the rise of a heritage preservation tradition in Qatar as an example of resistance to a monolithic universal heritage ethos by what was once a ‘marginal’ player.
Information and registration: https://www.exeter.ac.uk/events/details/index.php?event=15107
17. Annual History Seminar “Trading Patterns in Middle East History, 700-1900. Impacts, Ruptures and Continuities”, American University in Cairo, 27-28 March 2026
The Seminar invites papers that study and explore ruptures and continuities in trade and its patterns at important juncture and the role that trade played in its economies and how this interacted and intersected with different institutions in state and society at various historical periods.
Deadline for abstracts: 1 November 2025. Information: https://tinyurl.com/swxnm9m6
18. “19th Annual International Conference on Mediterranean Studies”, Athens, Greece, 30 March – 2 April 2026
The aim of the Conference is to bring together scholars from various areas of Mediterranean Studies, such as history, arts, archaeology, philosophy, culture, sociology, politics, international relations, economics, business, sports, environment, ecology, and other related disciplines. The conference is designed to facilitate discussions among academics from Mediterranean countries and those conducting research on Mediterranean-related issues.
Deadline for abstracts: 2 December 2025. Information: https://www.atiner.gr/mediterranean
19. HYBRID Panels on “History & Theory” during the “Istanbul Heritage(s) Conference: Cultural Pasts – Urban Futures”, Istanbul, 6-9 July 2026
Deadline for abstracts: 15 December 2025. Information: https://amps-research.com/heritages-history-theory/
20. Assistant Director for Research, Middle East Initiative (MEI), Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
Qualifications: PhD in political science, economics, or sociology. – Minimum seven years professional work experience in conducting original research. – Experience leading research projects in the Middle East and North Africa. – Ability to manage large research teams. – Experience with statistical programming in either R or Stata. – Fluency in a regional language (Arabic, Persian, Turkish, or Hebrew).
Information: https://tinyurl.com/36d2v46x
21. Kuwait Program Research Fellowship for 2026-2027, Middle East Initiative, Harvard Kennedy School, Cambridge, MA
Deadline for applications: 1 December 2025. Information: https://tinyurl.com/3yc42w64
22. Assistant Professor (Tenure-track) with Expertise in Jews of the Islamic World, Smith College, Northampton, MA
We seek an innovative scholar-teacher with a passion for undergraduate teaching and an active research agenda who will bring new energy and ideas to our Jewish Studies program.
Deadline for applications: 1 December 2025. Information: https://apply.interfolio.com/174654
23. Fellow (up to 3 Years) Raoul Wallenberg Institute, University of Michigan
This open-rank fellowship is intended for scholars and practitioners from any relevant discipline working on topics related to ethnic and religious hatred or tolerance. Applications are open to scholars regardless of citizenship or permanent residency status.
Deadline for applications: 8 December 2025. Information: https://lsa.umich.edu/wallenberg/fellowship-program.html
24. Andreas Tietze Memorial Fellowship in Turkish Studies (1-3 Months), Department of Near Eastern Studies, University of Vienna
The Fellowship 2026 is open to advanced doctoral candidates and postdoctoral/early-stage researchers working on a specific topic in Turkish Studies, especially in environmental history, history of technology, digital humanities, consumption history, history of tourism, and cultural heritage. The Fellow will receive a monthly scholarship of €1500.
Deadline for applications: 15 December 2025. Information: https://tinyurl.com/59sxjxnm
25. Grants of the Iran Heritage Foundation UK
Preference will be given to applications on archaeology, architecture, art, history, linguistics and literature, as well as subjects of contemporary interest, such as cinema, music, sociology and so on; applications from other disciplines will also be considered. Projects to be supported may include the most varied academic initiatives, from fieldwork to workshops, conferences, building databases and digitising images.
Deadline for applications: 22 October 2025. Information: https://ihf.org.uk/grants-tsandcs2025/
26. Call for Articles on ” On both sides of the border: Muslims in Garb al-Andalus and Portugal during the Middle Ages” for the Journal “Hamsa: Journal of Judaic and Islamic Studies”
The aim of this monographic issue is to serve as a compilation and new impetus for this research into the Muslim presence in Portuguese lands, both under the sphere of Andalusian influence (Garb al-Andalus) and under Christian rule (Portugal).
Deadline for articles: 28 February 2026. Information: https://journals.openedition.org/hamsa/5249
- October 11, 2025
- by Andrew Newman
- 0 Comment