Archive for December 10th, 2025
Shii News – Academic Items
1.International Workshop “(Re)Thinking the Role of Religion in Social and Humanitarian Action: Preaching in a Transnational Approach – Middle East (19th – 21st Centuries)”, Centre Marc Bloch, Berlin, 18-19 June 2026
This workshop seeks to explore the links between preaching and socio-humanitarian action in the contemporary Middle East. The chosen approach is deliberately cross-cutting: it brings Islam, Judaism, and Christianity into dia-logue, while situating the Middle East within a global perspective.
Deadline for abstracts: 1 February 2026. Information: Contact anr.predicmo@gmail.com
2. Call for papers: Ruins and Memory in the Muslim World: Typologies and Motifs (622-1800 CE, Leiden University, 14-16 September, 2026
Muslims interacted with the remains of pre-Islamic history present in their contemporary landscapes, and how the physical ruins of the pre-Islamic past were visualised, imagined and put to use in historical, theological and other literary contexts, and in material formats too.
Deadline for abstracts: 1 February 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/9wejc3ej
3. Interdisciplinary Summer Academy: “Reading the City: Epigraphy and Space in Istanbul in Ancient, Byzantine, and Ottoman Times”, Orient-Institut Istanbul, 21-27 September 2026
This interdisciplinary Summer Academy invites advanced MA students, doctoral candidates, and early postdoctoral researchers to explore the role of epigraphy in shaping Istanbul’s urban, sacred, and imperial spaces across antiquity, the Byzantine era, and the Ottoman period.
Through seminars and field excursions, participants will engage directly with epigraphic monuments – from palatial gates to Bosporus shorelines – while discussing their spatial, performative, and material dimensions. The Academy encourages interdisciplinary dialogue bridging philology, history, and art history in a collaborative and inspiring environment.
Deadline for applications: 3 January 2026. Information: https://oiist.org/call-for-applications-reading-the-city/
4. Riwaq Book Prize / Call for Nominations – Deadline: 31 January 2026
Nominations of Outstanding Recent Monographs in Arabic Studies, Islamic Studies, and Related Middle Eastern Studies Invited for the „Riwaq Prize for Research and Culture“ by “The Divan – Arab Cultural Centre” (Berlin) and the “Orient-Institut Beirut (OIB)”
The prize is awarded in three language categories (Arabic, English, German). Monographs in the fields of philosophy, history and cultural studies, art and architecture, literature, linguistics, and translation studies published in their original language between 1 January 2022, and 31 January 2026, are eligible for nomination.
Deadline for nominations: 31 January 2026. Information: https://riwaqbookprize.com/en/
5. Call for Book Chapters on “Watery Worlds: Decolonial Ecologies and the Mediterranean”,
Watery Worlds positions the Mediterranean as an environment where ecological volatility, colonial history, and decolonial futures intersect. By placing literary and cultural texts in dialogue with environmental humanities and blue humanities frameworks, the volume aims to illuminate the world-making capacities of water – how its flows, depths, and absences shape modes of belonging and unbelonging, practices of remembrance, and evolving imaginaries of place.
Deadline for abstracts: 30 January 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/mr3yedcb
6. CFP: Conveying Meaning through Iconic Visual Languages: Theory, Practice, and Didactics – A interdisciplinary Exchange
1-3 July, 2026; abstracts: 5 January, 2026
7. Persian Language & Cultural Immersion Summer School | Yerevan | 2026
Applications are now open for the 2026 Persian Language & Cultural Immersion Summer School organized by ASPIRANTUM in Yerevan, Armenia — a unique opportunity to combine intensive Persian study with exceptional cultural immersion.
Apply here:https://aspirantum.com/courses/persian-language-summer-school
Testimonials from ASPIRANTUM’s Persian language program alumni are available here: https://aspirantum.com/testimonials
Participants may choose a 6–10 week program (120–200 hours) starting on June 21, 2026. Classes are offered at beginner, elementary, and intermediate levels and include 4 hours of daily instruction focused on grammar, reading, speaking, writing, listening, and vocabulary.
Alongside rigorous language training, the program features a rich calendar of cultural events and trips, fully included in the participation fee:
- Garni Temple & Geghard Monastery excursion
- Aragats Mountain, Amberd Fortress & Yezidi tent visit
- Ejmiatsin, Yezidi Temple & medieval mausoleum tour
- Khor Virap, Noravank & Areni-1 Cave (world’s oldest winery)
- Lake Sevan day trip
- Celebration evenings, certificate ceremonies, and welcome/farewell events
- Optional activities: khachkar carving workshop, Armenian brandy tasting, culinary evening, Matenadaran visit, Blue Mosque visit, and more.
Deadlines:
Early Discount: February 25, 2026
Regular Application: May 21, 2026
Apply here: https://aspirantum.com/courses/persian-language-summer-school
For questions, contact khachik@aspirantum.com or WhatsApp: +37491557978
8. University of South Carolina – Instructor Modern Middle East Studies
https://networks.h-net.org/jobs/69570/university-south-carolina-instructor-modern-middle-east-studies
9. “Ḥabīb al-ḥaqq’sMiftāḥ al-ḥuqūq: A Persian Treatise on the Qurʾān and the Bible by a Catholic Missionary in the Persianate World,” in:Mission Studies 42 (2025) Issue 3: Special Issue: Indo-Persian Missions and Their Interreligious Challenge, 426–450.
D Halft,
https://brill.com/view/journals/mist/42/3/article-p426_7.xml?ebody=Abstract%2FExcerpt
10. University of Massachusetts – Amherst – Assistant Professor – History of Art & Architecture (Islamic)
Closing date: Jan 2, 2026
11. Online Study Opportunity – Exploring Christian Arabic Manuscripts
I am excited to offer a new online learning opportunity designed to help you build confidence in reading Christian Arabic manuscripts.
Starting on day one, 6 December 2025, at 7am UTC (UK time), I have uploaded the first manuscript excerpt (“An Episode in the War on Book Theft”). You have nearly two days to decipher, transcribe and translate it at your own pace. On day two at 7pm, I will upload my transcription and translation with explanatory notes so you can compare your work and deepen your understanding. On day three at 7am, the next excerpt will be released, followed on day four at 7pm by my annotated solution—and the cycle continues.
I will respond to questions in the comments section about each manuscript for seven days after uploading my transcription and translation of it. Throughout the course, I will also share practical strategies for deciphering manuscripts and point you to helpful resources.
You will encounter a rich mix of manuscript excerpts: some short and approachable, others longer and more challenging (up to a full page). The content will range from brief literary passages to sizable colophons and fascinating readers’ notes. The age and provenance of the manuscripts will similarly be varied, from Egypt to Iraq, from the ninth to the nineteenth century. One thing will remain constant: every piece will be genuinely exciting to explore.
This study opportunity is offered by subscription at £49 per month and will initially run as a five-week trial. If enough learners subscribe, the programme will continue until 6 June 2026 (confirmation will be given on 6 January 2026). For the duration of the trial, the back catalogue of manuscripts, transcriptions and translations will be accessible to those joining with delay until the end of the five-week trial period.
Click here to register and subscribe: https://buymeacoffee.com/krisztinaszilagyi
All manuscript images, transcriptions, translations and explanatory notes will appear on this website.
This programme is recommended for learners with at least an intermediate level of Arabic (Classical or Modern Standard). The stronger your Arabic, the quicker your progress will be!
Contact Information
Dr Krisztina Szilagyi
Contact Email
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- December 10, 2025
- by Andrew Newman
- 0 Comment