Archive for 2025

A JOURNEY OF DEDICATION AND WONDER

Applications are now open for online participation in the Two-Day Workshop on “Typology of the Documents from the Safavid Period in the Astan-e Ghods,” led by Elahe Mahbub and scheduled for March 22–23, 2025, in Tokyo.
For further details, please visit https://x.gd/ESWgD.

1. On Theocratic Criminal Law: The Rule of Religion and Punishment in Iran

Bahman Khodadadi

OUP, 2024

https://academic.oup.com/book/58208

 

 

 

 

 

2. UCLA IRANIAN STUDIES OUTREACH 

BILINGUAL LECTURE SERIES

‘Women’s Rights and the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran’

Pegah Banihashemi

Sunday, March 9, 2025 at 11:30 am 

Lecture in Persian

Zoom Registration:

https://ucla.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_pM3LdrXXSriCfDMGfzVg8w

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Harvard University – Senior Preceptor in Armenian
https://www.h-net.org/jobs/job_display.php?id=68527

 

 

 

 

 

4. IJIA Dialogues

1 March, 2025 | 9:00–10:30 Pacific/12:00–13:30 Eastern/ 17:00–18:30 GMT

Building the Vernacular and the Everyday in Islamic Contexts

Much of the built environment in Islamic contexts facilitates the needs of everyday life. Self-built spaces are constructed by the community, and schools, housing and streetscapes are reshaped by users to better meet the needs of local people. Settings for assembly are made, adapted, and reshaped. Investigations of these design practices will broaden our understanding of spatial needs and intentions. Twentieth-century architects borrowed liberally from regional materials and traditions, winning awards for designs based on the work of master builders. We can question whether the vernacular label is a useful categorization for localized traditions or the contemporary revival of local practices. Why does vernacular design continue to be presented as if it is less meaningful than institutionally guided and canonical projects, or to be overlooked altogether? There are many ways to engage place-based design needs, communal spaces, and sites erected to facilitate learning, worship, festivals, ritual, and daily life.

Please join us for the annual ‘Dialogues’ roundtable as the International Journal of Islamic Architecture (IJIA) brings together scholars and practitioners from varied disciplines for a discussion of critical contemporary issues that interrogate the boundaries between architecture, art, anthropology, archaeology, and history. In this year’s session, ‘Building the Vernacular and the Everyday in Islamic Contexts’, IJIA Associate Editor Angela Andersen and panelists Yasaman Esmaili, Hussein Keshani, and Solaiman Salahi will discuss the idea of the vernacular, how current needs act to shift and adapt past traditions, and how the digital realm intersects with local brick and stone.

Zoom registration: https://ubc.zoom.us/meeting/register/rEg-1JwKTmeZl9onMhPVtA

Yasaman Esmaili is an architect and educator based in Tehran, Iran. She is the founder of the award-winning Studio Chahar, which fosters community participation through collaborative architectural processes. Her work was shortlisted for the Aga Khan Award in 2022.

Hussein Keshani is Associate Professor and Program Coordinator in Art History and Visual

Culture at the University of British Columbia, Okanagan, Canada. He is a specialist in Delhi

Sultanate and Awadhi visual cultures, and digital art history.

Solaiman Salahi is a civil engineer and Fulbright Scholar based in Seattle, in the United States. He is experienced in sustainable design, and has been involved in creating safe learning environments for girls through sustainable educational infrastructure in Afghanistan.

View the event PDF here: https://www.intellectbooks.com/asset/92979/1/IJIA_Dialogues_2025_info.pdf

 

 

1.Les offres pour un contrat doctoral ou un contrat postdoctoral liée à la chaire junior “Arts et patrimoine d’Afghanistan” sont désormais en ligne sur le site de l’INaLCO.

–          Contrat doctoral: https://www.inalco.fr/institut/concours-recrutement/appels-candidatures-contrat-doctoral-en-histoire-du-monde-islamique

Date limite de candidature : 31 mars 2025

–          Contrat post-doctoral: https://www.inalco.fr/institut/concours-recrutement/contrat-post-doctoral/assistant-de-projet-sur-la-thematique-art

Date limite de candidature : le 15 avril 2025  

Contact et information complémentaire : Arezou Azad : arezou.azad@inalco.fr

 

 

 

2. The Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali Institute of Iranian Studies and Invisible East present a series of monthly online seminars about archives and documents.
Convened by Arezou Azad and Mohamad Tavakoli, the seminars are held monthly on Zoom.
Please join us this month to hear from Professor Farzin Vejdani on ‘Private Sins, Public Crimes: Policing, Punishment, and Authority in Iran’. Wednesday 12 February at 12PM EST / 5PM GMT. 

Pre-registration is essential.

https://utoronto.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZArdu-upjkoHt105Bv9ohYiR1iWSIXsCrFA#/registration

 

 

3.Fatema Mernissi for Our Times

Edited by Minoo Moallem and Paola Bacchetta

Paper $44.95 9780815638575

Hardcover $90 9780815638568

Ebook $44.95 9780815657354

To order: https://press.syr.edu/supressbooks/8090/fatema-mernissi-for-our-times/

 

 

 

4. Armenian Cultural Heritage Conference and Medicine in the Islamic World on February 8

Armenian Cultural Heritage: Past, Present, and Future

A full-day conference that brings together a diverse group of experts to delve into the rich Armenian cultural heritage of the South Caucasus and Eastern Turkey

Co-sponsored event, cohosted by the Promise Armenian Institute and the Fowler Museum at UCLA

Saturday, February 8, 2025

8:00 AM – 7:00 PM PST

Lenart Auditorium, Fowler Museum

https://www.international.ucla.edu/cnes/event/16994

Medicine in the Islamic World: A History through Manuscripts

Co-sponsored event, organized by the UCLA Islamic Studies

Saturday, February 8, 2025

10:30 AM – 12:00 PM PST

Location provided upon RSVP

Details & Register

 

 

 

5. The symposium “Libraries and Archival Practices in the Early Modern Eastern Islamic World” will be held in hybrid mode on March 20, 2025, in Tokyo.

Philip Bockholt, Yui Kanda, Elahe Mahbub, Behzad Nemati, and Andrew Peacock will be speaking. Pre-registration is required for both on-site and online participation. For further details, please visit https://x.gd/4Z5jQ .

 

 

 

 

6. University of Maryland

Summer Language Institute

June 2nd, 2025 – August 1st, 2025

Rapidly improve your Persian language skills in a 9 week intensive program with the University of Maryland’s Summer Language Institute.

The UMD Summer Language Institute offers

• Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced and Content level courses
• Small class sizes, at least 40 hours of language contact per week and a dedicated team of faculty and staff
• One-on-one time with conversation partners for additional speaking practice
• A rich calendar of cultural events, interactive workshops, lectures, career panels, and field trips in the Washington D.C area
• Flat rate tuition for all students and competitive Summer Institute scholarshipsavailable (apply by the priority deadline!)

Early Bird Deadline ($200 off tuition):        March 21st, 2025

Priority Deadline (scholarship consideration): April 11th, 2025

Final Application Deadline:                          May 15th, 202

https://sllc.umd.edu/special-programs/arabic-persian/summer-langage-institutes/persian

 

 

 

7. CALL FOR PAPERS FOR SYMPOSIUM
53rd Annual South Asia Conference 2025 Madison, Wisconsin, 22-25 October 2025

Majoritarianism and Community Resilience in Modern India: Histories, Modalities, Futures

Submission Deadline: Monday, February 17, 2025

The South Asian Muslim Studies Association (SAMSA) invites paper submissions for a full-day symposium examining the complex dimensions of anti-Muslim violence in contemporary India. The symposium seeks to foster interdisciplinary dialogue on the intersections of religious nationalism, state power, and minority experiences in South Asia. We welcome contributions from a range of disciplinary backgrounds and methods, including but not limited to history, anthropology, religious studies, literature, media studies, politics, and area studies.

We welcome papers addressing the following themes:

• Historical genealogies of anti-Muslim violence and their relationship to contemporary Hindutva politics
• Institutional mechanisms of marginalization across bureaucratic, legal, and social domains
• Geographical variations in the manifestation and intensity of anti-Muslim violence
• The role of family, community, and religious institutions in either facilitating, negotiating, or resisting violence
• Muslim subjectivities and lived experiences under conditions of systematic marginalization
• Forms of resistance, community resilience, and strategies for social reconstruction
• Critical and diachronic analysis of concepts that have come to dominate the conversation like religion, nationalism
• ​​​​​​​Critical analyses of conceptions of citizenship, religious identity, and syncretic traditions that press upon communalist boundaries
• ​​​​​​​Theoretical frameworks for understanding state power and minority rights in South Asia
• Papers should engage with one or more of these themes while contributing to broader theoretical discussions about religious nationalism, minority rights, and state power in South Asia.
  ​​​​​​​Submission Guidelines:
• Abstract length: 300 words maximum
• Include a brief bio: 150 words
• Submit all materials as a single Microsof t Word file
• Email submissions to: ysaikia@asu.edu and robbme@upenn.edu
• Deadline: Monday, February 17, 2025, 11:59 PM EST
  ​​​​​​​The symposium organizers plan to develop selected papers into an edited volume or special journal issue. We encourage graduate students and early-career scholars to apply.

Note: The symposium will be held in person at the University of Wisconsin-Madison as part of the Annual South Asia Conference 2025.

 

 

 

8. Scent and Imagination Symposium, which will be held on Wednesday 4th June 2025, at Centre for Research in the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities (CRASSH), University of Cambridge.

This interdisciplinary symposium seeks to explore the dynamic interplay between olfactory heritage and imagination. We aim to understand the material, cultural, and symbolic dimensions of smells and how they shape and are shaped by cultural practices and imaginative processes. The event will feature academic paper presentations, practical and artistic workshops, and an art performance.

For more info, please visit: https://www.crassh.cam.ac.uk/events/45567/#description

We will accept Paper Proposals until the 20th of February 2025, and would be very glad if you could share this information with anyone interested and willing to participate, either as a speaker or as a general participant!

 

 

9. ‘New insights into Sistani intellectual culture under the Saffarids’,

Marc Czarnuszewicz

Journal of Islamic Studies, 2025

https://doi.org/10.1093/jis/etaf003

 

 

 

 

10. Online Course: Department of Near and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Toronto 

Course Title: ‘Persian Book and Printing History’

Course Description: This online course offers an in-depth exploration of early modern and modern Persian Book History, focusing on the transnational development of print in the Persian language. Drawing on the remarkable Tavakoli Archives’ collection of early Persian lithographs and movable type materials, students will examine the historical, cultural, and technological aspects of Persian book production, dissemination, and reception from the late 18th century to 1950.

Through seminars, interactive discussions, and hands-on sessions with digitized archival materials, students will engage with tangible historical artifacts to uncover the intricate relationship between print, culture, and intellectual development in the Persian-speaking world. This material-focused course emphasizes critical analysis, collaborative projects, and independent research centered on the Tavakoli Archives’ collection. By combining theoretical knowledge with practical experience, students will gain a comprehensive understanding of Persian book history and its broader cultural and intellectual significance.

Course Objectives: Upon completion of this course, students will:

• Acquire a deep understanding of the historical, cultural, and social contexts that shaped the evolution of modern Persian book production.

• Analyze the impact of movable type on the Persian printing industry, examining its historical significance and influence on book distribution.
• Investigate the historical and technological developments of lithography in the Persian-speaking world, exploring its impact on book design and production.
• Compare and contrast Persian print cultures in Iran and India, exploring the cultural exchanges and cross-cultural influences in the production of Persian books.
• Trace the transition to modern printing methods in Iran, examining the role of technological advancements and global socio-political conditions in shaping the landscape of Persian printing trade.
• Develop practical research skills by actively engaging with the Tavakoli Archives’ collection, including archival research, cataloging, and preservation techniques.
• Apply theoretical knowledge gained throughout the course to critically analyze and interpret historical materials within the context of Persian Book History.

Students and professionals from other universities can audit or enroll through the standard procedures: https://future.utoronto.ca/apply/requirements/non-degree-students/.

 

 

 

11. ONLINE Conference “The Qur’ān and the Turkic World: Context and Interpretation”, SOAS/Charles Sturt University/University of Freiburg, 19 February 2025, 9:00 am – 2:30 pm CET

This conference will examine the correlation between the Qur’ān and Turkic nations, highlighting the contextual factors that impact its interpretation and implementation. It will explore how the Qur’ān has been translated, interpreted and applied in different historical and contemporary contexts of the Turkic world, such as Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and significant Turkic minorities in other states.

Information, program, and registration:

https://arts-ed.csu.edu.au/centres/cisac/conferences/the-quran-and-the-turkic-world

 

 

 

12. Workshop “What is Islam About: Concept and Conceptualization of Islam from an Interdisciplinary Perspective”, Goethe-University Frankfurt, 21-22 February 2025

We will look at different academic disciplines and their explicit and implicit premises about Islam. In particular, we examine how Islam has been, and is, defined and conceptualized by modern scholars from Islamic Theology, Islamic Studies, Religious Studies, History, Art History, Archaeology and Anthropology. At the same time, we explore the concept and conceptualization of Islam in different periods in history and in various sources.

Deadline for registration: 16 February 2025. Information und program: https://iismm.hypotheses.org/115599

 

 

13. Postdoctoral Fellow / Visiting Scholar (2025-2026), Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture, Harvard University

We invite applications for paid and unpaid Postdoctoral Fellow / Visiting Scholar appointment(s) to conduct advan-ced historical research in Islamic art, architecture, material culture, and archaeology at Harvard University. We welcome applications from recent PhD graduates (as Postdoctoral Fellow) and mid-career scholars/senior scholars (as Visiting Scholar).

Deadline for applications: 20 February 2025. Information:

https://academicpositions.harvard.edu/postings/14649  and https://academicpositions.harvard.edu/postings/14659

 

 

 

 

14. “Prix Michel Seurat 2025” pour un jeune chercheur, ressortissant d’un pays européen ou d’un pays du Proche-Orient ou du Maghreb, CNRS

Doté d’un montant de 15 000 €, le Prix est ouvert aux titulaires d’un master 2 ou d’un diplôme équivalent, âgés de moins de 35 ans révolus et sans condition de nationalité, de toutes disciplines, dont la recherche doctorale en cours porte sur les sociétés contemporaines du monde arabe, domaine envisagé comme ouvert et en interaction avec d’autres contextes et traditions intellectuels.

Limite : 15/04/2025. Information : https://iismm.hypotheses.org/files/2025/02/Seurat2025_Appel_V2.pdf

1.HYBRID Ibn Haldun University (IHU) Summer Language School Program (Modern Turkish, Ottoman Turkish, Arabic, Persian), Istanbul, 30 June – 15 August 2025

Ibn Haldun University offers two types of summer school programs every year; Intensive language and subject-specific academic summer schools. Students can benefit from all university facilities.

Deadline for applications: 21 March 2025. Information: https://summer.ihu.edu.tr/en

 

 

 

2. ONLINE Webinar ‘Book Launch: The I.B. Tauris Handbook of Iranian Cinema’

with Maryam Ghorbankarimi, Michelle Langford,  Zahra Khosroshahi, Laudan Nooshin, Lindsey Moore, Kaveh Abbasian, and Max Bledstein

The book is organised around eight broad themes including cinema before and after the revolution, stylistic innovation, documentary, gender, and genre. Encompassing a diverse range of methodological approaches and disciplinary frameworks including film studies, cultural studies, and political economy, each chapter is a self-contained study on a specific topic engaging with the national and transnational history of Iranian cinema which combined provide readers with original new insights into Iranian film and filmmakers, from fiction films to art house and popular cinema. The Handbook includes analysis of the works of established filmmakers such as Bahram Beyzaie, Rakhshan Banetemad, Abbas Kiarostami and Mohsen Makhmalbaf, as well as the output of emerging voices such as Ida Panahandeh and Shahram Mokri. Covering well-known topics as well as cutting edge ones such the sonic and visual manifestations of the urban environment in Iranian films, this book is a vital resource for understanding Iran and its unique cinematic culture

British Institute of Persian Studies (BIPS),

26 February, 2025, 5:00 pm UK Time

Information and registration: 

https://www.bips.ac.uk/event/book-launch-the-i-b-tauris-handbook-of-iranian-cinema/

 

 

3. German and Persian Encounters in History, Philosophy, and the Arts

German Studies Association Conference, September 25-28, 2025; Arlington, VA

Beyond Goethe’s famed West-östlicher Divan, the relationship between the German-speaking and Persianate world spans centuries, ranging from historical encounters to literature, art, theater, translation, philosophy, and film. This panel invites participants to explore intersections between these linguistic realms from ancient to contemporary times, across Afghanistan, Austria, Germany, Iran, Switzerland, Tajikistan, and their global diasporas.

Through travel both real and imagined, scholars, writers, filmmakers, and artists have engaged with one another in historical encounters, cultural exchanges, translations, and other shared intellectual pursuits, for example, in Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall’s metrically faithful translations of classic Persian poetry into German, which introduced new rhythms to German prosody in the early nineteenth century. We see further exchanges in the Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami’s influence on Christian Petzold and the Berlin School of filmmakers or the interpretation of classic German literature in Iranian cinema, such as Postchi (The Postman), Dariush Mehrjui’s 1962 adaptation of Georg Büchner’s Woyzeck. Additionally, the Afghan German director Burhan Qurbani explores German immigrant experiences through his film adaptation of Berlin Alexanderplatz.

Recently, prominent voices in contemporary fiction have narrated experiences of growing up Iranian German and Afghan German, including Hengameh Yaghoobifarah’s 2021 Ministerium der Träume and Aria Aber’s 2025 Good Girl. This panel, we hope, will highlight work on the points of contact between German and Persian cultures and the arts as well as on lived experiences between these realms.

Possible topics include:

• Literature: Comparative studies of German and Persian literary traditions, influential authors, and the exchange of literary styles and/or genres.
• Film: In addition to examining the contributions of German Iranian and German Afghan filmmakers, papers might explore how German, Austrian, Swiss, Iranian, Afghan, and Tajik filmmakers have responded to each other’s work.
• History: Historical connections, including diplomacy and political relations. Papers might investigate the role of Iranian and Afghan exiles in German-speaking countries, or the impact of Nazism, World War II, and its aftermath on both regions.
• Philosophy and Intellectual Exchanges:  Shared intellectual heritage, including the impact of German philosophers on Persian intellectual thought, or the influence of Persian-speaking philosophers, scientists, or mystics on German thinkers.
• Translation: The role of translation and transmission in shaping the reception of Persianate culture in the German-speaking world, and vice versa.
• Orientalism: The role of German Orientalists (philologists, archaeologists, historians, etc.) in studying Persian culture, language, and artifacts, and/or possible connections to the “Aryan” myth.

Please submit an abstract of 350 words to Annie Pfeifer (ap750@columbia.edu) and Michael Swellander (mswellander@skidmore.edu) by March 1st.

Contact Information

Michael Swellander (mswellander@skidmore.edu) and Annie Pfeifer (ap750@columbia.edu)

 

 

4. Nationalism in the Architecture of Modern Iran

N Kakhi, Gingko, 2024

https://www.gingko.org.uk/publishing/books/nationalism-in-the-architecture-of-modern-iran/

 

 

5. Le CeRMI a le plaisir de vous convier à la prochaine séance du séminaire “Sociétés, politiques et cultures du Monde iranien”, qui se tiendra le jeudi 20 février 2025, 17h-19h, en salle 4.15 à l’INaLCO(65 rue des Grands Moulins, Paris XIII, 4^eétage).

Nous sommes heureux d’accueillir Mme. Eva Zahiri (IFI-CNRS), pour une conférence intitulée: “Pour un droit islamique de notre temps: le renouvellement de la pensée juridique en Iran“.

 Résumé:

Cette présentation a pour visée d’examiner la transformation du droit islamique en Iran depuis les années 1990-2000. À rebours de l’interprétation traditionnelle des foqahā, ancrée dans le droit naturel objectif et dans une perspective apologétique, certains juristes iraniens contemporains privilégient la méthode de l’historicité et l’approche critique, en vue de consacrer la subjectivité et l’égalité juridiques. Bien que n’appartenant pas à un mouvement établi, ils incarnent unprocessus historique embryonnaire mais durable de restructuration en cours.

Leurs innovations doctrinales s’inscrivent dans la tradition usūlī rationaliste tout en la renouvelant au regard des besoins de la société iranienne qui se recompose. Malgré les diversités de tendances et les nuances, tous soulignent la nécessité de penser le contrat social à partir d’une théorie du droit et d’un système de droit renouvelés garantissant la sécurité juridique dans la législation nationale. Leur objectif est d’actualiser et perpétuer le principe cardinal de justice pour refléter le mode de vie iranien actuel et maintenir l’universalité de l’islam.

 Orientations bibliographiques:

– Dâvud FEYRAHI, Fiqh va siyâsat dar Irân-e mo‘âser, vol. 1. et 2, Téhéran, Nashr-e ney, 1392/2013.

– Mohsen KADIVAR, Haqq al-nâs. Eslâm va hoquq-e bashar, Téhéran, Kavir, 1387/2008.

– Mohammad RÂSEKH, “Sharia and Law in the Age of Constitutionalism,” Journal of Global Justice and Public Policy, vol. 2, n° 2, 2016.

– Sedigheh VASMAGHI, Zan, fiqh, eslâm, Téhéran, Samadiyeh, 1386/2007.

Pour rappel, vous retrouverez le programme 2024-2025 du séminaire mensuel de recherche “Sociétés, politiques et cultures du Monde iranien” sur le site du CeRMI :

https://cermi.cnrs.fr/seminaires-de-recherche/societes-politiques-et-cultures-du-monde-iranien-2024-2025/

 

 

 

 

6. “Persianate Studies: Research Institutions, Reference Works and Digital Sources” 

Instructor: Peyman Eshaghi

In this workshop, a large number of websites, databanks, search engines, online material, and research institutions with digital services that can assist learners in doing their research on Persianate studies are discussed. It will not only identify these crucial research tools, but will also equip the students and researchers with the practical knowledge to effectively navigate Persian databases — both archival and modern — and locate rare, primary sources.

This workshop is free to attend, but participants must register in advance.

Date and Time:

Saturday, February 22, 2025

08:00 – 10:00 Pacific Standard Time; 11:00 – 14:00 Eastern Standard Time; 17:00 – 19:00 Central European Time; 21:00-23:00 Indian Standard Time

Registration deadline:

February 15, 2025 

 More information and registration:

https://tinyurl.com/persianlecture

Contact Email

eshaghipeyman@gmail.com