Archive for 2026

1. Russian-Iranian Trade Relations, 1550-1850

Nina G. Kukanova

Tr, W Floor

Mage, 2026

https://mage.com/russian-iranian-trade-relations-1550-1850/

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Lecture by Beate Fricke, Universität Bern

Date: November 5th, 6:10 pm to 8:00 pm

Place: Columbia University, 612 Schermerhorn

Silk, Stone, Souqs, and Slaves

Focusing on two traded goods that moved through the medieval Mediterranean—silk, and enslaved people—this lecture asks how the architecture built to house the exchange of precious goods, from the qaysariyyas in Al-Andalus to the lonja at Valencia, was shaped by the materials traded in it, the (unfree) people contributing to its building, and the functions that the building took over centuries (public bank, prison, chapel, trading floor, and maritime consulate).

To be able to access the Columbia campus, we kindly ask you to register at this Google form by November 1st if you plan on attending: https://forms.gle/FpdeNJ8yjvW2Wyor6

 

 

 

 

 

3. The Pilgrims’ Companion: The Khalili Anīs al-Hujjāj

Call for Papers

Conference, 21 May 2027 | Wolfson College, University of Oxford

This conference takes as its starting point Safi b. Vali’s Anīs al-Hujjājcommissioned by Zeb un-Nisa (1666–67) and recently published in The Pilgrims’ Companion: The Khalili Anīs al-Hujjāj (Kulturalis, 2026). The manuscript provides a rare and detailed account of the pilgrimage from Aurangzeb’s India, across the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea to Mecca and Medina and back. It offers insights into the movement of people and ideas, as well as the cultural and commercial worlds encountered along the way. It also describes the holy cities of Mecca and Medina in considerable detail, drawing on contemporary works to support and expand the account. The accompanying illustrations are notable for their unique insight into the pilgrimage camps, rituals of Hajj and the port cities of Jeddah, Surat and Mocha.
Rather than focusing entirely on the manuscript itself, the conference seeks to take it as a point of departure for considering the wider world of Hajj and pilgrimage. We invite proposals for papers that engage with the Anīs al-Hujjāj itself, as well as with the many aspects of pilgrimage the manuscript addresses.
Topics could include, but are not limited to:

• Hajj from South Asia: Mughal pilgrimage, pilgrims, patrons, artistic commissions, routes and communities
• The Indian Ocean and Red Sea: maritime routes, ports, shipping, trade and the movement of pilgrims, objects and artistic ideas between South Asia and the Hijaz
• Mecca and Medina: representations, descriptions, topography, architecture and the changing experience of the holy cities
• Pilgrimage manuscripts and visual traditions: illustrated travel accounts, pilgrimage guides, maps, itineraries
• The material experience of pilgrimage: objects carried, exchanged or encountered by pilgrims
• Hajj and commerce: trade, markets, merchants and the economic networks associated with pilgrimage
• Women and pilgrimage: women’s experiences, patronage, representation and participation in Hajj
• Pilgrimage and knowledge: the transmission of geographical, religious, historical and practical knowledge
• The Hijaz and the wider Islamic world: cultural and intellectual connections between the holy cities and other regions
• Pilgrimage cities and ports:Jeddah, Mocha, Surat and others as important pilgrimage ports

Please submit a title and abstract of no more than 300 words, together with a short biographical note of no more than 150 words, by 30 November 2026. Proposals should be sent to khaliliahconference@gmail.com.

Please note that the conference organisers are unable to provide financial support for travel, accommodation or other expenses. Presenters are expected to cover their own costs or secure funding from their home institutions. Admission and lunch will be provided.

For more on the Anīs al-Hujjāj see:

https://khalilicollections.org/portfolio/the-pilgrimages-companion-the-khalili-anis-al-hujjaj/

https://kulturalis.com/books/the-pilgrims-companion-qaisra-m-khan-michael-burns/

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-pilgrims-companion-the-khalili-anis-al-hujjaj/id6814430503?i=1000790913839

Contact Information

khaliliahconference@gmail.com (use for conference only)

Contact Email

qaisra@nourhouse.com

URL

https://khalilicollections.org

 

 

 

 

 

4. Colloque international « De la poésie préislamique, 1926–2026 : Bilan et perspectives sur un siècle de débat » — Inalco, Paris, 21-22 octobre 2026

Conférences : – Ṭāhā Ḥusayn and the two Egyptian modernities. – On Comparative Literary History as a State-Building Exercise: Taha Hussein and Egypt’s Futures. – On Pre-Islamic Poetry and the Nahdawi University: Taha Hussein, the Faculty of Arts, and the Institutionalization of the Humanities in Egypt. – Poèmes épigraphiques en Arabie dans les premiers siècles de l’Islam : un soupçon de maté-rialité dans le débat littéraire. – La poésie préislamique, une source pour l’historien ? – Comment utiliser la poésie arabe ancienne pour l’étude des zoonymes ? – Etc.

Information et programme : https://tinyurl.com/yc5nfb4k

 

 

 

 

 

5. HYBRID Joint Book Talk “Women, Martyrs and Stones in Iran’s Post-War Politics” and “Sonic Relations: Devotion and Community in Turkey’s Eastern Borderlands” by Sana Chavoshian (ZMO) & Stefan Williamson Fa (Cambridge University), Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient, Berlin, 22 October 2026, 16:00 – 17:30 CET

The two authors respond to one another’s books. They explore sonic and haptic atmospheres of devo-tion, examining the space of in-between and the Unseen through the experiences of veneration and commemoration in two distinct borderlands one located in South-West Iran and the other in Eastern Turkey. Atmospheric mobilities allow reimagining transcendental intimacies and connections against the otherwise war-torn worlds.

Information and registration: https://tinyurl.com/fxvkpdyc

 

 

 

 

 

6. Journée d’étude « Construire la déviance religieuse (Islam et Chrétientés médiévales) : his-toire des représentations et approches sémantiques » — Université Lyon 2 et Saint-Étienne, 12-13 novembre 2026

Conférences : – Les loups dissimulateurs et les oiseaux piailleurs : animaliser pour discriminer les déviants religieux dans la société byzantine du XIIe siècle. – Sémantique de l’excès et actes de nomi-nation dans la polémique islamique : le ghuluww entre schisme et hérésie. – Ostraciser les morts : étude des processus de différenciation funéraire dans les sources normatives des premiers siècles de l’Islam. – Entre “šarīʿa et falsafa” : langage de la souillure, hiérarchie des savoirs et construction de la déviance religieuse dans la 17e nuit du “Kitāb al-Imtāʿ wa‑l‑muʾānasa d’Abū Ḥayyān al‑Tawḥīdī” (414/1023). – Etc.

Information et programme : https://tinyurl.com/bdpfx5y7

 

 

 

 

 

7. International Conference “Sages and Symbols: Transmitting Knowledge Through Stories in Classical Persian Narrative Literature”, Department for Iranian Studies, University of Bamberg, Germany, 9-10 July 2027

The conference invites scholars to explore how stories in Persian literature have transmitted and shaped knowledge over the centuries. We welcome contributions examining narrative strategies, char-acters, symbols, and the ways in which stories engaged with diverse intellectual, religious, and cultural traditions across the premodern and early modern Persianate world.

Deadline for abstracts: 31 October 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/ya8dytcj

 

 

 

 

 

8. PSi#32 Conference “Meydan”, Performance Studies international & Performistanbul, Istan-bul, 15-19 September 2027

Meydan means an open space, a gathering place, a common ground. We welcome contributions from broad spectrum of disciplines and practices within performance studies including but not limited to theatre, dance, live art, music, visual arts, anthropology, architecture, literary studies, sociology, cultural studies, philosophy, psychology/psychoanalytic studies, law, the social sciences, and history.

Deadline for abstracts: 16 November 2026. Information: https://psi32.psi-web.org/

 

 

 

 

 

9. Research_Assistance (Postdoc,3_Years) _Institute_ of_Islamic__Studies_,_Freie_Universität _Berlin

Qualification: – PhD in Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies (or a closely related field). – At least 2 years of professional experience at an academic institution, including administrative and teaching tasks. – Very good command of Modern Arabic (C1). – Very good proficiency in German (C1) and English (C1), ability to teach at university level in both languages. – Research project on the history of modern Islamic or Arab thought or on contemporary Arabic knowledge production. – Independent, international re-search and publication activity. – Experience in independently conducting academic research projects.

Deadline for applications: 26 October 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/hn7hd5rt

 

 

 

 

 

10. Associate Professor in Medieval European and/or Mediterranean History (400-1500), John Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD

The department seeks to hire a leading scholar in the field with an ambitious research agenda and a significant research profile, a demonstrable commitment to teaching at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, and a willingness to engage in conversations across history and the umanities. Schol-ars whose work focuses on the history of Europe, the Mediterranean, North Africa, and the Near East for any period from 400-1500 will be considered, though preference will be given to those working across geographical regions and whose temporal and methodological focus complements strengths in the department.

Deadline for applications: 15 October 2026. Information: https://apply.interfolio.com/193938

 

 

 

11. Poste _de_ professeure_professeur__Les_ islams:_sources_,histoire_ et_présence_ dans_ _le_monde_contemporain,_Université _du__Québec,_ _Montréal

Exigences: Doctorat en sciences des religions ou dans une discipline connexe. – Expérience profes-sionnelle pertinente d’au moins 3 ans, incluant les activités de recherche doctorales. – Connaissance approfondie et critique de l’islam et de ses contenus fondamentaux. – Connaissance approfondie du corpus fondateur de l’islam. – Dossier de recherche et de publications solide. – Maîtrise de la langue française, tant à l’oral qu’à l’écrit*

Date limit : 23 octobre 2026. Information : https://tinyurl.com/bdhmkjsn

 

 

 

 

12. Postdoctoral Associate (1 Year), Pre-Modern Cultures and Civilizations (Focus Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations), Yale University, New Haven, CT

Qualifications: – A Ph.D. in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Classics, East Asian Studies, South Asian Studies, History, Religious Studies, Archaeology, Anthropology, History of Art, or a related field. – The successful applicant will be able to demonstrate a desire and ability to build collaborative relationships across departments and collections and will possess strong organizational skills. – We especially encourage applications from scholars underrepresented in the study of antiquity.

Deadline for applications: 1 December 2026. Information: https://apply.interfolio.com/194314

 

 

 

 

13. ONLINE New Article: “Written Evidence and Its Probative Value in Islamic Law: Forgery Cases in Eighteenth-Century Ottoman Court Records” by Ali Ekber Cinar, “Journal of Law and Religion”, Vol. 40, Issue 3, Cambridge University Press, 8 October 2026, 15 Pages

This article provides a fresh perspective on the evidentiary value of written evidence in Islamic law by examining Ottoman court records from the eighteenth century. Instead of focusing on theoretical dis-cussions, the author examines how courts and central administration responded to cases of forgery. The author argues that the Ottoman legal system was indifferent to forgery of documents, unless com-mitted by state officials, for, in alignment with the doctrinal skepticism toward writing in Islamic law, they did not attribute any evidentiary value to documents.

View: https://tinyurl.com/524staej

 

 

 

 

 

14. ONLINE New Article: “Blurred borders: Kurds, Empires, and Identity in the Caucasus” by Hakan Ozoglu, Journal “Middle Eastern Studies”, 6 October 2026, 17 Pages

This article examines Kurdish populations in the Caucasus borderlands within the context of Ottoman–Russian imperial rivalry from the 19th century through the aftermath of the First World War. Drawing on Russian, Ottoman and British archival sources, the study shows that Kurdish communities exercised situational agency by negotiating loyalties and exploiting imperial rivalries to pursue security, autonomy and material advantage. The article also problematizes the retrospective projection of fixed Kurdish identity onto the Caucasus, emphasizing the multiform and contingent nature of Kurdish identification prior to the emergence of modern nationalism.

View: https://tinyurl.com/8e3j43u6

 

 

 

 

 

15. ONLINE New Report “Lessons in Repression: Silencing Campus Workers on Palestine Since October 7, 2023”, Middle East Studies Association (MESA), 10 October 2026, 42 Pages

This report is the first systematic study of retaliation against workers on campuses in the US and Can-ada related to Palestine since October 7, 2023, revealing the devastating effects this repression has had on individual lives, campus discussion of Palestine, and academic freedom generally. Based on interviews with 31 employees of higher education institutions in the US and Canada who faced retalia-tion after October 7, 2023, we have identified a set of tactics that higher education institutions have used to stifle Palestine advocacy and pedagogy.

View: https://tinyurl.com/4hmk5hzx

 

 

 

 

 

16. New Journal “The Muslim World Review”, Vol. 47, No.1, October 2026, 120 Pages

Articles: – “Negotiating Twentieth Century Crises Through Chronotopic and Heterotopic Spaces in Cur-rent Muslim Fiction” by Geoffrey Nash. – “The Challenges of Reconciling Deaf Muslim Children’s Right to Develop Faith, Knowledge and Spirituality with Different Perspectives on ‘Accessibility’ and ‘Equal-ity`” by Imran Mogra. – “Reclaiming Muslim Agency: From Ritual to Action/Overcoming Privatisation and Sedation” by Ismail Adam Patel. – Etc.

Information: https://www.themwr.org/

 

 

 

 

 

17. New Volume: “Contemporary Arab Women Revolutionaries: Radical Traditions” Edited By Raad Khair Allah, Routledge, 14 October 2026, 328 Pages

This volume offers a groundbreaking interdisciplinary examination of Arab women’s radical modes of resistance from the 1970s to the present. Spanning literary, visual, political, social, digital, and transla-tional practices, the volume reveals how women across the Arab world and its diasporas have estab-lished and transformed cultural, artistic, and spiritual traditions into powerful tools for confronting patri-archal, colonial, and capitalist structures.

Information: https://tinyurl.com/3eb4zj5e

 

1. Three Postdoctoral Research Positions (3 Years) in Arabic Philosophy, University of Notre Dame Australia, Sydney

Qualification: – Research-level proficiency in the philosophical language of medieval Arabic. – Doctoral level training in Arabic philosophy or medieval Islamic intellectual history, with evidence of potential for high-quality research; a strong publication record is highly desirable. – Proficiency in Arabic text entry, with the ability to read and interpret medieval manuscripts. – Background in digital humanities. – Facility in another language (Latin, classical Greek, Hebrew) or relevant to the study of the Arabic translation movement (Syriac).

Deadline for applications: 6 November 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/2uryepx9

 

 

 

 

2. ONLINE New Journal: “How Rebellion Ends. Conflict Resolution in Late Antique and Early Islami-cate Political Culture (Part I)”, Special Issue of the “Journal of Late Antique, Islamic and Byzantine Studies”, Volume 5, Issue 2, Edinburgh University Press, September 2026, 131 Pages

Articles: – How Rebellion Ends. Conflict Resolution in Late Antique and Early Islamicate Political Culture, I: Mapping the Field. – Borderland Lords and their Centrally-Held Sons: The Sasanian Empire’s Treatment of Captives after the AD 450–1 Armenian Rebellion. – From Execution to State Office: Deal-ing with the Supporters of the Failed Alid Rebel Ibrāhīm b. ʿAbdallāh (d. 763). – Al-Mashhad al-Juyūshī: A Symbol of Triumph and Devotion. – ‘A Popular Insurrection Arose in the Hippodrome’. State Re-sponses to Popular Mobilisation in Late Antique Constantinople. – Etc.

View: https://tinyurl.com/mue8u8dk

 

 

 

 

 

3. ONLINE New Article: “Iran Trapped Between Authoritarian Rule and Foreign Bombs” by Arash Beidollahkhani, Fair Observer, 4 September 2026

External military pressure on Iran may weaken its infrastructure without creating the democratic future that foreign powers have promised Iranians. Instead, this pressure risks strengthening hardliners, deep-ening repression and leaving ordinary Iranians trapped between an authoritarian state and foreign in-tervention. Though they have shown resilience, Iran’s civilians are facing an immense psychological toll, and lasting instability will intensify their declining quality of life.

View: https://tinyurl.com/3fwzbnvh

 

 

 

 

 

4. New Article: “Close Strangers: Syrian-Origin Turkish Citizens, Diaspora Formation between Neighbours and the Limits of Earlier Diaspora Theory” by Mehmet Akif Okur & Hamza Yavuz & Hüseyin Arif Kınacı, Journal “Diaspora Studies”, 24 September 2026, 29 Pages

Earlier diaspora theory was developed around cases of long-distance dispersal into culturally unfamiliar host societies under conditions of prolonged legal precarity. This article reads naturalised Syrian-origin Turkish citizens as a case of diaspora-in-becoming. Türkiye is treated as a deviant case and is used in a theory-building mode. The case suggests that the vocabulary of early diaspora theory needs refine-ment for settings marked by cultural proximity, rapid displacement and accelerated legal incorporation.

Information: https://tinyurl.com/4e9dwz52

 

 

 

 

 

5. Nouveau livre : “Penser le droit et l’Etat en Iran. Modernités politiques et juridiques dans le chiisme iranien contemporain” de Eva Zahiri, IISMM-Karthala, 24 septembre 2026, 350 pages

L’Iran a connu des transformations profondes depuis 1979 : la société est éduquée, l’État se recom-pose, et le droit est pris en tension entre héritage religieux et exigences contemporaines. Comment ces évolutions ont-elles redéfini les théories de l’État ? Que subsiste-t-il du droit religieux qui, depuis des décennies, est imbriqué dans le droit étatique fondé sur la raison et l’intérêt d’État ?

Information : https://tinyurl.com/yc2wkb23

 

 

 

 

 

6. New Book: “Sufi Material Culture”, Volume 2, Series: “Handbook of Sufi Studies”, Volume 154/4.2, Edited by Alexander Papas and Thierry Zarcone, BRILL, 15 September 2026, 570 Pages

Islamic mysticism finds expression not only in writings, speeches, and rituals but also in a rich material culture. Fully illustrated, this groundbreaking volume explores the extraordinary diversity of Sufi material culture across the Muslim world. It reveals how buildings, clothing, and symbolic artifacts reflect the inseparable bond between transcendence and immanence in Sufism. An essential resource for anyone fascinated by the intersection of faith and materiality.

Information: https://tinyurl.com/mr34xmy4

 

 

 

 

 

7. Nouveau livre : “Comprendre la question kurde” de Didier Billion, Armand Colin, septembre 2026, 224 pages

Qui sont vraiment les Kurdes ? Cet essai propose une analyse rigoureuse et nuancée de cette ques-tion complexe. Il met en lumière la diversité des stratégies kurdes, interroge les impasses des lectures occidentales et explore les conditions d’une issue politique fondée sur le droit à l’autodétermination. Un éclairage indispensable pour comprendre un conflit vieux de plus d’un siècle, au coeur des recom-positions du monde actuel.

Information : https://tinyurl.com/y4wb57ua

 

 

 

 

 

8. Open Access: Rawḍat al-ʿIṭr: The 15th-Century Arabic Pharmaceutical Encyclopedia – Arabic/English Edition

Access here:

https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783110780901/html

Rawḍat al-ʿIṭr, written by  Muḥammad ibn Maḥmūd al-Shirwānī in the 15th century, is a comprehensive Arabic pharmaceutical encyclopedia. It preserves centuries of pharmaceutical knowledge and offers detailed guidance on the preparation and use of remedies in the Arabic-Ottoman context.

 

 

 

 

9. Ismail Fajrie Alatas

The Architecture of Refuge: How Protection is Built, not Decreed 

Monday Majlis Online on the 12th of October, 17:00-18:30 (UK time)

Centre for the Study of Islam, Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, University of Exeter

Register please on this link: 

https://Universityofexeter.zoom.us/meeting/register/IYdvtsYNQr-2BwY3MzV4aw

 

 

 

 

 

10. Critical Survey 
Volume 38, Issue 3
Table of Contents

Shakespeare in the Levant

Introduction 
Shakespeare in the Levant 
Paul Innes

Shakespeare in the United Arab Emirates 
Andrew J. Power

Interview with Shereen Saif 
Shereen Saif and Paul Innes

Film Adaptations of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet on the Arab Egyptian Screen 
Hussein A. Alhawamdeh

Egyptian Screen Adaptations of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet 
Ḥobak Nār (Your Love Is Like Fire) (2004) and the Television Series Ḥarb Al-Gebālī (2025) 
Safi Mahmoud Mahfouz and Eman Mustafa Hussein

Persian-Speaking Hamlet 
Censorship and Propaganda in Mehran Dasht-Bozorgi’s Awake Hamlet 
Ramin Farhadi

Reimagining the Moor of Venice 
Islamicising Othello 
Önder Çakırtaş

Afterword 
Arab/Islamic Counter-narratives 
Jyotsna Singh

General Article

From Margin to Centre 
Negotiating British Muslim Identities on the Stage 
Önder Çakırtaş

Sign up for Email Updates: https://bit.ly/4hjd5Bp 

 

 

 

 

11. Faculty positions in Arabic and Translation Studies at the American University of Sharjah

https://www.aus.edu/employment/position-in-arabic-studies-college-of-arts-sciences

https://www.aus.edu/employment/position-in-translation-studies-college-of-arts-sciences

FACULTY POSITIONS

Arabic Studies

Translation Studies

AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF SHARJAH

 

 

 

 

12. Movement in Archaeology: A Workshop on Models, Methods, and Interpretations [Announcement]

October 22, 2026 – October 23, 2026

The workshop will explore the theme of movement in archaeology

with an opening lecture by Hans Peter Hahn (Goethe University Frankfurt), Movements and Culture: Notes on Two Essential Dimensions of Human Societies

and presentations by

Eleftheria Paliou (University of Cologne), Modelling Forager Mobility and Behaviour in Arid Ecosystems Using Empirical Data on San Hunter-Gatherer Movements and Decision-Making

Oscar Aldred (University of Cambridge), What Moves, What Remains? Archaeology and the Dynamics of Past Movement

Anna Collar (University of Southampton), Life on the Edges: Could we ever Model Past ‘Mobilities’?

Philip Verhagen (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), Modelling Transport and Movement on the Dutch Roman Frontier

Marlena Whiting (University of Groningen), Anchoring Meaning and Movement: The Creation of Pilgrimage Infrastructure in the Late Antique Holy Land

Dimitrij Mlekuž (University of Ljubljana), Making Things Move: Traps and Regimes of Movement

Shahin Garakani Dashteh (Goethe University Frankfurt), From Itineraries to Way-Stations: Reconstructing Royal Mobility in Mongol Iran

Contact Information

Shahin Garakani Dashteh (Goethe University Frankfurt)

Contact Email

dashteh@em.uni-frankfurt.de

See:

https://networks.h-net.org/group/announcements/20164256/movement-archaeology-workshop-models-methods-and-interpretations

 

 

 

1. Reprise du séminaire “Sociétés, politiques et cultures du monde iranien” – Première séance : jeudi 8 octobre 2026, 17h, à l’INaLCO

Un nouveau cycle du séminaire “Sociétés, politiques et cultures du monde iranien” organisé par le CeRMI vient d’être mis en place pour l’année 2026-2027.

Pour la première séance de ce nouveau cycle, qui se tiendra le jeudi 8 octobre de 17h à 19h en salle 4.07 de l’INaLCO (65 rue des Grands Moulins, Paris 13e, 4e étage), nous sommes heureux d’accueillir Mme Sophia Mahroug, professeure assistante à l’Université Sorbonne Abu Dhabi, historienne de l’Iran contemporain, spécialiste des Gardiens de la révolution islamique, pour une conférence intitulée : “Une autre histoire des Gardiens de la Révolution par les sources numériques : genèse d’une réflexion doctorale”.

Résumé

À l’occasion de la sortie du livre Une histoire des Gardiens de la Révolution, de 1980 à nos jours (septembre 2026, PuF), l’intervention propose de retracer les recherches doctorales de l’ouvrage menées entre 2020 et 2024, dans le cadre d’une thèse de doctorat en histoire contemporaine (Sorbonne Université, université du Luxembourg). Outre les résultats de cette recherche, cette présentation vise à retracer, par une démarche réflexive, l’évolution des approches scientifiques, les limites du projet et la tension à laquelle le chercheur spécialiste de l’Iran contemporain est aujourd’hui confronté, entre exigences académiques et risque de récupération politique, au gré des vives tensions régionales depuis 2023 et de la guerre de 2026.

Orientation bibliographiques

• Mahroug, S., Une histoire des Gardiens de la Révolution : de la guerre Iran-Irak à la guerre douce (1980-2026), Presses Universitaires de France, septembre 2026.
• Mahroug, S., « L’(anti)impérialisme iranien, de l’Iran à la République islamique (1935-2026) » dans Nicolas BEAUPRE and Florian LOUIS (éd.), Histoire mondiale des impérialismes, XIXe-XXIe siècle, Presses Universitaires de France, Août 2026.
• Mahroug, S., « Iran : anatomie d’un pouvoir en guerre », Politique étrangère, n°3, 2026.
• Mahroug, S., « Les “narrateurs” du Corps des Gardiens de la révolution : une autre histoire du renseignement iranien par l’OSINT », Études françaises de renseignement et de cyber, 6, 2026.
• Mahroug, S., « La guerre informationnelle dans la stratégie militaire du Corps des Gardiens de la Révolution », Études françaises de renseignement et de cyber, 5, 2025.
• Mahroug, S., “Following the Memory of the Martyred Soldier on the Museum Websites of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps”, 20 & 21. Revue d’histoire, 164(4), 123-140, 2024.
• Mahroug, S., « Une histoire du Moyen-Orient par les sources numériques ? Méthodes et enseignements d’une historiographie en construction à partir du web iranien », Revue des mondes musulmans et de la Méditerranée, 156, 2/2024.
• Clavert, F., Schafer, V., Mahroug, S., « Préservation et distorsion : l’espace-temps des réseaux socio-numériques et du web archivé », Revue d’Histoire Culturelle, (5), 2022.

Nous saisissons cette occasion pour remercier très chaleureusement Justine Landau, qui après trois années passées à coorganiser le séminaire, a choisi de passer la main à la nouvelle équipe organisatrice, composée de Simon Berger (INaLCO, CeRMI), Ella Kempf (INaLCO, CeRMI) et Julien Thorez (CNRS, CeRMI). Nous remercions également Poupak Rafii Nejad pour son aide précieuse à toutes les étapes de la préparation du séminaire, et de sa rediffusion à venir.

Comme les années précédentes, les séances du séminaire sont organisées en présentiel dans les locaux de l’INaLCO. Nous mettons cependant en place pour chaque séance un lien visio pour celles et ceux d’entre vous qui seraient dans l’impossibilité de nous y rejoindre. Le lien de connexion vous sera adressé régulièrement en amont de chaque séance. Il concerne en particulier les doctorants, dont la participation régulière au séminaire est attendue, comme partie intégrante de la formation doctorale au sein du laboratoire.

Nous nous réjouissons par avance de votre présence à toutes et à tous, et de votre participation active aux discussions lors des séances à venir.

Bien cordialement,

Simon Berger, Ella Kempf & Julien Thorez

CeRMI – CNRS UMR 8041
Centre de Recherche sur le Monde Iranien
Campus CNRS Ile-de-France Villejuif
7, rue Guy Môquet – 94800 Villejuif – FRANCE
cermi@cnrs.fr  – https://www.cermi.cnrs.fr

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Call for Papers for a special issue of Iran Namag on Persian Lithographic Printing, which I am co-editing with Professor Mohamad Tavakoli-Targhi.

The abstract submission deadline has been extended to November 2.

We invite scholars working on Persian lithography, book history, print culture, manuscript studies, and related fields to submit abstracts.

Iran Namag: A Quarterly of Iranian Studies

Call for Papers for a special issue on Persian Lithographic Printing
Editors:
Mohamad Tavakoli-Targhi (University of Toronto) and Mahdi Ganjavi (University of Toronto)

This special issue of Iran Namag is dedicated to uncovering understudied aspects of Persian lithographic history. By focusing on the specifics of lithographic production—including its techniques, locations, economics, and networks of cultural circulation—we aim to provide a nuanced understanding of how this medium shaped Persianate societies and engaged with broader global currents. This issue also highlights lithography’s role in fostering transregional connections and its significance in the cultural and intellectual history of the Persianate world.

The editors invite well-documented research articles that address topics including, but not limited to:

• Centers of lithographic production in Iran and beyond
• Lithographic techniques, materials, and innovations
• The interplay between manuscript traditions and lithographic practices
• Lithography’s impact on the visual and textual aesthetics of Persian books
• The range and features of lithographic printing in Iran beyond Persian
• The role of lithography in the circulation of historical, literary, and scientific texts
• Gender and class dimensions in the production and readership of lithographed materials
• Global influences on Persian lithographic practices and their transregional networks
• Lithography and the emergence of modern Persianate identities
• The preservation and digitization of Persian lithographed collections

Submission Guidelines

Please submit an abstract of no more than 500 words in Persian or English, along with a 100-word biography, to the editors by November 2, 2026. Abstracts should be emailed to Mohamad Tavakoli-Targhi at editor@irannamag.com and to Mahdi Ganjavi at mahdi.ganjavi@utoronto.ca.

As a bilingual quarterly, Iran Namag accepts articles for review in Persian and English. Authors of selected abstracts will be asked to submit final drafts of their articles (6000 to 8000 words) by January 1, 2027. Articles should adhere to the Iran Namag style guide, available at https://www.irannamag.com/en/author-guidelines/ and https://www.irannamag.com/author-guidelines/

 

 

 

 

 

3. The Latin America and Caribbean Islamic Studies Newsletter
Vol. 6, no. 3 | Fall 2026

https://mailchi.mp/fc91eb6851ee/latin-america-caribbean-islamic-studies-newsletter-vol6-no3

 

 

 

 

 

4. We would like to introduce Forough Verlag & Buchhandlung, a publishing house, bookstore, and supplier of Persian-language books based in Cologne, Germany.

For nearly 30 years, we have been active in publishing and supplying Persian-language books and currently work with a number of universities, libraries, and institutions involved in Iranian, Persian, Middle Eastern, and Islamic Studies in Europe and other parts of the world.

Our aim is to make Persian-language books easily accessible to universities, libraries, researchers, and other institutions worldwide.

Our catalogue covers a broad range of subjects, including literature, history, philosophy, sociology, politics, cultural studies, and other fields. You can view our catalogue and current prices on our website:

https://www.forough-book.com

We aim to offer fair and competitive prices compared with other suppliers of Persian-language books in Europe.

In addition to the titles available on our website, you are welcome to send us requests for any Persian-language books you may need. If a requested title is not currently in our stock, we will do our best to obtain it and deliver it to you within a reasonable time.

We would be very pleased to establish direct contact with your institution and to assist you with future acquisitions of Persian-language books.

If you are not the person responsible for book acquisitions or Persian/Middle Eastern collections, we would greatly appreciate it if you could forward this message to the appropriate colleague or library department.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Kind regards,

Forough Verlag & Buchhandlung
Cologne, Germany
https://www.forough-book.com

 

 

 

 

 

5. Iranian Art seminar Series 2026-2027

Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali Institute of Iranian Studies, University of Toronto

Convened by Ruba Kana’an and Hoda Nedaeifar, University of Toronto

 

Oct. 13

The Mask as Argument: Bahman Mohassess and the Parody of Authority in 1960s Tehran

Reza Mirzaei, Clinical Assistant Professor of Art History, Alfred University

https://utoronto.zoom.us/meeting/register/f0iFF9KzSzCHHwXmPRo2qg

 

Nov. 3

Forgery and Finance in a Global Market: Islamic Ceramics, in and Out of Time

Margaret S. Graves, Associate Professor, Brown University

https://utoronto.zoom.us/meeting/register/LoxWx-zaSw6F-Fs-fVAICA

 

Dec. 8

Ilkhanid Capital Cities: Transcultural Interactions

Atri Hatef Naiemi, Adjunct Assistant Professor, University of Victoria

https://utoronto.zoom.us/meeting/register/d-dr8ZQ1Sj-i21fpE7QFYw

 

Jan. 19

‘Ālam al-Mithāl and the Image in Early Modern Iran

Michael Chagnon, Curator, Aga Khan Museum

https://utoronto.zoom.us/meeting/register/EYqnXf8QQRuKiqbEbOnxxw

 

Feb. 9

The Rose and Nightingale’s Journey from Isfahan to Shiraz: Iranian Flower-and-bird Iconography in the Second Half of the 18th Century

Leila (Leili) Tabatabaei Yazdi, Lecturer, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad and the University of Neyshabur,

https://utoronto.zoom.us/meeting/register/G7IJSadrSVWLFy9g9m7I6A

 

March 2

Paper Gems: The Jeweler Henri Vever and his Collection of Persian Art

Massumeh Farhad, The Ebrahimi Family Curator of Persian, Arab, and Turkish Art and Senior Associate Director for Research, National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian

https://utoronto.zoom.us/meeting/register/gbK1w_2XTiegkEZgxB3mgQ

 

March 23

Modernizing ‘Ajab: Zenderoudi’s Early Paintings and Installations

Hamed Yousefi, Assistant Professor, Oberlin College

https://utoronto.zoom.us/meeting/register/SM_w2LUPTGWcChgjmLDkIg

 

 

April 13

Commercial Break: Manuscript Production in Bukhara in the Absence of Royal Patronage, ca. 1570 – 1590 

Jaimee Comstock-Skipp, Junior Research Fellow, New College, University of Oxford

https://utoronto.zoom.us/meeting/register/8pwQ4CuGQr-Yahf2G9gcvw

 

 

 

 

6. Hybrid – Invitation lecture Towards an History of Syriac Intellectuals in Abbasid Iraq in the Ninth Century

5 pm (London, UK time) on Wednesday, 7^th of October, for the next session of the Islamic History and Thought Lecture Series organised by the Institute of Ismaili Studies.

Dr Mara Nicosia’s talk is titled  “Towards an History of Syriac Intellectuals in Abbasid Iraq in the Ninth Century: Educational Paths, Intellectual Milieu, and Career Prospects”, with Dr Salam Rassi as discussant.

To join, please register for online only attendance at https://www.iis.ac.uk/events/history-of-syriac-intellectuals-abbasid-iraq/

 

 

 

 

 

7. HYBRID Lecture “Embedded in the Flesh: Jewish Women and the Making of Modernity in the Late Ottoman Period” by Anabella Esperanza, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, 5 October 2026, 18:00 – 19:30 CET

The speaker is completing her first monograph, a social and cultural history of Jewish women during the modernization of the Ottoman Empire throughout the 19th century to the second decade of the 20th century, when the empire finally ended. Drawing on a diverse array of sources, the book focuses on bodily practices and rituals embedded in the material body, and conducts a corporeal exploration of Judeo-Spanish-speaking women’s daily lives from Istanbul, Salonica, and Izmir. It will provide new his-tories of Jewish women navigating modernity, with a special focus on the Islamicate world.

Information and registration: https://tinyurl.com/2upzyn27

 

 

 

 

 

8. International Conference “In Conversation with the Prophet Muhammad? The Hadith Between Existential Relevance and Discrepancy in History, Theology, and Pedagogy”, Center for Islamic Theology, Eberhard Karls University Tübingen, 7-8 October 2026

The conference addresses the essential question of how hadiths – as transmitted accounts of the Prophet’s teachings – can be understood and experienced in various historical, theological, and pedagogical contexts as a medium for a dialogical encounter with the Prophet Muhammad. Two days, inter-national scholars from seven different countries and various areas of expertise in Hadith studies present their perspectives on this issue in Tübingen.

Information, programme and registration: https://tinyurl.com/mtvc7c23

 

 

 

 

 

9. HYBRID Discussion: “A New Era in the Persian Gulf”, BROWN Center for Middle East Studies, Providence, RI, 8 October 2026, 20:00 – 21:30 CET

Bernard Haykel (Professor of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University) and John N. Friedman (Dean of the Thomas J. Watson Jr. School of International and Public Affairs) are participating.

Information and registration: https://tinyurl.com/2s4b4npp

 

 

 

 

 

10. HYBRID Discussion: “Omar ibn Said and the Arabic Writings of Enslaved African Muslim Scholars”, Library of Congress, Washington, DC, 8 October 2026, 20:00 – 22:30 CET

Arabic texts penned by enslaved African Muslims, specifically Omar ibn Said, Abdurrahman, and Sana See will be explored. Through this discussion Professors Carl Ernst and Mbaye Lo., we will guide you through the rich collections housed at the Library of Congress. Experience these extraordinary writings and the light they cast on the lives, beliefs, and vibrant intellectual traditions of West African Muslims in the Americas in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Information and registration: https://tinyurl.com/5djcjyhy

 

 

 

 

 

11. Colloque “Islam and Muslims in Greece from the 14th Century to the Present Day. Individu-als, Groups, Spaces & Institutions”, École française d’Athènes, Athens, 15-16 October 2026

Information and programme: https://tinyurl.com/hejwet7b

 

 

 

 

 

12. Makadam History Workshop: “Urban Unrest, Dissent, and Violence in the Mediterranean (c.1700-1918)”, Middle East Technical University, Ankara, 14-15 April 2027

This workshop seeks to critically examine the multifaceted phenomenon of unrest across Mediterra-nean urban centers, with an acute focus on underlying causes, varied expressions, and the sociopolit-ical ramifications of urban dissent and violence, emphasizing interactions among marginalized groups, migrant communities, youth, and political elites within contested urban landscapes.

Deadline for abstracts: 15 October 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/3fwm86b4

 

 

 

 

 

13. Eighth Finnish Colloquium of Middle Eastern and North African Studies: “Recovery, Recon- ciliation, Reconsideration: Past, Present and Future in the Middle East and North Africa”, Uni-versity of Helsinki, 27-28 May 2027

Beginning in October 2023, the Middle East has undergone an exceptionally intense and still unfolding processes of transformation. The colloquium asks how the societies in this region recover from past and present challenges, reconcile competing narratives and experiences, and reconsider inherited as-sumptions in order to envision viable and sustainable futures. The colloquium is multidisciplinary.

Deadline for abstracts: 30 November 2026. Information: https://www.fime.fi/en/colloquium2027/

 

 

 

 

 

14. Assistant or Associate Professor for the History of the Mediterranean and its Hinterlands, 500-1500 CE, University of California Berkeley

All subfields within the history of the Mediterranean in this period will be considered. Work that explores connectedness and interactions between the Mediterranean and its hinterlands, whether to the south (Africa), east (Asia), north (Europe), or west (Iberia and the Atlantic world) is of particular interest.

Deadline for applications: 15 October 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/mts28rfw

 

 

 

 

 

15. Assistant Professor in Comparative Politics/International Relations (Focus MENA), Univer-sity of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR

Qualification: – Ph.D. in Political Science. – Record of successful research and published work. – Evi-dence of effective teaching. – Regional focus on MENA or the Mediterranean. – Active research agenda grounded in theory, particularly critical and interdisciplinary approaches; specialization in NGOs, civil society actors, transnational networks, and global humanitarianism in the context of crises, migration and displacement.

Deadline for applications: 10 October 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/mwa464f6

 

 

 

 

 

16. Bourses de recherche en islamologie (UMIFRE), Master 2 (1 à 3 mois), Doctorant/es/Jounes docteur/es (6 mois)

L’octroi d’une bourse de mobilité devra permettre aux masterant/es, doctorant/es ou jeune docteur/es d’accomplir un travail de terrain de recherche en islamologie en étant accueilli/es dans une ou deux UMIFRE (ou instituts partenaires du programme).

Jusqu’au 15 octobre 2026. Information : https://tinyurl.com/mtkd6vfw

 

A typology of Razavi shrine documents from the Safavid period
گونه‌شناسی اسناد آستان قدس رضوی در عصر صفوی
Maḥbūb Farīmānī, Ilāhah
MORIMOTO, Kazuo

Available for download here.

1. Assistant or Associate Professor for the History of the Mediterranean and its Hinterlands, 500-1500 CE, University of California Berkeley

All subfields within the history of the Mediterranean in this period will be considered. Work that explores connectedness and interactions between the Mediterranean and its hinterlands, whether to the south (Africa), east (Asia), north (Europe), or west (Iberia and the Atlantic world) is of particular interest.

Deadline for applications: 15 October 2026. Information: https://aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF05501

 

 

 

 

 

2. Grants for Study and Research Related to and/or Undertaken in Türkiye and the Black Sea Region, British Institute at Ankara (BIAA)

BIAA is pleased to offer a range of funding opportunities, grants, and awards to support academics at all stages of their careers. Support is intended for researchers (from postdoctoral fellows to senior academics). Projects should focus on arts, humanities or the social sciences. Some of our latest op-portunities include: – BIAA Study Grants of up to £2,000. – BIAA Research Grants of up to £5,000. – BIAA Large Research Grants of up to £10,000.

Deadline for applications: 1 November 2026. Information: https://biaa.ac.uk/grants-opportunities/

 

 

 

 

 

3. ONLINE New Special Issue: “Rethinking Transnational Islamic Movements: Politics, Adaptation, and Change” in “Religion, State and Society”, Vol. 54, Issue 4, 9 September 2026, 123 Pages

Articles: – “Introduction: Rethinking transnational Islamic movements: politics, adaptation, and change” by Iman Dawood & Guy Robert Eyre. – “The halal social sphere: Muslim moral markets as counter-governmentality” by Tahir Abbas. – “Crises of the Caliphate: international crises and frame degradation within European Islamic activism” by Richard McNeil-Willson. – “Resisting the imposition of ‘British values’: conservative gender norms in evolving British Salafi communities” Iman Dawood. “‘Islamist Sufism’: spirituality and hybridity in the thought of Yūsuf al-Qaraḍāwī” by Usaama al-Azami. – Etc.

View: https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/crss20/54/4

 

 

 

4. Zoom – Poetic Desire and Literary Thievery: Economies of Intertextuality in Arabic Literature

by Muhsin J. al-Musawi
How do we define plagiarism in literature? In this wide-ranging and innovative study, Muhsin J. al-Musawi examines debates surrounding literary authenticity across Arabic and Islamic culture over seven centuries. Al-Musawi argues that intertextual borrowing was driven by personal desire alongside the competitive economy of the Abbasid Islamic Empire. Here, accusations of plagiarism had wide-ranging consequences, as competition among poets and writers grew fierce, while philologists and critics served as public arbiters over controversies of alleged poetic thefts. Taking in an extensive remit of Arabic sources, from Persian writers to the poets of Andalusia and Morocco, al-Musawi extends his argument all the way to Ibrāhīm ᶜAbd al-Qādir al-Māzinī’s writing in Egypt and the Iraqi poet Nāzik al-Malā՚ikah’s work in the twentieth century to present ‘theft’ as a necessary condition of creative production in Arabic literature. As a result, this study sheds light on a vast yet understudied aspect of the Arabic literary tradition, while raising important questions surrounding the rising challenge of artificial intelligence in matters of academic integrity.
Cosponsors
Office of the Divisional Deans in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences
Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies
Organizer
The Society of Fellows and Heyman Center for the Humanities
Contact
email address
sofheyman@columbia.edu
Notes
Free and open to the public
Registration required.

 

 

 

 

 

5. JOHN P COOPER

‘EMBARK IN THE NAME OF ALLAH’: RELIGIOUS AND SECULAR MEANING IN THE ‘DECORATIVE’ PRACTICES OF YEMENI BOATBUILDERS 

Monday Majlis Online on the 5th of October, 17:00-18:30 (UK time)

Centre for the Study of Islam, Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, University of Exeter

Register please on this link: https://Universityofexeter.zoom.us/meeting/register/zwiawURxR2-0zVYBR-Ck5Q

 

 

 

 

 

6. To learn about our New Masters Degree in Persian Studies, Our Undergraduate Journal Roshangar, Professor Miller’s New Book,

A New Documentary About Mohammad Mosaddegh, A wonderful Iranian poet Translated into English,

A book on Persian Proverbs, Modern Art influenced by Rumi,  Roshan’s Recent Grants

And other Good News

Mark Your Calendars to Join us On Sunday, October 4th,2pm EST

https://umd.zoom.us/j/5378789861?pwd=LJyvjqWX0uOyAeSIbVJS6jmaRiQBEM.1&omn=98107424421

 

 

 

 

 

7. Arabic Pasts workshop
Please join us at the Aga Khan Centreon 8 – 9 October for the annualArabic Pastsworkshop, co-hosted with Queen Mary!

Running since 2009 at AKU, this workshop features exciting new research in history and historiography.

We’ll tackle questions like: Who does history represent, and how? How does poetry shape our understanding of the past? What traces of past times survived to influence later societies?

Key details:

8 – 9 October 2026

Aga Khan Centre, London (in-person)

10 Handyside St, London N1C 4DN

Registration: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/arabic-pasts-histories-and-historiography-tickets-1999773151328.

Programme: https://kitab-project.org/documents/Arabic_Pasts_Schedule_2026.pdf.

Lunch is provided, so please do RSVP to ensure we can accommodate everyone.

 

 

 

 

 

8. Critical Digital Archives. Travel, Translation, Transformation.  

A Hybrid Symposium on Archives in and from the SWANA Region. 

21-22nd January 

Senate House, London 

This symposium aims to provide a forum for scholars, archivists, community and cultural organizations interested in critical approaches to digital archives containing materials from and about the SWANA (Southwest Asia and North Africa) region, understood as a geographic, historical, and cultural space. In this space, archives have been historically imposed, looted, extracted, dispersed, destroyed, but also rescued, rebuilt and reinvented, pioneering practices of resistance, reparation and return that raise compelling ethical, theoretical and practical questions for scholars and stakeholders (Ghaddar, 2025). Building on Itza Carbajal and Michelle Caswell’s framework (2021), our approach seeks to advance a language-sensitive understanding of reparative archival practices that are attentive to and accountable for the technological, social, and environmental impacts of digital archives.

We are interested in digitisation as a transformative process that reshapes archival practices, knowledge production, and power relations.

Conceived as a collaborative, interdisciplinary, and horizontal forum, the symposium invites participants, both in person and online, to engage in discussion and exchange around three interconnected themes and interpretative lenses. Two keynote speakers – Sara Salem (LSE) and Amanda Egbe (UWE) – will act as discussants, facilitating collective reflection and dialogue around participants’ contributions. The three themes of the symposium are Travel, Translation and Transformation:

Travel: Archives in Movement 

This strand explores journeys and movement both as subjects represented in archival collections and as conditions shaping the archive itself, opening up questions of archival looting, dispersal and dispossession as well as care, stewardship, and reparation. Discussions may engage with spatial humanities approaches, including digital mapping and gazetteers; the displacement and mobility of archives; practices and ethics of archival solidarity and return; and questions of heritage, ownership, and identity from indigenous and diasporic perspectives.

Translation: Languages in the Archive 

This strand will examine issues relating to languages and translation, both in the records and in the archival metadata that make them searchable by and accessible to stakeholders. We will especially welcome contributions reflecting on the role of metadata as descriptive as well as interpretative text, exploring the potential for linguistic, semantic and epistemological translations.  We will also welcome contributions that explore the multilinguality of archival records as enduring representations of human activity and consider the practices and ethics of reparative translation in digital archives.

Transformation: Digital Futures and Ethics of Dematerialization 

The third strand will look at digitisation as a transformative process for the archive that involves new materialities and highlights new absences. We aim to discuss the impact of digital projects on key stakeholders (users, subjects of records, source communities). We invite contributions on the fragility of digitised and born-digital heritage, as well as the specific biases and risks that digitalisation processes may introduce, particularly through the reproduction, by digital tools, of historical and ongoing harms to people and the environment.

We also aim to assess the potential of digital technology, especially non-corporate and low-threshold, to act as vectors of resistance and tools against erasure.

Convenors:

Barbara Spadaro, University of Liverpool

Valeria Vitale, University of Sheffield

Please send via email a 300 words abstract and short bio to b.spadaro@liverpool.ac.uk and v.vitale@sheffield.ac.uk

Deadline: 30 September 2026 

The event is funded by the British Institute for Libyan and Northern African Studies in collaboration with the British Institute in East Africa and the Centre for British Research in the Levant. It is jointly hosted by the Institute of Classical Studies and the Institute of Languages, Cultures and Societies, at the School of Advanced Study, London.

A limited number of travel bursaries will be offered to participants travelling to the symposium in London.

Contact Email

b.spadaro@liverpool.ac.uk

URL

https://ics.sas.ac.uk/news-events/events/critical-digital-archives-travel-trans…

 

 

 

 

9. Séminaire « L’Afghanistan à travers les âges » – séance mardi 6 octobre 18h-19h30

nous avons le plaisir de vous convier à la première séance du séminaire « L’Afghanistan à travers les âges », qui se tiendra mardi 6 octobre 2026, 18h-19h30, en Amphi 2 à l’INaLCO (65 rue des Grands Moulins, Paris XIII, 2^e étage).

Nous sommes heureux d’accueillir M Alastair Northedge, Universite Paris 1 – Pantheon-Sorbonne, pour une conférence intitulée : Paysages desséchés médiévaux du Déhistan (Misriyan, Turkménistan).

 Vous trouverez l’intégralité du programme 2026-2027 du séminaire mensuel de recherche « L’Afghanistan à travers les âges » en ligne sur le site du CeRMI: L’Afghanistan à travers les âges – Centre de recherche sur le monde iranien

Vous trouverez également ici le lien de connexion: https://zoom.us/j/96136711428?pwd=jqZ3lotYx6re8bpoU4uAYPl9GRM1CF.1

Bien cordialement,

Arezou Azad et Matteo De Chiara
CeRMI – CNRS UMR 8041
Centre de Recherche sur le Monde Iranien
Campus CNRS Ile-de-France Villejuif
7, rue Guy Môquet – 94800 Villejuif – FRANCE
cermi@cnrs.fr  – https://www.cermi.cnrs.fr

 

 

 

 

10. October Speaker Series & Mini Courses

Can States Be Built Without Recognition? Empirical Evidence from 35 Years of German–Iraqi Kurdish Relations

Speaker: Silvia Nicola
When: Wednesday, October 7, 2026 | 12 PM CT / 1 PM ET
Registration Link: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/gGIoKqxeQ2e59P6chnxdNw#

The Kurdish Madrasa and the Making of an Intellectual Tradition

Speaker: Serdar Sengul
When: Wednesday, October 21, 2026 | 12 PM CT / 1 PM ET
Registration Link: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/BDet8R1sS2atRJc-uvzBag#

Mini Courses: Registration Open

Our next month-long synchronous mini courses, Qur’an in Historical Context and Contemporary Kurdish Literature, begin October 10 and 11, 1–3:30 PM Central Time.

Each mini course includes:

• Four live online sessions (2.5 hours each)
• Minimal homework
• Curated supplemental readings

Also coming this fall: Islamic Constitutionalism and Said Nursi’s Munazarat, beginning November 8

Learn more and register: https://zahrainstitute.org/Mini_Courses.html
Questions: admissions@zahrainstitute.org

 

 

 

 

 

11. Call for paper presentations for “Critical Muslim Geographies,” a proposed paper session at the 2027 American Association of Geographers (AAG) Annual Meeting in New York City.

The session is organized by Saba Fatima (University of Washington) and Dr. Timur Hammond (Syracuse University).

Submission Deadline: October 11, 2026
Interested participants may submit a 250-word abstract to sabafat@uw.edu and twhammon@syr.edu. Accepted presenters will be notified by October 14 and asked to submit through the AAG submission portal by October 15.

Full session details and submission information can be found here: Critical Muslim Geographies – Call for Papers

 

1. Early Islamic History Faculty Position – Princeton University

Princeton University: Office of the Dean of the Faculty: Humanities: Near Eastern Studies
https://apply.interfolio.com/193875
Location: Princeton, NJ
Open Date: Sep 18, 2026
Salary Range or Pay Grade: Assistant Professor: $86,000 – $100,000; Associate Professor: $115,000 – $135,000; Full Professor: $179,000 – $276,000 per year
Description
The Department of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University invites applications for a tenured or tenure-track faculty position in the field of Early Islamic History, with a primary focus on the period ca. 600–1300 CE. We seek a dynamic and innovative scholar whose research engages critically with the historical development of Islamic societies in this formative era. While the core of the position is historical in nature, we welcome applications from candidates whose work is grounded in related disciplines and whose scholarship brings fresh perspectives to the study of early Islam.

Applicants should submit a cover letter, curriculum vitae, and research statement. Please also include the names and contact information for three references. Referees will not be contacted until later in the process. Junior level applicants need to also provide a writing sample, for example one chapter or an article. Review of applications will begin on October 30, 2026, and continue until the position is filled. Applicants must hold a Ph.D. in a relevant field by the time of appointment. A strong record of original research is essential. Proficiency in classical Arabic and strong paleographic skills are also important. We are particularly interested in candidates who can contribute meaningfully to the department’s teaching and research missions at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
The successful candidate will be expected to maintain an active research agenda, participate fully in departmental activities, and contribute to fostering a diverse and inclusive academic community.
This position is subject to the University’s background check policy

 

 

 

 

2. IFANCA Chair in Indian Muslim Studies

About the Position

Arizona State University’s The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences invites applications and nominations for the inaugural IFANCA Chair of Indian Muslim Studies, at the rank of Associate Professor, with a start date of August 16, 2027. The Chair will hold tenure in the School of Historical, Philosophical, and Religious Studies (SHPRS) and will be fully embedded in the Center of Muslim Experience in the United States (CME-US), ASU’s hub for innovative, publicly engaged scholarship on Muslim life in America and globally.

Position Overview

The inaugural IFANCA (Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America) Chair of Indian Muslim Studies will be a senior scholar — or a highly accomplished scholar on a strong upward trajectory whose work exemplifies both rigorous humanistic inquiry and the capacity to lead. The Chair will advance innovative research in Indian Muslim Studies, shape CME-US’s intellectual agenda, and contribute to ASU’s commitments to inclusive excellence, global engagement, and meaningful public scholarship.

About the Center of Muslim Experience in the United States (CME-US)

The Center of Muslim Experience in the United States (CME-US) is a multi-partnership, transdisciplinary research and community outreach center at Arizona State University leading the way in producing transformative scholarship about Muslims in the U.S. that contributes to an American inclusive future.

About the School of Historical, Philosophical, and Religious Studies

ASU’s School of Historical, Philosophical, and Religious Studies (SHPRS) is one of the nation’s largest and most innovative transdisciplinary humanities institutions. With 92 faculty and nearly 1,600 majors, the school teaches more than 33,000 students each year in bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral programs. A substantial portion of the student population is online, including a pioneering master’s program in World War II Studies in collaboration with the National World War II Museum in New Orleans. Additionally, the school hosts transdisciplinary programs and affiliated research and education centers.

About The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is the academic heart of Arizona State University, committed to improving communities on a local, national and global scale. We support the professional development and growth of our faculty and staff in their cutting-edge research to advance these aims. Within The College, our faculty engage with a large curious student body, guiding them as they grow into socially aware, critical thinkers and writers able to succeed in a wide range of careers and to address the challenges of the twenty-first century. Advancing the success of our students remains our top priority. To learn more about The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, please visit  https://thecollege.asu.edu.

About Arizona State University

ASU exemplifies a new prototype for the American public research university. As articulated in the ASU Charter, ASU is a comprehensive public research university, measured not by whom it excludes, but by whom it includes and how they succeed; advancing research and discovery of public value; and assuming fundamental responsibility for the economic, social, cultural and overall health of the communities it serves.

Essential Functions

The successful candidate will be expected to:

• The Chair will advance innovative research in Indian Muslim Studies, shape CME-US’s intellectual agenda, and contribute to ASU’s commitments to inclusive excellence, global engagement, and meaningful public scholarship.
• Maintain a distinguished, internationally recognized research and publishing agenda in Indian Muslim Studies within their humanistic discipline
• Teach undergraduate and graduate courses aligned with their expertise and in accordance with the curricular needs of the School of Historical, Philosophical, and Religious Studies
• Mentor graduate students and junior faculty
• Provide intellectual leadership in shaping CME-US’s research, programming, and initiatives related to Indian Muslim Studies
• Foster interdisciplinary collaboration across ASU, nationally, and internationally
• Organize and convene regular conferences, workshops, and seminars
• Engage public audiences, community partners, and broader civic life
• Supports IFANCA’s mission which includes values of service, adaptability, and integrity and increase awareness through education

Disciplinary Home and Areas of Scholarly Interest

This position is anchored in the Humanities and housed in SHPRS. We particularly welcome scholars working in:

• History (including intellectual, social, religious, political, and cultural history)
• Religious Studies (anthropology of religion, religious thought, material culture, and contemporary and global religious movements)
• Philosophy (including political philosophy, ethics, and philosophy of religion)
• Related humanistic fields such as Literary and Cultural Studies, Gender and Justice Studies, Ethnic Studies, Islamic Studies, Asian Studies, or Law and Ethics, where the primary methodology is humanistic

Candidates’ research should focus on Indian Muslim communities in any period (precolonial, colonial, or postcolonial) with attention to contemporary concerns, and may address themes including, but not limited to, pluralism and justice, postcolonial nationalisms, migration and diaspora (with particular attention to Indian Muslims in the United States), law and governance, public narratives and public memory, environmental humanities and ethics, social movements, intellectual history, or everyday lived experience.

Appointment and Support

The IFANCA Endowed Chair comes with a competitive salary, dedicated research funds, and programming support commensurate with rank and experience. The Chair will be fully integrated into CME-US’s collaborative environment and is expected to be an active contributor to its mission and community. The position also offers opportunities to collaborate with other ASU centers and initiatives focused on religion and conflict, transborder studies, Asian studies, security studies, and applied ethics.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

• PhD in History, Religious Studies, Philosophy, or a related Humanities discipline
• Qualifications commensurate with appointment at the rank of Associate Professor at ASU
• A record of scholarly excellence commensurate with rank
• An active research agenda with evidence of sustained productivity and impact

Desired Qualifications:

• Familiarity with or experience in Islamic Studies, South Asian Studies, or related fields
• Demonstrated commitment to innovative teaching and graduate mentorship
• Experience with and commitment to interdisciplinary collaboration
• Experience in or demonstrated interest in center-based or collaborative research environments
• A demonstrated record of or clear potential for public and community engagement
• Experience organizing academic conferences, workshops, or seminar series
• Demonstrated commitment to working with faculty, staff, students, and communities to advance the principles of the ASU Charter.

Application Instructions

The application deadline is 13 November 2026. Applications will continue to be accepted on a rolling basis for a reserve pool. Applications in the reserve pool may then be reviewed in the order in which they were received until the position is filled. Candidates will be asked to create or use an existing Interfolio Dossier to submit the following application materials:

• a curriculum vitae
• a letter of interest
• the names, positions, and contact information of three references who may be contacted directly

: https://apply.interfolio.com/193990.

If anyone has any questions, please feel free to reach out to me, Yasmin Saikia (ysaikia@asu.edu).

 

 

 

 

 

3. Leigh Douglas Memorial Prize

About the Prize

This prize was established jointly in 1986 by the Leigh Douglas Memorial Fund and BRISMES in memory of Dr Leigh Douglas who was killed in Beirut in 1986. The prize is awarded annually to the writer of the best PhD dissertation on a Middle Eastern topic in the Social Sciences or Humanities awarded by a British University in the previous year. The current value of the prize is £600 for the winner and £250 for the runner up.

The annual deadline for this prize was changed in 2023 to allow the winner(s) to be invited to attend the BRISMES annual conference.

Eligibility

Any student who has submitted their PhD dissertation on a Middle Eastern topic in the Social Sciences or Humanities to a British University between 1 October 2025 and 30 September 2026 is eligible to apply. If you are submitting your thesis after the deadline in 2026, you will be eligible for the following year’s prize.

We recommend that submissions for this prize are made after completion of your viva in order to benefit from feedback from the viva panel, but applicants can make a submission before the viva if they wish. Please note that you can only submit your PhD dissertation once for this prize. Entering your thesis for this award does not preclude entering it for other awards.

How to Apply

Please send an electronic copy of your thesis and a letter of nomination from your supervisor to office@brismes.org.

The deadline for submissions is 23:59 GMT on Monday, 23 November 2026. 

https://www.brismes.ac.uk/awards/ldmp

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. G. de Callataÿ – B. Halflants – S. Moureau – J. Mattila,The Epistles of the Brethren of Purity, On Magic. 2. An Arabic Critical Edition and English Translation of Epistle 52b and 52c, Oxford: Oxford University Press in association with the Institute of Ismaili Studies, 2026, xxi-1304 pages. (https://global.oup.com/academic/product/on-magic-part-ii-9780198955436?lang=en&cc=be)

Open Access:

https://transvol.sgsi.ucl.ac.be/download.php?id=0f69fa7c4f1d35b1

 

 

 

 

5. The session, “Gifts to the Sacred: Portable Objects and Material Patronage across Religious Traditions,” has been accepted for the AAH 2027 Annual Conference, taking place at the University of Exeter from 7–9 April 2027.

I would be very grateful if you could help me share and circulate the Call for Papers as widely as possible. If you know of any mailing lists, academic networks, societies, social media groups, or other platforms that might be particularly useful for reaching interested scholars, please do let me know. I’d really like the Call to reach colleagues working across different fields, regions, and religious traditions.

Also, if anyone specific comes to mind who you think might be a particularly interesting contributor to the session, please feel free to send them the Call or encourage them to apply. I would be very grateful for any suggestions or introductions.

Session: Gifts to the Sacred: Portable Objects and Material Patronage across Religious Traditions
Conference: AAH 2027, University of Exeter, 7–9 April 2027
Paper proposal deadline: 23:59 UK, Sunday 25 October 2026

Session Call for Papers:
Gifts to the Sacred – AAH 2027 Session

Full AAH 2027 Call for Papers:
AAH 2027 Call for Papers

Zahra Khademi

Doctoral Researcher | The Courtauld

https://courtauld.ac.uk/people/zahra-khademi/

 

 

 

 

6. Penser la modernité en Iran : regards croisés (XIXe-XXe siècle)

La journée est organisée par les doctorants en études iraniennes de l’Université Sorbonne Nouvelle avec le soutien du CeRMI (UMR8041 – Centre de Recherche sur le Monde Iranien) et de l’ICEE (Intégration et Coopération dans l’Espace Européen – EA 2291).

Elle s’articulera autour de quatre panels consacrés à la modernité dans les domaines de la littérature, de la politique, des relations internationales et de la sociologie.

Date et lieu

Mardi 6 octobre 2026
Université Sorbonne Nouvelle, 8 avenue de Saint Mandé 75012 Paris
9h30-13h (salles B115) – 13h30-16h (salle A608)

Programme des interventions est en fichier joint.
Entrée est libre, dans la limite des places disponibles.

Les organisateurs
Roxane Bertran de Balanda (ICEE)
Asyeh Ghafourian (CeRMI)
Antonin Hoffmann (ICEE)
Mariam Nahavandy (ICEE)

——————————————————–
CeRMI – CNRS UMR 8041
Centre de Recherche sur le Monde Iranien
Campus CNRS Ile-de-France Villejuif
7, rue Guy Môquet – 94800 Villejuif – FRANCE
cermi@cnrs.fr – https://www.cermi.cnrs.fr

 

 

 

 

7. Christian Arabic intensive course at Westminster College, Cambridge (UK), 11–15 January 2027 [Announcement]

The course is primarily aimed at those interested in Christianity in the Middle East and we will be reading Christian Arabic texts from the first day to the last. However, it is also suitable for anyone who would like to practise reading premodern Arabic texts intensively, including directly from manuscripts. In previous years, the course has attracted participants from a wide range of academic backgrounds and at different stages of their careers, from undergraduates to professors. The recommended minimum level is one year of intensive Classical Arabic or Modern Standard Arabic, or equivalent experience. For further information and registration, please visit https://www.westminster.cam.ac.uk/biblical-languages/christian-arabic-2027.

I will also be teaching a four-day Arabic Taster for complete beginners (6-9 January 2027, https://www.westminster.cam.ac.uk/biblical-languages/christian-arabic-texts-taster-course). In addition, the Winter School at Westminster College offers short courses in Coptic, Syriac, Koine Greek and Biblical Hebrew.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.

All best wishes,

Krisztina Szilágyi

Contact Information

Dr Krisztina Szilágyi

Contact Email

ks591@cam.ac.uk

URL

https://www.westminster.cam.ac.uk/biblical-languages/christian-arabic-2027

 

 

 

 

8. Arabic Edition, Annotated English Translation and Introduction of Abu Salama al-Samarqandi’s Jumal usul al-din, titled A Summary of the Principles of Religion, can now be ordered internationally from Turath Publishing. This project not only makes accessible a teachable digest of al-Maturidi’s kalam, thereby unlocking the tricky Kitab al-tawhid, but it illustrates the way in which his original theological formulation was received as an early school tradition in Samarqand.

Order from here: https://turath.co.uk/collections/abu-salama-mu%E1%B8%A5ammad-b-mu%E1%B8%A5ammad-al-samarqandi

 

 

 

 

 

9. A Talk by Dr. Linda Komaroff

“The Iranian Art-Diaspora and American Museums”

Time: Thursday, Oct 1, 2026 02:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada) (12 p.m. PST).

Zoom Registration Link: https://unomaha.zoom.us/meeting/register/5hKLeLvlRvOT9fMJI-5JRg

Dr. Komaroff is Curator of the Art of the Middle East at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). She is an Islamic art specialist with a doctorate from the Institute of Fine Arts at New York University. She has published and written extensively on Islamic and contemporary Middle East art, is the recipient of two Fulbright fellowships and awards including the prestigious Alfred H. Barr, Jr. Award from the College Art Association for The Legacy of Genghis Khan exhibition catalog, and received the Muslim Public Affairs Council Media Award. She has taught at Hamilton College, New York University, Princeton University, and UCLA.

Sponsors: The American Institute of Iranian Studies (AIIrS) and the UNO Department of History

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10. Assistant Professor in Comparative Politics

Durham University

The School of Government and International Affairs at Durham University seeks to appoint an exceptional scholar as an Assistant Professor with research and teaching expertise in Comparative Politics, whose work uses quantitative research methods and has a regional focus on Africa, Asia, Latin America or the Middle East. The successful candidate will join the Centre for Institutions and Political Behaviour.

Deadline | 28 September 2026
More information

 

 

 

 

11. Postdoctoral Research Fellow

German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA)

GIGA seeks to appoint a Postdoctoral Research Fellow of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA): Peace and Conflict Studies/ International Relations/ Comparative Politics or International Political Economy. This is a full-time position, with an initial contract of three years and the possibility of another three years after successful evaluation and depending on the availabil­ity of funds.

Deadline | 15 October 2026
More information

 

 

 

 

12. Assistant Professor in Islamic Philosophy

University of Cambridge

The Faculty of Divinity wishes to appoint to an Assistant Professorship in Islamic Philosophy from 1 September 2027. Applicants should have a doctorate in Islamic Philosophy and either a proven track record of, or demonstrable potential for high quality research and publications in any aspect of Medieval Islamic Philosophy.

Deadline | 16 October 2026
More information

 

 

 

 

13. Call for Applications | 2027 Sir William Luce Fellowship

The Sir William Luce Memorial Fund committee welcomes applications for the 2027 Sir William Luce Fellowship, 26 April – 25 June 2027. The fellowship is awarded annually to a scholar at post-doctoral level, diplomat, politician, academic or business executive, working on those parts of the Middle East to which Sir William Luce devoted his working life (the Gulf monarchies, Yemen, Iran, Sudan, and South Sudan). The fellow is hosted by Durham University during the Easter term of each academic year.

Deadline | 7 October 2026

https://www.durham.ac.uk/departments/academic/school-government-international-affairs/research/fellowships/william-luce-fellowship/

 

 

 

 

14.  Call for Entries | Lives Beyond the Archives: Alf Muslimah Research Competition

Al-Mujadilah Research invites scholars, researchers, and experts to submit proposals for research-based entries for Alf Muslimah, a forthcoming encyclopaedia dedicated to documenting the lives, intellectual contributions, and social impact of leading Muslim women across the globe and throughout the ages. The project seeks to recover and present the stories of Muslim women exemplars whose lives, achievements, and legacies have often been overlooked, underrepresented, or preserved only through local community histories, oral traditions, or regional archives.

Deadline | 22 October 2026
More information

 

 

 

 

15. Call for Speakers | GMEF Speaker Series 2026/2027

The Glasgow Middle East Forum is organising a Speaker Series for the 2026/2027 academic year and are seeking a diverse range of voices to contribute to this interdisciplinary platform, which fosters discussion on socioeconomic and political developments within West Asia and North Africa. The organisers particularly welcome proposals from those working in the social sciences (political science, international relations, anthropology, sociology, economics) as well as the arts and humanities and encourage both established academics and postgraduate researchers to apply. If you would like to apply, or know anyone who might be interested in speaking, please complete/forward this form.

 

 

 

 

 

16. The Triumph of Iran’s National Narrative: Literary Memory, Civil Society, and Uprising

Kamran Talattof

publisher’s website

 

 

 

 

 

17. Event link: https://sofheyman.org/events/celebrating-recent-work-by-mushin-musawi

Join us for our New Books Series event honoring Poetic Desire and Literary Thievery: Economies of Intertextuality in Arabic Literature by Muhsin J. al-Musawi. In this wide-ranging and innovative study, Muhsin J. al-Musawi examines debates surrounding literary authenticity across Arabic and Islamic culture over seven centuries.
Professor al-Musawi will be joined by panelists Hamid Dabashi, Madeleine Dobie, Elaine van Dalen, and Tarek El-Ariss.

Thursday, October 8, 2026, 6:15 pm EDT | In person at the Heyman Center and online via Zoom

 

 

 

 

18. EUME Berliner Seminar Series: “Europe in the Middle East – The Middle East in Europe”, Forum Transregionale Studien, Berlin, 7 / 13 / 21 / 28 October 2026, 17:00 – 18:30 CET

Themes: – “Feminist Comics in Arab and Latin American Protest Culture” by Rasha Chatta & Jasmin Wrobel. – “The Shudder Remains: Voice, Body, and Affect in Contemporary Palestinian Poetry” by Daniel Behar. – “Protest in a Post-Gramscian Moment: From the Middle East to Liberal Democracies” by Myriam Ahmed. – “Memories of Violence: The Hama Massacre (1982) in Syrian Literature” by Anna Christina Scheiter. The audio recordings of the Berliner Seminar will be available on SoundCloud.

Information and summaries: https://tinyurl.com/cxhcy3d3

 

 

 

 

19. ONLINE Conférence internationale « La décolonialité en question? Critiques de la modernité occidentale ou tentation de repli? », Sociétés du Maghreb et du Moyen-Orient, 8-9 octobre 2026

Programme : https://tinyurl.com/yc4y52hf

 

 

 

 

20.. Conference: “Islam and Muslims in Greece from the 14th Century to the Present Day. Individuals, Groups, Spaces & Institutions”, École française d’Athènes, 15-16 October 2026

Programme: https://tinyurl.com/3r8xc3hf

 

 

 

 

 

21. Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology (9 Months), Focus Middle East, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR

Candidates must have completed their Ph.D. in anthropology by May 31, 2027 (Spring 2027) and are expected to have an active research program focused on the Middle East. Previous teaching experi-ence as instructor-of-record at the college level is preferred.

Deadline for applications: 30 October 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/4r5hj5y5

 

 

 

 

22. Associate Professor or Professor of Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies (Focus Islamic World), University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA

We are seeking applicants with a strong publication record and an outstanding research program. Candidates should demonstrate prior excellence in teaching and mentorship of students. The ideal candi-date will be committed to interdisciplinarity and able to effectively work with colleagues across various disciplines, subfields, and backgrounds. Candidates whose work would contribute to the conversation of UVA’s Islamic Worlds Initiative would be particularly welcome to apply.

Deadline for applications: 5 October 2026. Information: https://apply.interfolio.com/190665

 

 

 

On Monday 12 October 2026 (17:00 BST), we will be joined by Dr Toby Matthiesen for a lecture entitled “The Caliph, the Imam and the Orientalist: Rethinking the Global History of Sunni-Shiʿi Relations.” Further information and the link to Zoom registration is available here.

On Monday 19 October 2026 (14:00 BST), we will be joined by Dr Kate Pukhovaia for a lecture entitled “What Makes Premodern State-Building Shiʿi?” Further information and the link to Zoom registration is available here. Please note the different time for this lecture than is usually scheduled

1. Postdoctoral Research Fellow for Middle East and North Africa Studies: Peace and Conflict Studies/International Relations/Comparative Politics or International Political Economy, GIGA Institute for Middle East Studies, Hamburg

Qualification: A very good doctoral degree in Social Sciences (Political Science, International Relations, Sociology, or Economics and related Disciplines) or History. – Emerging track record of publications in high-ranking journals and university presses. – Field work experience in the MENA; focus on Egypt, Iraq, Iran, or the Gulf region. – Fluency in English and at least one language of the region (e.g. Arabic, Farsi, Hebrew, Turkish, Kurdish). – Knowledge of German or willingness to learn it. – Experience with policy exchange and knowledge transfer activities

Deadline for applications: 15 October 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/3hvkdvad

 

 

 

 

 

2. Postdoctoral Researcher (2 Years +) in MENA Constitutionalism and Field Research, Faculty of Law, Charles University, Prague

Qualifications: – A Ph.D. in socio-legal studies, political science, political sociology, sociology, anthro-pology, Middle Eastern Studies, or a closely related field. – Substantial prior experience conducting qualitative field research in the MENA region. – Demonstrated competence in interview-based, obser-vational, ethnographic, interpretive, or comparable qualitative methods.

Arabic proficiency sufficient to conduct field research and interviews independently, and excellent writ-ten and spoken English. – Familiarity with constitutionalism, political community, informal institutions, religion and politics, or related debates is an advantage. – Etc.

Deadline for applications: 20 October 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/ytdbvywk

 

 

 

 

3. Open-Rank Position on the History of the Modern Middle East (Focus on the History of Israel/Palestine after 1917), Cornell University, Ithaca, New York

A PhD in history with a specialization in the history of Palestine/Israel is required. The candidate will have an excellent record of innovative research, fluency in both Hebrew and Arabic, and proficiency in other research languages (e.g., Levantine Arabic, Egyptian Arabic, modern Turkish, Ottoman Turkish, Ladino, Yiddish, French, etc.). Our department’s areas of interest include the history of migration, gen-der, law, the environment, memory, and public history.

Deadline for applications: 15 November 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/3y4rcu7b

 

 

 

 

 

4. Fellowship (1 Year) for Scholars of the Contemporary Middle East and North Africa, Crown Center for Middle East Studies, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA

The fellowship is open to all disciplines in the Humanities and Social Sciences – particularly politics, economics, history, religion, sociology, or anthropology. Successful applicants must be tenure track or tenured professors (or equivalent) with a well-established publication record seeking a faculty leave appointment and interested in engaging in a substantive research or book project, mentoring the Cen-ter’s junior research fellows, and contributing to the Center’s publications.

Deadline for applications: 15 December 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/bdf3fhyp

 

 

 

 

 

5. “Monsoon Book Prize for the Indian Ocean” of the German University of Technology in Oman GUtech

The prize will be awarded to three scholarly books published between 1 January 2024 to 30 June 2026. Nominations are welcome from both publishers and authors. The selection committee will con-sider to book works within the following domains: – Heritage, History & Culture. – Anthropology, Sociology & Political Economy. – Ocean Economy & Sustainability. One winning book from each category will be awarded USD 4,000.

Deadline for nominations: 1 October 2026. Information: https://rio-gutech.org/monsoon-prize/

 

 

 

 

 

6. Chapters for the Middle East and North Africa Profile of the “Atlas of Today`s World”

Topics: – Human Rights, Minorities and Gender. – Living Standards & Impacts of Conflict. – Environ-mental Conditions. – Economic Systems and Corruption. – Ideology and Religion. – Society, Demog-raphy, Migration & Social Tensions. – Nature of the State. – Major Non-State Actors. – International Relations & Regional Power Dynamics. – Colonial Legacy, State Formation & Post-Independence Transformations. – Political Upheavals, the Arab Spring, Youth and Digitalization.

Deadline for abstracts: 31 October 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/bdfkrswc

 

 

 

 

 

 

7. Articles on “Literature Beyond Borders: Festschrift in Honour of Ferial Ghazoul” for “Alif: Journal of Comparative Poetics”, American University in Cairo, 48, 2028

Ferial Ghazoul, Professor of English and Comparative Literature and founder of Alif, is honoured on her retirement with the journal’s forty-eighth issue. The call invites colleagues, students, and collabora-tors to engage with her scholarship on medieval and contemporary Arabic literature, and particularly the Arabian Nights; on translation studies, untranslatability, and comparative method; on the formation of comparative literature as a discipline in Egypt and the Arab world; and on her editorial legacy in shaping Alif and other Arab scholarly journals.

Deadline for abstracts: 1 October 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/yr68v8vd

 

 

 

 

 

8. New Book: “Ibn Khaldun in Iran: How Contemporary Iranian Scholars Interpret Ibn Khaldun” by Seyed Javad Miri, Ekpyrosis Press, 25 August 2026, 262 Pages

Despite his enduring influence on world scholarship, Ibn Khaldun has remained a surprisingly marginal figure in contemporary Iranian social and political thought. This book explores the intellectual, institu-tional, and ideological conditions that have shaped his reception in Iran, asking why key concepts such as ‘asabiyyah, ‘umran, state formation, and civilizational decline have seldom become enduring tools of social analysis. It argues for a critical reconstruction of Khaldunian theory as a framework for under-standing the crises of state, power, and social change in modern Iran.

Information: https://tinyurl.com/fzv5fr3w

 

 

 

 

9. The latest issue of MELA Notes: The Journal of Middle Eastern Librarianship (Number 97, Issue 2, 2026):

https://escholarship.org/uc/melanotes/97/2

This special issue is titled “Nūshāfarīn Anṣārī: From ‘Books for All’ to Cultural Institution-Building.” It brings together critical research exploring the life, scholarship, and enduring institutional impact of Nūshāfarīn Anṣārī, whose pioneering career spans more than six decades across librarianship, education, children’s literature, and civil-society leadership.

Publishing this focused volume about such a central Iranian cultural and educational figure amidst the events of the past year makes this issue especially urgent and meaningful for the Middle East Studies community. At a time when cultural and scholarly ties face unprecedented strain, documenting traditions of civic resilience, public service, and intellectual institution-building serves as a vital bridge and a testament to the endurance of regional scholarship.

Table of Contents:

• Editor’s Note – Farshad Sonboldel
• Introduction to the Special Issue: From “Books for All” to Cultural Institution-Building – Ali Boozari
• Biography of Nūshāfarīn Anṣārī – Mahsa Sadiq
• Bibliography of Nūshāfarīn Anṣārī – Children’s Book Council of Iran
• Libraries of Care: Nūshāfarīn Anṣārī and Feminist Democracy in Iranian Librarianship – Hanieh Bakhtiari
• The Impact of Nūshāfarīn Anṣārī on Women’s Cultural Participation in Iran – Mahbubeh Khazayi, Mitra Samiei, and Mehrnaz Khorasanchi
• Nūshāfarīn Anṣārī and the Development of Social Librarianship in Iran – Leila (Roya) Maktabi Fard
• Nūshāfarīn Anṣārī and the Development of Librarianship and Children’s Literature in Iran – Ali Boozari
• Nūshāfarīn Anṣārī and the Children’s Book Council of Iran: Cultural Institution-Building, Organized Voluntarism, and the Logic of Sustainability – Parichehr Nasrin-Pay
• Book Reviews – Reviews by Ali Boozari, Shahrzad Khosrowpour, Mehrak Kamali, H. Morgan Nix, and Mahdi Ganjavi

The issue is open access and available to read, download, and share online:

https://escholarship.org/uc/melanotes/97/2

 

 

 

 

10. Wesleyan University (Connecticut, USA) – Assistant Professor of Art History

Wesleyan University’s Department of Art and Art History invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Art History beginning July 1, 2027. We seek an historian of pre-modern Islamic Art, working on periods before 1800. We welcome specialists in any subfield or geographic region, pursuing any methodological approach/es; special consideration will be given to scholars of South, Central, and/or West Asian art. Candidates from the fields of art and architectural history and archaeology are welcome to apply.

Applications completed by December 1, 2026 will receive full consideration. If you have questions about the application process, please contact Song Keng Teoh, Administrative Assistant, Art History at steoh@wesleyan.edu or 860-685-2682.

 

 

 

 

11. Looking for a 16th-century Iranian door – The Safavid door of the tomb of Emamzadeh Yahya, Varamin, dated 971/1563

We are looking for the sixteenth-century Safavid door of the tomb of the Emamzadeh Yahya. The door is dated 971/1563, and its inscriptions were recorded in situ in 1279/1863. By 1915, it was offered for sale in New York at the Kent-Shmavon Galleries. It is unclear if the door was sold in 1915, went into storage, and/or later re-entered the market. Searches of many international collections have not yet located the door. We are hoping to find it and are grateful for your eyes and help.

Details:

Iran, exact place of production unknown

Wood, with metal fittings and nails

Dated Safar 971/September 1563

Signed by Maʿsum Najjar (Maʿsum the woodworker)

Made at the order of Mowlana Jahangir Mohtaseb Varamini for the tomb of Emamzadeh Yahya, Varamin

The door is visually distinct. The inner field is decorated with thin strips of wood in a zigzag pattern secured with nails. Both panels are enclosed in a long inscription. Among many important details, the inscription provides the complete genealogy of the saint.

The attached black and white photograph was taken from the 1915 sales catalog. The second color detail is of a contemporary Safavid door and provides a sense of the technique.

An essay on the door will soon be published in the Emamzadeh Yahya website (Checklist, no. 15). More information can be found in this link.

https://khamseen-emamzadeh-yahya-varamin.hart.lsa.umich.edu/en_tomb_door.php

If you have seen the door, please be in touch. Thank you for your eyes and attention.

Keelan Overton, 33arches.overton@gmail.com

Contact Email

33arches.overton@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

12. Arts and Crafts in the Late Ottoman Empire: Rethinking Practices and Concepts of Material Culture in Syria and Beyond (18th – early 20th c.)

International Conference | Hybrid Format

25–26 September 2026

Lebanese American University, Beirut Campus & Online

The conference “Arts and Crafts in the Late Ottoman Empire” examines the production, circulation, and transformation of material culture during a period of profound social, economic, and technological change.

Focusing on Syria and extending to the broader Ottoman world, the conference brings together scholars working across art and architectural history, material culture, heritage, and social and economic history. It considers objects and practices as products of complex networks of artisans, patrons, merchants in the context of industrialization, expanding global markets, new technologies, museums and exhibitions, and emerging modern concepts of art and craft. The papers explore both local practices and the circulation of objects, materials, techniques, and ideas across regional and imperial boundaries.

Taken together, the contributions reconsider the relationship between material culture, knowledge, and modernity as an integral part of the history of the Islamic world.

Convenors: May Farhat & Sarah Sabban

Organized by the Lebanese American University & the Orient-Institut Beirut.

For the program, speakers, and abstracts: Program

Please register here: Registration Form

For questions, please contact: MAIA.events@lau.edu.lb

 

 

 

 

 

13. Open Rank Position in Persian/Iran Studies at UNC Chapel Hill

We seek a scholar and teacher whose work focuses on early modern (Safavid or Qajar) and/or modern Iranian media studies (preferably with a specialization in Environmental Humanities or Digital Humanities) and who will contribute to the intellectual mission of a research university and to interdisciplinary collaboration across campus.

You can find the job listing here: https://unc.peopleadmin.com/postings/325743