Archive for April, 2026
Shii News – Blog: ‘Mapping the Emotional Architecture of Fatimid Geniza Petitions (Part 1)’
The Affective Algorithm: Mapping the Emotional Architecture of Fatimid Geniza Petitions (Part 1)
For feedback/further information, contact the author:
a.haidermota@jameasaifiyah.edu
- April 29, 2026
- by Andrew Newman
- 0 Comment
Shii News – Academic Items
1. Séminaire « L’Afghanistan à travers les âges » – 6e séance mercredi 6 mai 18h-19h30
Nous avons le plaisir de vous convier à la troisième séance du séminaire « L’Afghanistan à travers les âges », qui se tiendra mercredi 6 mai 2026, 18h-19h30, en salle 3.01 à l’INaLCO (65 rue des Grands Moulins, Paris XIII, 3e étage).
Nous sommes heureux d’accueillir Mme Maria Szuppe, Cermi, pour une conférence intitulée : Histoires des familles: les Khojas Barnabadi et leurs réseaux politiques et économiques à Hérat, 16e-18e siècles.
Résumé:
Dans la tradition iranienne, y compris à l’époque moderne, l’administration provinciale était souvent confiée à des familles locales influentes, solidement implantées dans leurs régions d’origine. Cependant, d’une manière générale, leur histoire reste encore très peu connue. Dans cette communication, je retracerai les grandes lignes de l’histoire d’une famille particulière de la province de Hérat (Afghanistan) entre fin XVe – fin XVIIIe siècle, connue sous le nom des Khwājas de Barnābād, en m’intéressant notamment aux stratégies employées par les membres de cette famille au cours de générations pour asseoir leur statut, leur richesse et leur influence. D’une part, il s’agissait de contrôler plusieurs activités économiques et professionnelles clés, d’autre part de s’imposer au sein de la société locale, notamment grâce à la diversification des alliances matrimoniales, mais également à travers leurs activités de mécénat social, culturel et religieux.
Cette communication s’appuie principalement sur des copies de documents familiaux conservés dans le « Taẕkera-ye Barnābādi », une histoire familiale rédigée au début du XIXe siècle. L’un des trois manuscrits répertoriés (ms C-402 conservé à l’Institut des manuscrits orientaux de St. Petersbourg, a été publié par N.N. Tumanovich en 1984).
Orientations bibliographiques:
- Source (édition en facsimilé):
Muḥammad Riżā Barnābādī, Taẕkire (“Pamjatnye zapiski”), facsimile edition [of Ms. C-402], translation from Persian, introduction and notes by N. N. Tumanovich, Moscow: Nauka, 1984.
- Références générales (choisies):
Aube, Sandra, & Maria Szuppe, (eds.), with the collaboration of A.T. Quickel, Channels of Transmission: Family and Professional Lineages in the Early Modern Middle East, special issue of Eurasian Studies 15/2 (2017).
Doumani, Beshara, (ed.), Family History in the Middle East. Household, Property, and Gender, Albany: SUNY Press, 2003.
Mayeur-Jaouen, Catherine, & Alexandre Papas, (eds.), Family Portraits with Saints: Hagiography, Sanctity, and Family in the Muslim World, Berlin: Klaus Schwarz Verlag, 2013.
- Quelques travaux (choisis):
Māyil Haravī, Najīb, [Mayel Herawy], Mīrzāyan-i Barnābād / Mirzas of Barnabad. Biography and literary works of an artist family in Poshang (9th century H. – 13th century H.), Kabul, 1969.
Noelle-Karimi, Christine, The Pearl in its Midst. Herat and the Mapping of Khurāsān from the 15th to the 19th Centuries, Vienna: ÖAW, 2013.
Szuppe, Maria, « Les familles d’administrateurs civils à l’époque safavide : Les Khwājas de Barnābād », Dyntran Working Papers, n° 30, Nov. 2017, available at https://dyntran.hypotheses.org/2056
Szuppe, Maria, « Biens familiaux en division : Un témoignage sur la propriété foncière des khwājas Barnābādī au début du XVIIIe siècle », in Purnaqchéband, Nader, & Saalfeld, Florian, (eds.), Aus den Tiefenschichten der Texte. Beiträge zur turko-iranischen Welt von der Islamisierung bis zur Gegenwart, Wiesbaden: Reichert, 2019: 179-190.
Tumanovich, Natalia N., Gerat v XVI-XVIII vekakh, Moscow: Nauka, 1989.
Vous trouverez l’intégralité du programme 2025-2026 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
2. Lecture – “Middle East Cultural Heritage at Risk in Armed Conflict,” Virtual Islamic Art History Seminar Series, April 28
Middle East Cultural Heritage at Risk in Armed Conflict is a project initiated in March 2026 by the Society of Iranian Archaeology (SIA) in collaboration with the Center of Ancient Middle Eastern Landscapes (CAMEL). It serves as a geographically grounded database of heritage sites and historic landmarks damaged during recent armed conflict and which remain at risk of further destruction and looting. Each site record includes location, status, threat category, cultural significance, a date of damage and description, and sourced images where available. All recorded sites will also be added to the Endangered Archaeology in the Middle East and North Africa (EAMENA) database for long-term record keeping and documentation.
This session will take a different format from our usual VIAHSS talks. Rather than a formal research presentation, it will be an informal, focused introduction to a new resource documenting the ongoing destruction of cultural heritage in Iran. We hope it will function as a space to learn about the project and its implementation, and to discuss the opportunities and challenges it faces.
You can register for this special session here:
https://wellesley.zoom.us/meeting/register/iIrHEnXvRl-jI4E6KtotYw
Upon registration, you’ll receive the link to access the session.
As always, you can find a full schedule of upcoming talks and register for our list-serv on our website at viahss.org. Although not every talk is recorded, we also have recordings of several recent talks available on the VIAHSS Vimeo page at vimeo.com/viahss. Lastly, you can follow us on Instagram at @theviahss to stay up to date on upcoming events!
Contact Information
Drs. Alexander Brey, Jaimee Comstock-Skipp, and Rachel Winter
Contact Email
URL
3. Journal of Contemporary Iraq & the Arab World 19.3 is out now! Special Issue
Intellect is pleased to present Journal of Contemporary Iraq & the Arab World 19.3.
Special Issue: ‘Monumental Baghdad: The Complexities of Public Art in the City of Peace’
For more information about the journal and issue click here>>
https://www.intellectbooks.com/journal-of-contemporary-iraq-the-arab-world
Aims & Scope
The Journal of Contemporary Iraq & the Arab World is a peer-reviewed journal devoted to the study of the contemporary Middle East and Arab public sphere. The journal engages arts and culture, politics, history and political economy as they confront real-world challenges across the modern states and mosaic of cultures connected to the Middle East region, with special focus on Iraq and its peoples for their significant role in the region. JCIAW aims to provide a platform for conveying prominent and emerging voices in the humanities and social sciences as well as for highlighting the relevance of evolving topics and questions of research in the scholarship of Middle Eastern and Iraqi Studies.
This title is indexed with Scopus
Issue 19.3
Editorial
Monumental Baghdad: The complexities of public art in the city of peace
NADA SHABOUT AND TIFFANY FLOYD
Articles
ZAINAB BAHRANI
Monumental mythologies in the Baghdadi relief murals of Mohammed Ghani Hikmat
TIFFANY FLOYD
Monumental after life: Placing the unknown soldier in Baghdad’s commemorative landscape
PETER WIEN
Haifa street: Battles in a future estate
ALA YOUNIS
NABIL SALIH
- April 28, 2026
- by Andrew Newman
- 0 Comment
- April 27, 2026
- by Andrew Newman
- 0 Comment
Shii News – Academic Items
1.The University of London is running an intensive short course on Islamic manuscripts, in person, 8-12 June.
Some three million Islamic manuscripts are thought to survive in collections around the world. Most of them are unedited and unpublished. This course offers an in-depth, hands-on introduction to the practical skills needed to unlock these resources: to consult unedited texts, collate manuscript witnesses to produce textual editions, use paratextual evidence to study scholarly networks and activities, and appreciate the materiality of manuscripts as unique cultural artefacts.
Subjects covered will include:
An overview of the history of Islamic book culture
Major bookhands of the Islamic world: Naskh, Nastaʿlīq and Maghribī
Signs of manuscript production: Collation statements, quire marks and colophons
Bibliographical data: Title pages, tables of contents, and prefaces
Ownership and provenance: Dedication statements, ownership inscriptions, and seals
Manuscript consumption: Marginalia, abbreviations, readers’ statements and teaching certificates
Non-verbal knowledge encoding: Tables, figures, numerals and illustrations
Online and print resources for the study of Islamic manuscripts
Participants will gain familiarity with manuscripts representing a wide range of periods, locations and textual genres from across the Islamic world. Although Arabic-script manuscripts in various languages will be discussed, and many of the key concepts apply across the range of Islamic manuscripts, this course will focus on Arabic-language materials.
No prior palaeographical or codicological experience is needed, but students should have at least an intermediate reading knowledge of Arabic to benefit from the course.
Course tutors: Dr Bink Hallum & Jenny Norton-Wright
More information is available here: https://eur02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpalaeography.uk%2Fstudy%2Fshort-courses-and-summer-schools%2Funlocking-the-islamic-literary-heritage-an-intensive-practical-introduction-to-arabic-manuscripts%2F&data=05%7C02%7C%7C9d76e94bc96e47fc238108de9f9e932d%7C2e9f06b016694589878910a06934dc61%7C0%7C0%7C639123700597447795%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=jDYjTZiO0nTHCMU0NoRkB4MeLmjZhozPe1arChfz%2FRc%3D&reserved=0
2. ELIZA TASBIHI, Hidden in Plain Sight: İsmāʿīl Anḳaravī’s Commentary on ‘Book Seven’ of Rūmī’s Mathnawī. MONDAY MAJLIS ONLINE. 27th of April (Monday) 17:00-18:30
Monday Majlis Online on the 27th of April, 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/jki7T0_8SZ-fZobEEMH5RQ
3. Scholar of Islam, Victim of the Holocaust
The Tragic Story of Hedwig Klein
Sabine Schmidtke
De Gruyter, 2026
https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/isbn/9783111705804/html
4. Zoom: The Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali Institute of Iranian Studies, in partnership with the Toronto Book Club, present the Iranian Studies Book Launch Series.
This event will feature Arezou Azad’s latest titles for Edinburgh University Press in The Islamicate East series, The Warehouse of Bamiyan & The Rise and Fall of the Barmakids.
Please join us on Monday 27 April at 12PM EST / 5PM GMT / 6PM CET.Pre-registration is essential.
https://utoronto.zoom.us/meeting/register/fqspsfMGRd2dxPgnMt4gNw#/registration
5. AAS-in-Asia 2026: Early Bird Registration Deadline
A quick reminder that early bird registration rates for AAS-in-Asia 2026 will remain available until April 30th 2026. After this date, standard rates will apply.
If you are planning to attend, we encourage you to register soon to take advantage of the discounted rate.
For more information and to register, please visit:
https://aasinasia2026.lums.edu.pk/
Warmly,
The South Asian Muslim Studies Association (SAMSA)
6. The Forgotten Qur’ans of the Eastern Islamic World
Manuscripts of the Ghaznavid and Ghurid Dynasties, 11th-12th Centuries CE
Alya Karame
EUP, 2026
https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-the-forgotten-qur-ans-of-the-eastern-islamic-world.html
7. Zoom: Zahra Institute:
Kemalist Colonial Modernity, the Kurdish Self, and the Notion of Tawhid
Speaker: Ramazan Aras, Professor, Ibn Haldun University
Date: Wednesday, May 6
Time: 12:00 PM Central / 1:00 PM Eastern
Register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/gWV-Ye9aRAuNB0GEsxJrLQ
8. Zoom: Translating Oman: A Conversation with Authors and Translators
Monday, April 27, 2026
12 pm New York | 5 pm London | 7 pm Cairo | 8 pm Muscat
https://syracuseuniversity.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_FsyhZHbwSsSMNivZcn_1mw#/registration
9. Online seminar announcement: MONSTERS, MAPS, AND THE EDGES OF THE WORLD
Entangled Histories Seminar Series
How did the medieval mind navigate the unknown?
We invite you to a journey through the “Wonders of the East” and the vast landscape of Western European and English medieval cartography. This session explores how the medieval world—from medieval English manuscripts to the Mappae Mundi—used monstrosity and geographical barriers like the Red Sea to define, reinforce, and destabilize the boundaries of civilization.
🎙️ FEATURED SESSION
“Margins, Maps, and Monsters: Negotiating Borders in the ‘Wonders of the East’”
Speaker: Dr. Elisa Ramazzina (University of Insubria)
When: Wednesday, April 29, 2026
Time: 17:00 CET (Rome) | 16:00 BST (London) | 18:00 TRT (Istanbul)
Check your local time here: https://dateful.com/time-zone-converter
Platform: Online via Zoom
🔍 SESSION HIGHLIGHTS
Integrated Analysis: Exploring Western European and English medieval maps alongside the “Wonders of the East”.
Cultural Borders: How monstrosity was used to map “the Other” and define the limits of the human.
Symbolic Geography: The role of the Red Sea as both a physical and spiritual barrier in medieval thought.
🔗 REGISTRATION & LINKS
To join the discussion and receive your Zoom link, please register through our official portal:
👉 GET YOUR TICKET HERE: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/entangledhistoriesseminarseries/2162817
🌐 OFFICIAL WEBSITE: https://sites.google.com/view/entangledhistories/home
Contact Email
entangledhistories.seminars@outlook.com
10. Persian Summer School Online: Beginner to Advanced Enrollment Now Open
2026 Online Persian Summer School.
The Ghand-e Parsi 2026 Summer School is a seasonal program designed to offer a rich, structured, and immersive experience of the Persian language and Persianate culture to students from all backgrounds. With carefully designed courses at the elementary, intermediate, and advanced levels, the Summer School provides a comprehensive learning pathway to build foundational communication skills for deep engagement with historical, literary, artistic, and mystical Persian texts.
In addition to the core language levels, the program includes a diverse selection of new courses that open interdisciplinary perspectives. The Summer School brings together language learning, cultural exploration, and scholarly expertise in a unique and intellectually enriching environment.
All course sessions are fully recorded, allowing participants to review materials and watch sessions outside of live class hours.
Below you will find the list of courses offered this summer:
Foundation Courses
Supplementary Courses
- Persian Language and Culture through Iranian Cinema
- Bridging Arabic & Persian: Learn Faster, Remember Better
- Persian through Short Stories
- Persian through News Websites
- Persian for Heritage Speakers
- Digital Humanities and Persianate Studies
- Persian for Everyday Conversation
Poetry Courses
- Rumi and Hafez: An Introduction to Persian Mystical Poetry
- Forugh Farrokhzad’s Life and Works: A Deep Dive into Her Feminist Poetry
- How to Read Persian Poetry: From Iranian Epic Cycles and Omar Khayyam to Safavid and Indo-Persian Poets
Thematic and Text-Based Courses
- Persian through Mystical and Sufi Texts
- Persian through Persian Codicologies
- Persian through Safavid Texts
- Persian through History of Art Texts
- Persian through Central Asian texts
- Persian through South Asian Persian Texts
- Persian through Autobiographies
- Persian through Travelogues
- Persian through Ethnographies
Heritage in Danger: Special Gratis Course
🔗 Learn more about all courses:
https://www.ghandeparsi.com/summerschool
🔗 Testimonials:
https://www.ghandeparsi.com/testimonials
📝 Register here:
https://forms.gle/UmAoENTqAymRKVS59
11. HYBRID Book Talk “Boricua Muslims – Everyday Cosmopolitanism among Puerto Rican Converts to Islam” by Ken Chitwood, University of Erfurt, 27 April 2026, 16:15 – 17:45 (CET)
Drawing on years of ethnographic research and more than a hundred interviews, Ken Chitwood tells the story of Puerto Rican Muslims as they construct a shared sense of peoplehood through everyday practices. Borícua Muslims thus provides a study of cosmopolitanism not as a political ideal but as a mundane social reality – a reality that complicates scholarly and public conversations about race, eth-nicity, and religion in the Americas.
Information and Webex link: https://www-tinyurl.com/fdfcbbfa
12. ONLINE Webinar “The Middle East Cultural Heritage at Risk in Armed Conflict” by Mehrnoush Soroush & Sepideh Maziar, Virtual Islamic Art History Seminar Series, 28 April 2026, 18:00 CET
This session is part of the series “Middle East Cultural Heritage at Risk in Armed Conflict”. It will be an informal, focused introduction to a new resource documenting the ongoing destruction of cultural herit-age in Iran. We hope it will function as a space to learn about the project and its implementation, and to discuss the opportunities and challenges it faces.
Information and registration: https://tinyurl.com/4tmk5u5z
13. ONLINE Launch of the Website “Academic Freedom Initiative (AFI)” of MESA, 4 May 2026, 18:00 CET
The website will produce analysis and resources for MESA members and the wider public to support academic freedom and to challenge repression on North American campuses. Speakers will discuss how the website’s resources can be useful to you on your campuses and in defending academic free-dom.
Information and registration: https://tinyurl.com/3tbr3n8c
14. International Conference “New Perspectives on South-Asian and Middle Eastern Connections in the 20th Century”, Organized by Antoinette Ferrand (Ifao) & Simon Conrad (OIB), French Institute of Oriental Archaeology in Cairo, 9-10 May 2026
Program: https://tinyurl.com/yfkvc6yu
15. HYBRID Conférence internationale d’études iraniennes “Reframing the Constitutional Revolution: Gender, Law, and the Iranian Press”, Université de Genève et en ligne, 20-21 mai 2026
En abordant l’art, la culture, l’histoire et les mutations sociales de cette période fondatrice, cette confé-rence s’inscrit parmi les rares événements académiques consacrés à l’étude de la Révolution consti-tutionnelle iranienne dans toute sa richesse et sa complexité.
Information, programme et inscription : https://tinyurl.com/y2n9fzjx
16. 16th Conference of the European Association for Modern Arabic Literature (EUROMAL): “Catastrophe and Beyond: Representations of Violence and Trauma in Modern Arabic Literature”, University of St Andrews, Scotland, 22-26 June 2026
The contributions are exploring how modern Arabic literature engages with the traumatic experiences of violence in modern and contemporary times, from the struggle for independence to Gaza and be-yond. Papers draw their critical and theoretical approaches from disciplines such as trauma studies, minority studies, cultural memory studies, feminism, postcolonial studies, affect studies and gender studies.
Information and program: https://euramal2026.wp.st-andrews.ac.uk/
17. Conference “‘Vassals and Lords: Christians, Muslims, and Jews in the Western Mediterranean (13th – 15th Centuries)”, Madrid, 26-28 October 2026
The conference will focus on a period in which seigneurial systems reached full maturity and produced diverse forms of authority that was exercised over Christian, Jewish, and Muslim populations. We wel-come proposals from different disciplines (political history, history of art, literary criticism, cultural stud-ies, diplomatics, archaeology, and others) that explore the dynamics of seigneurial power across the Iberian kingdoms and its Mediterranean territories.
Deadline for abstracts: 30 June 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/3b8uua4p
18. Post-doc Position (12 Months +) for Research in the Project “Mapping Occult Sciences Across Islamicate Cultures”, University of Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
Qualifications: PhD in Islamic Studies, in Middle Eastern Studies, or related fields. – Excellent com-]mand of Classical Arabic (the knowledge of additional languages such as Persian and Turkish is con-sidered an advantage). – Academic writing and presentation skills in English. – Ability to work both individually and as part of a team.
Deadline for applications: 10 June 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/4udw8h2r
19. Pre-doc Position (3 Years) in the Project “Party Systems and Social Cleavages in the Post-Ottoman Space of the MENA Region” (CLOSER), Oriental Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague
Requirements: Working knowledge of at least one Middle Eastern language, namely Arabic, Turkish, or Hebrew – Fluency in English (both spoken and written). – Passive knowledge of French (or another major European language) is an advantage. – MA in Middle Eastern studies, modern and contemporary history, or historical sociology. – Relocation to Prague for the duration of the project.
Deadline for applications: 30 April 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/3rrhs9ss
20. Post-doc Position (3 Years) in the Project “Party Systems and Social Cleavages in the Post-Ottoman Space of the MENA Region” (CLOSER), Oriental Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague
Requirements: Working knowledge of at least one Middle Eastern language, namely Arabic, Turkish, or Hebrew. – Fluency in English (both spoken and written). – Passive knowledge of French (or another major European language) is an advantage. – PhD in Middle Eastern studies, modern and contempo-rary history, or historical sociology. – Relocation to Prague for the duration of the project.
Deadline for applications: 30 April 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/3fhj9ayw
21. Postdoctoral Researcher (2 Years) in AI, Digital Humanities, and Arabic Studies, Center for Arab Studies and Islamic Civilizations (CASIC), American University of Sharjah
Qualification: PhD in Arabic Studies, Digital Humanities, Computational Linguistics, Linguistics, Com-puter Science (with humanities focus), or a closely related discipline. – Strong analytical and research skills with the ability to integrate humanities scholarship and computational methods. –
Excellent academic writing and communication skills in English; proficiency in Arabic required for re-search purposes.
Applications until position is filled. Information: https://tinyurl.com/4udw8h2r
22. Postdoctoral Researcher (2 Years) in Arabic and Islamic Studies, Center for Arab Studies and Islamic Civilizations (CASIC), American University of Sharjah
Qualification: PhD in Arabic Studies, Islamic Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, History, Literature, Cul-tural Studies, or a closely related Humanities discipline. – Demonstrated research experience in areas related to the study of the Arab world, its rich literature and intellectual history, its cultural and artistic heritage. – Proven ability to conduct independent scholarly research and collaborate within interdisci-plinary research teams.
Applications until position is filled. Information: https://tinyurl.com/24bwtc2n
23. Postdoctoral Researcher (2 Years) in Material Culture and Manuscript Studies, Center for Arab Studies and Islamic Civilizations (CASIC), American University of Sharjah
Qualification: PhD in Manuscript Studies, Material Culture, Islamic Studies, History, Art History, Digital Humanities, or a closely related field. – Proven record of scholarly publication or clear potential for publication. Excellent Reading knowledge of relevant languages Arabic is required. – Good reading knowledge of other Islamic languages, i.e. Persian, Ottoman Turkish, or South Asian languages highly desirable.
Applications until position is filled. Information: https://tinyurl.com/ycfecxar
24. Visiting Assistant Professor of Arabic (9 Months +) at Hamilton College, Clinton, New York
The candidate will be expected to offer courses in Arabic literature or cultural studies, as well as to teach Modern Standard Arabic language courses. Applicants should have native, or near-native, flu-ency in Arabic and a record of excellence in teaching Arabic language using a communicative approach that emphasizes developing students’ language skills in meaningful, real-world contexts.
Deadline for applications: 1 May 2026. Information: https://apply.interfolio.com/185105
25. New Book “Canon and Censorship in Islamic Intellectual History”, Edited by: Mohammad Gharaibeh, Bacem Dziri and Amir Dziri, De Gruyter, 17 March 2026, 320 Pages
Muslim scholars had always to legitimize their religious positions in a different way. Canonisation and censorship processes played a decisive role in the formation and deconstruction of religious authority. This volume therefore examines how texts, positions and the people behind them gain or lose their authority, and which structural, contextual and institutional factors contribute to the establishment or suppression, but also to the maintenance of this claim.
Information: https://tinyurl.com/3585aexb
26. Nouveau livre “Herméneutiques en Islam contemporain – Théologie, exégèse et philosophie”, Constance Arminjon, Rainer Brunner (eds), Bibliothèque de l’École des Hautes Études, Sciences Religieuses, vol. 212, 2026, 224 pages
L’ouvrage vise à donner un aperçu de l’exégèse coranique contemporaine, ainsi que des efforts menés pour acclimater l’herméneutique philosophique européenne dans la théologie de l’Islam. Les théolo-giens et philosophes musulmans usent librement de l’herméneutique. Les contributions réunies ex-plorent les oeuvres les plus emblématiques de l’exégèse coranique et de la théologie musulmane nour-rie par l’herméneutique philosophique européenne. Elles sont précédées par une rétrospective sur l’histoire de l’herméneutique, retracée par Marc de Launay.
Information: https://tinyurl.com/2jfhhj6b
27. New Book: “Gender Relations in the Qur’an: Conceptualising Space and Male-Female Interaction” by F. Redhwan Karim, Edinburgh University Press, May 2026, 272 Pages
This book challenges restrictive assumptions about relations between non-maḥram men and women in Muslim societies, arguing for a more nuanced and expansive Qur’anic vision of gendered space, roles, interaction and clothing. Engaging both classical and modern scholarship, it offers a contextual reading of contested verses and a systematic analysis of gender relations in the Qur’an.
Information: https://tinyurl.com/msbre7vh
- April 25, 2026
- by Andrew Newman
- 0 Comment
Shii News – Passing of Stephen Blake
Steve authored such works as
Astronomy and astrology in the Islamic world (2016)
Time in early modern Islam : calendar, ceremony, and chronology in the Safavid, Mughal, and Ottoman empires (2013)
Half the world : the social architecture of Safavid Isfahan, 1590-1722 (1999)
Shahjahanabad : the sovereign city in Mughal India, 1639- 1739 (1993)
and, as your moderator, was an alumnus of Dartmouth College.
- April 22, 2026
- by Andrew Newman
- 0 Comment
Shii News – ‘Shrines for Dead Children’ – T Leisten (29.4.26, 15.30 CET)
- April 21, 2026
- by Andrew Newman
- 0 Comment
Shii News – CfP: ‘Exemplary Lives in the Pre-Modern Islamic World’ (Bonn, 17-19 February, 2027)
Call for Papers
Exemplary Lives in the Pre-Modern Islamic World:
Biography and Hagiography in Arabic, Persian, and Turkish
International Workshop Co-Organised by
the University of Bonn and the University of Münster
February 17–19, 2027, University of Bonn
Deadline for Abstract Submission: April 30, 2026
This international workshop explores laudatory and hagiographic biographies in Arabic, Persian, and Turkish in the pre-modern Islamic world. Often referred to as manāqib/menāḳıb (“virtues” or “outstanding traits”), these works celebrate the merits and deeds of exemplary individuals or groups. Their subjects range from the early caliphs and Companions of the Prophet Muhammad to Shiʿi Imams and other descendants of the Prophet’s family, and from rulers, the founding figures of the Islamic legal schools, and renowned scholars to Sufi saints. Manāqib were also dedicated to women – especially the wives and descendants of the Prophet and female Sufis.
Such texts appear in a variety of literary forms: as stand-alone biographies, entries in biographical dictionaries, or chapters within hadith collections and Sufi manuals. Emerging from the earliest centuries of Islam, they constitute a vast corpus in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and other languages, and remain a living tradition to the present day. Beyond recording the lives and deeds of individuals, manāqib works fulfilled a variety of functions – from shaping group identities, (re)producing genealogies and spiritual lineages, and establishing or reviving the fame of local shrines to bolstering claims in disputes between religious groups, legal schools, and Sufi orders. They could serve polemical, apologetic, didactic, edifying, or entertaining purposes.
While scholarship has mainly focused on individual works or figures, especially from the Sufi milieu, comparative studies across regions, periods, languages, and sub-genres remain underexplored. The conference aims to bring together specialists working on a variety of texts in order to facilitate comparisons across different case studies. We welcome papers on individual manāqib texts, on larger textual traditions surrounding a particular figure or group, and on the transformation of such texts – for instance through rewriting, abridgement, or intra-Islamic translations – and the interpretive choices these transformations entail. We are keen to broaden the scope beyond hagiographic texts on Sufis and therefore especially invite submissions on manāqib devoted to the founders of the Islamic legal schools, scholars, caliphs, the Companions of the Prophet, and the Shiʿi Imams and other Shiʿi figures. Contributions that situate case studies in comparative, diachronic, or trans-regional perspectives are particularly encouraged, as are papers exploring manuscript traditions.
Participants are invited to reflect on questions such as:
– Who wrote or commissioned these texts, and why? What were the historical, social, and religious contexts of their production?
– What were the authors’ motivations and agendas? What structural and narrative elements characterise their works?
– How were manāqib texts devoted to the same figure adapted or rewritten over time?
– How, and in what contexts, were such texts read, transmitted, or translated?
– What social, political, or religious functions did manāqib texts serve, e.g., in establishing role models, teaching doctrines, or promoting a person, school, or Sufi order?
Building on the case studies presented by the participants, the conference seeks to trace the evolution and significance of manāqib traditions across time, space, and languages, to identify communalities and differences, and ultimately to ask what constitutes an exemplary life in the Islamic tradition.
Submission Guidelines and Practical Information
If you are interested in participating, please submit
· an abstract (max. 300 words)
· a short biography (max. 200 words)
as a single PDF file titled with your surname to paula.manstetten@uni-bonn.de.
Deadline: April 30, 2026
Notification of acceptance: May 2026
The conference will be held in English, beginning on February 17 at 10:00 AM and ending on February 19 after lunch. Accommodation in Bonn (three nights) will be covered (pending funding application). Limited travel funding is available for scholars without institutional support – please indicate if needed when submitting your abstract.
The conference will result in an edited volume. Please only apply if you are willing to submit your completed article by October 1, 2027.
Organisation
Jun.-Prof. Dr. Paula Manstetten, Department for Islamic Studies and Middle Eastern Languages, University of Bonn (paula.manstetten@uni-bonn.de)
Jun.-Prof. Dr. Philip Bockholt, Institute of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Münster (philip.bockholt@uni-muenster.de)
- April 20, 2026
- by Andrew Newman
- 0 Comment
Shii News – Academic Items
1.Iran: International Law and the Protection of Cultural Heritage in Times of War
The humanitarian toll and widespread disruption of life caused by the relentless bombing campaigns in the war on Iran since February 28, 2026, are tragic. Equally significant is the destruction of monuments of profound cultural importance to Iran and Iranians.
Join us for ‘Iran: International Law and the Protection of Cultural Heritage in Times of War’ presented by Courtauld Trans-Asias in partnership with the Iran Heritage Foundation.
📆 Tuesday, 12 May 2026
⏱️ 17:30 – 19:00
📍The Courtauld Institute of Art, Vernon Square Campus, Lecture Theatre 2,
London WC1X 9EW
🔗 Free, booking essential please click here to register
This event brings together a panel of experts on Iranian heritage, from antiquities to modern times, and an expert in international law, to offer insights and discuss the destruction of monuments and the significance and future of World Heritage as a shared global concern.
🔹 Sussan Babaie, Professor in the Arts of Iran and Islam, Courtauld Institute.
🔹 Dr John Curtis, FBA, Keeper Emeritus, Ancient Iran and Iraq, the British Museum, and former Chief Executive Officer of the Iran Heritage Foundation.
🔹 Dr Lindsay Allen, Lecturer in Greek & Near Eastern History, King’s College London.
🔹 Professor Roger O’Keefe, Professor of International Law, Department of Legal Studies, Bocconi University, Milan
🔹 Dr Peyvand Firouzeh, Islamic Art, University of Cambridge.
Organised by Sussan Babaie, Professor in the Arts of Iran and Islam, as part of the Research Cluster Courtauld Trans-Asias, in collaboration with the Iran Heritage Foundation.
2. The Forensic Archive of Iran
A citizen-led investigative archive documenting crimes against Iran’s cultural heritage.
https://www.forensicarchiveofiran.com/
And open call for our interdisciplinary publication, the Forensic Archive Dossier:
https://www.forensicarchiveofiran.com/dossier
3. ONLINE Webinar: ‘Peering Through the Cracks. Polish Musicians in Tehran 1942 to 1945: The Case of Irena Valdi-Gołębiowska’
with Laudan Nooshin
British Institute of Persian Studies (BIPS), 14 May, 2026, 5:00 pm UK Time
In the spring and summer of 1942, an estimated 300,000 Poles arrived in Iran, having travelled thousands of miles from recently opened-up Soviet labour camps in Siberia and elsewhere in Central Asia. Notwithstanding people’s sense of transience, a Polish cultural presence was established within a relatively short period, with schools, cultural institutions, radio stations, newspapers and cafés. And there were also musicians. This talk reports on a project exploring the cultural and musical lives of Polish exile-refugees in Iran during World War 2. I focus on the singer Irena Valdi-Gołębiowska (1891-1979) who lived in Tehran between 1942 and 1945 and whose collection of photographs, programme notes, concert invitations and letters becomes a lens through which to understand something of the geography of the Polish presence in Tehran at this time. More broadly, I examine how legacies of migrant stories are formed and narrated, and how we recover individual stories against narratives of collective migratory experiences (Image credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum).
Information and registration:
https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/2617763476100/WN_5Ea95C7fS6qPif1-8DjQjQ#/registration
4. Birds, Wings, and Diadems: Zoroastrian Symbols in Parthian and Sasanian Art
with Vesta Sarkhosh Curtis
30 April 2026, 6PM GMT
Khalili Lecture Theatre, SOAS
5. Zoom: Alwaleed Centre, University of Edinburgh
Seminar: Secularism, Hegemony and the Paradoxes of State Recognition
Wednesday 29 April, 1pm to 2pm BST
Venue: Seminar room, 2 Hope Park Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9NW
Join Dr A. Sophie Lauwers (IASH-Alwaleed Postdoctoral Fellow, 2025-26) on 29 April at 1pm BST for a seminar on ‘Secularism, Hegemony and the Paradoxes of State Recognition’. The first half of the seminar examines patterns of secular and Christian hegemony, and how these can feed into the marginalisation of (often racialized) religious minorities. The second half looks at a possible solution often proposed in policy circles: extending state recognition to religious minorities. Can state-religion dialogue forums like the Islam Conference (in Germany), or state funding for Catholic, Protestant and Jewish schools (as in Flandres) deliver the equality and inclusion they promise, or do they (also) reinforce hegemonic norms?
6. The Uninvited Guest
Histories of Persian Theatre in the Qajar Period
by
Duman Riyazi
ISBN: 978-1-997503-35-4
Iran’s performance traditions were vibrant and deeply rooted long before the Qajar monarchs travelled to Europe. Yet during their journeys, Naser al-Din Shah and Mozaffar al-Din Shah attended opera houses, theatres, concerts, and musical spectacles that became part of a complex cultural encounter whose full scope has remained largely unexplored.
The published royal diaries offer only brief references to these experiences. The broader record, however, lay scattered across European cities and archives.
For the first time, Duman Riyazi meticulously reconstructs and documents the Shahs’ European itineraries step by step, travelling city by city, following their routes, and uncovering forgotten documents that reconstruct what they truly witnessed. Through extensive archival research across Europe, this book brings to light a hidden dimension of Iran’s theatrical modernization, revealing a layered dialogue between traditions rather than a simple process of importing or adopting European models.
To purchase via Amazon:
https://a.co/d/0117KAR7
To purchase via Lulu:
https://www.lulu.com/shop/duman-riyazi/the-uninvited-guest-histories-of-persian-theatre-in-the-qajar-period/paperback/product-2mdjkkn.html?page=1&pageSize=4
To learn more:
https://asemanabooks.ca/uninvited-guest/
7. ONLINE Webinar “Historical-cultural Portrait of the Mamluk-Ottoman Transition” by Rachida Chin (CNRS), Orient-Institute Beirut & University of Bamberg & University of Göttingen, 22 April 2026, 18:00 – 19:30 CET
This presentation will focus on the historical context that allowed for the emergence of scholarly circles within which a rich historiographical culture developed, alongside an intense engagement with hadīth studies, large-scale works of synthesis, and the deep embedding of Sufism within learned culture. Fi-nally, we will examine the international circulation of this knowledge in the early modern period, marked by the growth of major Arab cities and the expansion of pilgrimage routes.
Information and registration: https://tinyurl.com/2h59v388
8. ONLINE Webinar “Race, Power, and Politics: Antisemitism and Islamophobia, Past and Present” by Sahar Aziz and Santiago Slabodsky, Herbert D. Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies, University of Pennsylvania, 23 April 2026, 18:00 – 19:00 CET
This lecture takes a distinctive comparative approach, examining antisemitism and Islamophobia not as isolated phenomena but as entangled histories that reveal fundamental patterns in how societies construct and target minorities. By bringing these two forms of prejudice into conversation, we aim to uncover what their similarities and differences teach us about the architecture of discrimination itself – and how we might better dismantle it.
Information and registration: https://tinyurl.com/3aajja54
9. International Conference “In the Name of Sultan, Emperor, and King: Grand Viziers, Chief Ministers, and Structures of Delegated Power in Early Modern Eurasia”, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna, 27-29 May 2026
How did sultans, emperors, and kings in early modern Eurasia delegate power to their grand viziers, chief ministers, chancellors, and other “second persons” in their courts? How did ideas about kinship and nobility, levels of social mobility, and religious, political, and intellectual debates shape – and re-shape – these systems?
Information, program and registration: https://tinyurl.com/3anu2nrx
10. ONLINE Interdisciplinary Webinar Series & Edited Volume “American Islam at 250: Commu-nity, Authority, and Futurity in the American Muslim Experience”, Florida International Univer-sity & East-West Foundation, July – December 2026
As the USA marks its 250th anniversary, the American Muslim community stands at a pivotal juncture. This webinar series convenes historians, political scientists, religious studies scholars, sociologists, anthropologists, legal scholars, theologians, and public intellectuals for a rigorous, eight-episode ex-amination of the American Muslim community as it is today and as it might become.
Deadline for abstracts: 1 May 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/4m54whdp
11. PhD Student Position (3 Years) in Arabic Philosophy and Its Hebrew and Latin Reception, University of Cologne
Candidates must hold a Master’s degree or an equivalent qualification in a relevant discipline. A high level of proficiency in Arabic or Hebrew or Latin is required, as is a strong command of English, which serves as the project’s primary language of publication. Knowledge of Greek is considered an ad-vantage but is not a prerequisite for application
Deadline for applications: 15 May 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/dp33cjzm
12. Summer School “Terms and Turns of Empire. Interconnecting Concepts and Methods (Fo-cus Ottoman Empire)” University of Freiburg, 7-12 September 2026
Organized by the research Graduate School “Empires. Dynamic Change, Temporality and Post-Impe-rial Orders”, this summer school offers an intensive interdisciplinary methodological forum for critical engagement with the relationship between methods and concepts of ‘empire’ across academic fields and historical periods.
Deadline for applications: 31 May 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/2zn54a6z
13. Contributions to New Book Series ” Islam, Science and Ethics of Emerging Technologies” Edited by Hureyre Kam, University of Innsbruck
This interdisciplinary series explores the dynamic engagement of Islamic intellectual traditions with contemporary science and emerging technologies. It brings classical and contemporary resources from kalām, ḥikma, fiqh, akhlāq, and taṣawwuf into critical dialogue with fields such as artificial intelligence, biotechnology, neuroscience, digital religions, religious education in the digital age, environmental sci-ence, and transhumanist thought.
Information: https://tinyurl.com/839vxtdb
14. ONLINE Collection of Articles on “Anthropology of Iran” in the Special Issue of “Curated Collection”, 10 March 2026
This collection of 11 articles features authors who draw on their fieldwork and expertise to illuminate how individuals and communities navigate, resist, and reshape the forces impacting their lives. They engage with contemporary debates not only as scholars but as public intellectuals committed to ac-countability, justice, and praxis within and beyond the academy.
Download: https://tinyurl.com/mr437yu8
15. New Book: “The Forgotten Khayr al-Din al-Tunsi’s Islamic Social Contract: Governance, Pub-lic Welfare and Justice” by Deina Ali Abdelkader, Edinburgh University Press, April 2026, 200 Pages
This book challenges the entrenched marginalisation of Muslim contributions to political theory, expos-ing the epistemological biases that have privileged Western traditions while silencing rich intellectual legacies from the Islamic world. Centering on the 19th-century reformer Khayr al-Din al-Tunsi, it offers the first comprehensive analysis and translation of his political writings through the lens of Islamic ju-risprudence.
Information: https://tinyurl.com/yda7ckye
16. New Book: “Egyptian Male Film Stars in the Nasser Era: Envisioning a National Identity” by Samar Abdel-Rahman, AUC Press, 7 April 2026, 260 Pages
The author illuminates how the three key stars Omar Sharif, Ismail Yassin, and Farid Shawqi promoted a civic identity that aligned with the regime’s ambitions, and how each of them – through melodrama, comedy, and action – negotiated a different facet of masculine identity that spoke to the ambivalent constructions of hegemonic masculinity during this critical post-colonial period.
Information: https://tinyurl.com/5n7h5865
17. New Book: “Post-Ottoman Transitions – Rethinking Nation-State Trajectories in the Arab and Turkish Contexts” Edited by Soumaya Louhichi & Jamal Barout, Ergon, April 2026, 233 Pages
This volume examines post-imperial state formation in former Ottoman provinces, shifting the focus from a presumed rupture after 1918 to the enduring administrative, legal, and political continuities of the Ottoman Empire. Through case studies – drawing on examples such as Syria, Iraq, Egypt, and Turkey – it analyzes border disputes, foreign policy strategies, and competing visions of regional order in the 20th and 21st centuries.
Information: https://tinyurl.com/yc8dpdbr
- April 18, 2026
- by Andrew Newman
- 0 Comment
Shii News – ‘Shiʿism and Myth’ – G Warner (11.5.26, 17.00 UK time)
- April 15, 2026
- by Andrew Newman
- 0 Comment
Shii News – Academic Items
1. HYBRID World Policy Forum: “What is Sharia Law, and is it a Threat to Our Democracy?”,
Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy (CSID), Washington DC, 22 April 2026, 16:00 – 17:30 CET
Bringing together leading scholars of Islamic law, theology, and constitutional law, the discussion will address widespread misconceptions about Sharia and provide a grounded understanding of its principles, sources, and diverse interpretations. Panelists will engage key questions related to free-dom of religion, freedom of expression, and the relationship between religious legal traditions and modern democratic systems.
Information and registration: https://tinyurl.com/mvrwuayh
2. HYBRID Lecture “New Excavations at Nessana, Negev: Late Antique Pilgrimage Hub on the Desert Fringe” by Yana Tchekhanovets (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev), W. F. Al-bright Institute of Archaeological Research, Jerusalem, 29 April 2026, 18:30 CET
The ancient settlement of Nessana, located in the southwestern Negev, on the modern Israeli-Egyp-tian border, is a key site for the study of early Christian pilgrimage. Serving as the main caravan hub on the Christian pilgrimage road from the Holy Land to Sinai, Nessana enjoys all the economic benefits of the sacred route and develops into a flourishing urbanized village with caravanserais and numerous churches.
Information and registration: https://tinyurl.com/3z2ayuh2
3. Postdoctoral Research Fellow Position (12 Months) in Arabic and Islamic Studies / History of Islamic Law, Institut de recherche et d’histoire des textes, Aubervilliers, France
Skills: PhD in Islamic Studies. – Ability to work with legal sources in Arabic. – Ability to read and interpret Arabic manuscript scripts. – Excellent command of historical and philological methodolo-gies. – Excellent knowledge of the intellectual history of the Muslim West, particularly the develop-ment of law and theology. – Excellent command of Classical Arabic and of the terminology of the Islamic religious sciences. – Strong command of English; knowledge of Spanish would be an asset.
Deadline for applications: 24 April 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/ydfy8hem
4. Post-Doc Position (30 Months) for the Critical Edition with Annotated English Translation of Musky Aromas, MOSAIC Project, UCLouvain, Belgium
Qualification: PhD in Islamic Studies, in Middle Eastern Studies, or related fields. – Excellent com-mand of Classical Arabic (the knowledge of additional languages such as Persian and Turkish is considered an advantage). – Academic writing and presentation skills in English (the working lan-guage of the project). – Ability to work both individually and as part of a team.
Deadline for applications: 10 June 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/2axtd8ufv
5. Two Open Rank Faculty Positions in Islamic Ethics, Research Center for Islamic Legislation and Ethics, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar
We are seeking dynamic scholars whose work bridges the Islamic scholarly tradition with contem-porary moral challenges. We are particularly interested in candidates who can bring fresh perspec-tives to both theoretical and applied Islamic ethics across diverse disciplines.
Deadline for applications: 25 April 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/ycx3ktsp
6. Scholarships for the “MA in Iranian Studies”, SOAS, University of London
A number of scholarships are available for UK/EU and Overseas fee-paying SOAS students, covering the cost of tuition fees for two years.
Deadline for applications: 24 April 2026. Information: “Kamran Djam Scholarships” (https://ti-nyurl.com/yjzb6wss) & “Shapoorji Pallonji Scholarships” (https://tinyurl.com/4zdtcxhe).
7. Interdisciplinary Webinar Series & Edited Volume on “American Islam at 250: Community, Authority, and Futurity in the American Muslim Experience”, Florida International University & East-West Foundation, July – December 2026
This series convenes historians, political scientists, religious studies scholars, sociologists, anthropologists, legal scholars, theologians, and public intellectuals for a rigorous, eight-episode examination of the American Muslim community as it is today and as it might become. The series is organized topically, with each episode addressing a defining dimension of contemporary American Muslim life.
Deadline for abstracts: 15 May 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/4m54whdp
8. New Book: “Al-Bukhārī. The Life, Theology and Legal Thought of Islam’s Foremost Traditionist” by Belal Abu-Alabbas, Edinburgh University Press, April 2026, 328 Pages
The first comprehensive critical biography of Muhammad ibn Ismāʿīl al-Bukhārī (d. 256/870) stands as one of the most distinguished figures in Islamic intellectual history. His magnum opus, the Ṣaḥīḥ, is revered as the most authoritative collection of Prophetic traditions in Sunni Islam and is the most cited book in Islamic history.
Information: https://tinyurl.com/bdhzzpf4
9. New Book: “Le hobyot: Description grammaticale d’une langue sudarabique modern” by Ali Manoubi, Brill, Studies in Semitic Languages and Linguistics, Volume: 115, April 2026, 368 Pages
Hobyot, a Semitic language of the Modern South Arabian group, is spoken by a few thousand speak-ers in eastern Yemen and southern Oman. With no written tradition and facing imminent extinction, it remains one of the least documented languages in the region. This study offers the first compre-hensive linguistic description of Hobyot, based on dedicated field research.
Information: https://tinyurl.com/yyhywrje
10. New Book: “Religion and the Invisible World: Sanctity and Spiritual Transformation in Egypt from Pharaonic Times to the Present” by Fadwa El Guindi, American University in Cairo Press, 2026, 252 Pages
Drawing on historical and ethnographic material, this book shows how concepts of sacredness, sanctity and invisibility (Ghaib in Islam) have been core elements in the spiritual transformations in Egypt as embodied in the early pharaonic religion, Egyptian-Hellenistic religion, Christianity, and Islam, and how these practices of spirituality and cosmology cut across many divides of ethnicity, gender, region, religion, language, and social class.
Information: https://aucpress.com/9781649033710/
11. Zahedi Family Fellowship at Stanford Iranian Studies
Application deadline: May 1, 2026
Fellowship period: fall 2026
The Zahedi Family Fellowship is a twelve-week residential fellowship focusing on the Zahedi Archive (which includes both diplomatic correspondence and collected photos) at Stanford University’s Hamid and Christina Moghadam Program in Iranian Studies and the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.
During the fellowship period, the Zahedi Fellow is expected to pursue their independent research in residency and to hold a lecture, seminar or workshop on their research, organized by the Iranian Studies Program. The Zahedi fellow will have access to Stanford University Libraries and the Hoover Institution Library and Archives as well as a community of scholars at Stanford.
The fellowship funds international travel, health insurance, visa support, and a $15,000 stipend for living expenses.
Fluency in Persian and a terminal degree, or equivalent experience, is required. “All but dissertation” status PhD students are eligible to apply. The fellowship is open to scholars and artists working on the modern history of Iran, particularly the period of 1941 to 1979. Preference will be given to scholars who have worked on aspects of modern Iranian foreign policy, history, and culture.
12. Zoom: The Elahé Omidyar Mir-Djalali Institute of Iranian Studies and Invisible East present ‘Rethinking History: Returning to Archives and Documents’, a series of monthly online seminars.
Convened by Arezou Azad and Mohamad Tavakoli, the seminars are held on Zoom.
Please join us on Wednesday 15 April at 12PM EDT / 5PM BST to hear Dr Márton Vér of
Universität Hamburgspeaking on ‘The Old Uyghur Documents and a Global Microhistory of the Silk Roads’. Pre-registration is essential.
13. Hybrid book talk, with Daniel Majchrowicz:
‘Travel Writing and the Global Imagination in Muslim South Asia’
Friday, April 17 2:30-4:00PM EST, Library of Congress
In this book talk, Daniel Majchrowicz, will discuss his recent study of the history of travel writing in South Asia, The World in Words Travel Writing and the Global Imagination in Muslim South Asia (Cambridge University Press, 2023). Focusing particularly on writing in Urdu, this talk will show how the travelogue gave voice to a global imagination that reflected the ambition and aspiration of Indians and Pakistanis as they negotiated their place in the changing world of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
Registration for the Zoom event is through the following link:
https://bit.ly/world-in-words-speaker.
14. Study Persian in Armenia
ASPIRANTUM’s 2026 Persian Language Summer School in Yerevan and would appreciate it if you could circulate this opportunity among your students and networks.
The program offers 6–10 weeks (120–200 hours) of intensive Modern Persian. Instruction is available at upper elementary and intermediate levels, focusing strongly on all core language skills in small groups.
The program also includes cultural excursions and activities across Armenia.
Full details and application:
https://aspirantum.com/courses/persian-language-summer-school
Application deadline: May 1, 2026
15. Brown University – Visiting Assistant Professor of Islam in South Asia
https://networks.h-net.org/jobs/69958/brown-university-visiting-assistant-professor-islam-south-asia
16. Hybrid: Annonce colloque (15-16 avril 2026) : “Pouvoir, cultures et sociétés des steppes en contexte ouest-eurasiatique (Afghanistan, Asie centrale, Iran)
Les mercredi 15 et jeudi 16 avril se tiendra le colloque « Pouvoir, cultures et sociétés des steppes en contexte ouest-eurasiatique (Afghanistan, Asie centrale, Iran) », à la Maison de la recherche de l’INaLCO, 2 rue de Lille, 75006 Paris, dans l’auditorium Georges Dumézil.
Ce colloque est organisé dans le cadre des activités de la Chaire Porfesseur Junior “Afghanistan” de l’INaLCO, avec le concours du CeRMI, du CRCAO, de la DAFA, du GIS Asie et de l’INaLCO.
Veuillez trouver le programme sur le site web du CeRMI.
L’entrée est libre dans la limite des places disponibles.
Zoom: https://zoom.us/j/97920962767
- April 14, 2026
- by Andrew Newman
- 0 Comment