Archive for 2026

1. ‘The concept of the creational body in Iranian mythology: transformation and theological reinterpretations in Zoroastrian texts’

M Bayani

BSOAS, July 2026

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/bulletin-of-the-school-of-oriental-and-african-studies/article/concept-of-the-creational-body-in-iranian-mythology-transformation-and-theological-reinterpretations-in-zoroastrian-texts/210861C54632A5EF8FB9EF6C0F33BBA1?utm_source=SFMC&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Article&utm_campaign=New%20Cambridge%20Alert%20-%20Articles&WT.mc_id=New%20Cambridge%20Alert%20-%20Articles

 

 

 

 

2. Open Access – Kaplony, Andreas. Pre-Modern Arabic Documents: A Concise Introduction into Reading and Publishing.

Berlin: de Gruyter, open access, 2026 (Studies in the History and Culture
of the Middle East 51) (https://www.degruyterbrill.com/de/document/isbn/9783112248140/html)

 

 

 

 

 

3. CfP: The Composition of the Qur’an: Structure, Style & Meaning

A conference co-organized by the Orient-Institut Beirut (OIB)

& the Dominican Institute for Oriental Studies (IDEO: EU funded “Anawati Chair”),

Location: IDEO (Cairo), March 19ᵗʰ‒20ᵗʰ, 2027

Publication: MIDEO 45 (2029)

Conference Theme

Questions concerning the composition of the Qur’an, its structure, style, and organisation, have occupied Muslim scholars for centuries and remain central to contemporary Qur’anic studies. Yet composition is not merely a question of literary form. It also concerns how the Qur’an generates meaning, organises argument, guides interpretation, establishes authority, and shapes relationships between revelation, recitation, and community.

Approaches to these questions have been remarkably diverse. Muslim scholarly traditions developed sophisticated reflections on textual organisation through tafsīr, balāġa, theories of naẓm and munāsabāt, and the sciences of the Qur’an (ʿulūm al-Qurʾān). Contemporary scholarship has expanded these discussions through literary, rhetorical, philological, historical-critical, manuscript, and comparative approaches, while also exploring the Qur’an’s engagement with the wider intellectual and religious cultures of Late Antiquity.

Rather than asking only how the Qur’an is composed, this conference asks what composition accomplishes. How does compositional form shape meaning? How have different scholarly traditions understood these relationships? What new perspectives emerge when literary, philological, historical, theological, and exegetical approaches are brought into conversation?

The conference welcomes contributions that revisit established assumptions, develop new methodological perspectives, or explore how composition functions as a dynamic process of meaning-making within the Qur’an and across its interpretive traditions.

Possible questions include:

• How can textual coherence in the Qur’an be understood?
• What kinds of compositional structures emerge within individual sūras or across the Qur’an as a whole?
• How do repetition, variation, formulaic language, rhythm, and sound contribute to meaning?
• How has the Islamic intellectual tradition theorised textual form, rhetoric, coherence, and style?
• What can philological, manuscript, and codicological evidence contribute to our understanding of the Qur’an’s composition?
• How do different models of the Qur’an’s formation shape literary interpretation?
• What role do self-referentiality, scriptural dialogue, and intertextuality play in the Qur’an’s discourse?
• How do recitational, performative, and liturgical contexts shape perceptions of textual organisation and coherence?

Possible Themes

Theme 1 – Literary Structure, Rhetoric, and Compositional Analysis

This theme welcomes studies exploring rhetorical structure, thematic progression, compositional symmetry, coherence, repetition, narrative organisation, and other formal dimensions of the Qur’anic text. It also encourages critical reflection on the assumptions, possibilities, and limits of different approaches to structural analysis and on the relationship between compositional form and meaning.

Theme 2 ‒ Textual Formation and Historical Context

How do literary readings relate to different accounts of the Qur’an’s formation and transmission? This theme explores the relationship between synchronic and diachronic approaches while encouraging dialogue between literary criticism, philology, manuscript studies, oral performance, historical criticism, and material textuality. We also welcome contributions examining the Qur’an within the broader intellectual and religious cultures of Late Antiquity and considering how these perspectives intersect with literary, philological, theological, and exegetical approaches. Rather than assuming a rigid opposition between these methodologies, the panel seeks to explore the questions that emerge at their points of convergence.

Theme 3 ‒ Self-Referentiality and Interpretation

How have different interpretive communities understood the relationship between the Qur’an’s compositional form and its meaning? This theme explores self-referentiality, internal Qur’anic hermeneutics, scriptural conversation, and the interpretive significance of textual form. It welcomes studies of Muslim exegetical, rhetorical, and theological traditions alongside contemporary literary, philological, historical, and comparative approaches, with particular attention to the conceptual frameworks through which composition, structure, and style have themselves been understood and theorised.

Submission Guidelines

If you are interested in presenting a paper, please send your title and an abstract of 300‒500 words in PDF format to Quran2027-IDEO-OIB@ideo-cairo.org by September 30ᵗʰ, 2026. Please also include a short CV (maximum one page) detailing your institutional affiliation and recent publications. Participants commit to presenting original research and submitting a paper to MIDEO. Notification of acceptance: November 30ᵗʰ, 2026. Submission of full articles for publication: September 30ᵗʰ, 2027.

Publication & Peer Review

Selected papers will be published in the MIDEO 45 (2029). Please note that inclusion in the conference does not guarantee publication. Conversely, researchers who are unable to attend the conference are still encouraged to submit their manuscripts for consideration in this thematic issue. All manuscripts (maximum 60,000 characters including spaces) will undergo a double-blind peer review process according to the journal’s editorial standards (see the guidelines here).

Practical Information

Languages: The primary language of the conference is English.

Travel & Accommodation: Our funding is limited. Please let us know if you require financial assistance regarding your airfare. Accommodation, local transportation and meals will be provided by the conference organizers.

 

1.Iran Heritage Foundation

This is a kind reminder that the deadline for the third round of submissions to the IHF Modern Iran Series is 31 August 2026.

The IHF Modern Iran Series is a new Open Access, peer-reviewed academic book series published by Bloomsbury Academic. The Iran Heritage Foundation (IHF) is supporting successful applicants with Open Access publication costs.

Please submit your proposal to Hassan Hakimian, Series Editor, and Rory Gormley, Senior Commissioning Editor at Bloomsbury Academic.

The IHF Modern Iran Series publishes innovative Open Access books with a broad thematic focus on modern and contemporary Iran. The chronological scope of the series covers the late nineteenth century to the present day with thematic areas ranging from cultural and social to political and economic issues.

The full announcement can be read here.

 

 

 

 

 

2. The Association Villard de Honnecourt for the Interdisciplinary Study of Medieval Technology, Science, and Art (AVISTA) is excited to announce the call for papers for our 2027 ICMS Kalamazoo session “Unfinished, Damaged, Reimagined: Rethinking the Fragment.”
Rarely do material traces of the premodern world survive without damage or alteration. In response, the fragment has emerged as a productive theoretical framework for understanding the condition of medieval objects, buildings, and archives in our time. In line with AVISTA’s focus on the intersection of medieval art, craft, and technology, this session seeks papers which present object-focused case studies of the medieval fragment, including incomplete, damaged, or reconstructed objects and buildings. Speakers might discuss, for example, repaired or transformed objects, architecture that was never completed or has since been lost, or medieval and modern efforts to complete the fragment.
When: May 13th–15th, 2027
Where: Western Michigan University | Kalamazoo, MI, USA
All submissions must be made through the ICMS Confex System. If you wish to submit a proposal you can submit to the specific session at: https://icms.confex.com/icms/2027/prelim.cgi/Session/8645
Abstract Deadline: Sunday, September 15th, 2026

Contact Email

news@avista.org

URL

https://www.avista.org/opportunities-cfp

AVISTA ICMS Kalamazoo 2027 CFP “Unfinished, Damaged, Reimagined: Rethinking the Fragment”

 

 

 

 

 

3. University of Edinburgh – Alwaleed Centre

Postdoctoral Research Associate: Muslim Societies in Latin America and the Caribbean 

The closing date for applications is 26 August 2026.

https://uoe.sharepoint.com/:w:/s/jobdescriptionlibrary/IQDzk8OSssiaRLT-gsd8sTC7Aa_gst9VRe9yPB8gF-lljxw

and

https://elxw.fa.em3.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/CX_1001/job/14560

 

 

 

 

 

4. ReMedY ERC StG Project Website and PhD Fellowship Opportunity

The website of the ERC Starting Grant project ReMedY – Reassessing Late Medieval Pharmacology: Logical and Metaphysical Tools in the Medical Context is now online:

https://erc-remedy.unipa.it

Supported by the European Research Council (ERC), ReMedY is my ERC Starting Grant project, hosted by the Department of Humanities at the University of Palermo.

The project investigates the logical, metaphysical, and semiotic foundations of late medieval Rational Pharmacology, the branch of medieval medicine concerned with classifying the properties, virtues, and operations of drugs. The website provides an overview of the project’s aims, research team, and activities, and will be regularly updated with news, publications, events, and other resources.

I would also like to draw your attention to a fully funded PhD fellowship associated with the project, within the PhD Programme in Humanities at the University of Palermo. Funded by ReMedY, the fellowship focuses on the interplay between philosophy and medicine in the Late Middle Ages and may be of particular interest to students and early-career researchers working in medieval philosophy, the history of medicine, Medieval Latin philology, manuscript studies, or related fields.

Further details are available in the official call (see p. 167):

https://www.unipa.it/didattica/dottorati/dottorato-xlii/bando-di-accesso-ciclo-42/

The application deadline is 12 August.

Please feel free to circulate this announcement among colleagues, students, and anyone who might be interested.

Should you have any questions about the project or the PhD fellowship, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Thank you very much, and I wish you all a wonderful and restful summer.

With best wishes,

Marilena Panarelli
Professoressa associata in Storia della filosofia medievale (GSD: 11/PHIL-05 – SSD: PHIL-05/C)
Dipartimento di Scienze Umanistiche
Università degli studi di Palermo
Edificio 12, stanza 4.05
Viale delle Scienze 90128 – Palermo (PA)
marilena.panarelli@unipa.it
https://www.unipa.it/persone/docenti/p/marilena.panarelli
ORCID ID: 0000-0002-9277-2379

 

 

 

 

 

5. Call for Papers for a special issue of Iran Namag on Persian Lithographic Printing
Iran Namag: A Quarterly of Iranian Studies

Call for Papers for a special issue on Persian Lithographic Printing

Editors:

Mohammad 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 September 30, 2026. Abstracts should be emailed to Mohammad 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/

Ethical and Scholarly Standards

Iran Namag is committed to academic integrity, responsible authorship, and ethical publication practices. Contributors are expected to acknowledge their intellectual debts through proper citations and to recognize the contributions of collaborators, colleagues, and research assistants. The journal promotes scholarly collaboration and the open exchange of ideas.

 

 

 

 

 

6. Dutch-Persian Encounters: Merchants, Diplomats, Engineers, and Cultural Brokers, 1850-1920

Willem Floor and Forough Sajadi

Mage, July 2026

https://mage.com/dutch-persian-encounters/

 

 

 

 

 

7. HYBRID Workshop “Law on the Margins of Empire: Pluralism and Politics in Colonial Periph-eries”, Trinity College, University of Cambridge, UK, 19-20 March 2027

The workshop asks what constituted law and legal change on the geographic, temporal, epistemic, economic, social, and religious margins of early-modern and modern empires, both European and otherwise. It primarily seeks to explore whether and how the expansion of these empires failed to subsume or subordinate many of the institutional practices of Asian, African, and other indigenous actors.

Deadline for abstracts: 10 August 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/ymnmhjcp

 

 

 

 

 

8. Assistant or Associate Professor in Sociology, American University in Cairo (AUC)

Requirements: PhD in Sociology or a closely related field and a demonstrable record of teaching with special consideration given to those who can demonstrate the capacity to teach our offerings related to the Middle East and North Africa. Special consideration will also be given to those who can demon-strate the capacity to teach and supervise in subfields – such as urban, environmental and legal sociology.

Deadline for applications: 8 December 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/mhdt8kth

 

 

 

 

 

9. Assistant Professor (Tenure-Track) in Arts of the Medieval World, Department of History of Art, University of California, Berkeley

The position is open in terms of geographical and chronological focus, welcoming a range of local, regional, transregional, or comparative approaches to the study of art and the built environment in Africa, Asia, and/or Europe from the 7th to the 15th century. Candidates’ teaching and research might also engage historic trade routes, sites of pilgrimage, axes of scholarly exchange, or itineraries of con-quest and enslavement.

Deadline for applications: 1 October 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/yh3t4e23

 

 

 

 

 

10. Yearly Arabic Courses Programme of the Département des Études Arabes, Médiévales et Modernes de l’Institut français du Proche-Orient at Ifpo in Amman or Beirut, 2026-2027

The programme offers in-depth language and cultural training to trainees (students or non-students) who have already completed Modern Standard Arabic (MSA/fuṣḥā). Courses in Arabic calligraphy, Ar-abic music and singing, and theater are also offered.

Deadline for registration extended to 30 August 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/5b99mk23

 

 

 

 

 

11. Articles on “Architectures of the Soul: The Built Environments and Muslim Mental Health” for a Special Issue of the “Journal of Muslim Health”

This issue explores the relationship between architecture, space, and Muslim mental well-being, draw-ing on Islamic intellectual traditions and contemporary interdisciplinary research. Contributions are wel-comed on topics including Islamic environmental psychology, healing spaces, mosque and community design, healthcare environments, urbanism, spatial trauma, and the role of ritual and everyday spaces in fostering mental health.

Deadline for abstracts: 1 December 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/y4a6ur4e

 

 

 

 

 

12. ONLINE Latest Issue of “The Muslim World Review”, Vol. 46, Issue 4, July 2026

“The Muslim World Review” is a quarterly publication of the Islamic Foundation, Markfield, Leicestershire, UK. This journal aims to present the Muslim viewpoint on books and issues which concern Islam and Muslims. It also includes scholarly articles on all aspects relating to Islam and the Muslim World.

View: https://tinyurl.com/d78sdstz

 

 

 

 

 

 

13. New Volume “Race and Slavery in the Middle East: Histories of Trans-Saharan Africans in Nineteenth-Century Egypt, Sudan, and the Ottoman Mediterranean” Edited by Terence Walz & Kenneth M. Cuno, The American University in Cairo Press, 7 July 2026, 256 Pages

In the 19th century hundreds of thousands of Africans were forcibly migrated northward to Egypt and other eastern Mediterranean destinations, yet relatively little is known about them. In recent decades new sources have become available. Along with new developments in the study of African slavery these sources provide a perspective on the lives of non-elite trans-Saharan Africans in 19th century Egypt and beyond. The nine essays in this volume examine the lives of slaves and freed men and women in Egypt and the region.

Information: https://tinyurl.com/45uxyk34

 

 

 

 

 

14. New Volume: “Cosmic and Animal Piety in Islam: Everything Glorifies God” Edited by Walid Ghali, Guillaume de Vaulx d’Arcy, Asmaa El Maaroufi, Nicolas Payen, Edinburgh University Press, July 2026, 360 Pages

Examines the concept of praise (tasbīḥ) in Islam, encompassing its human and nonhuman expressions: – Provides a census and explanation of Qur’anic verses on cosmic piety. – Explores case studies on dogs and cats based in hadith literature and Muslim culture. – Reveals the bond between zoology and theology in Islam. – Engages with hermeneutic tools from Hebraic and Syriac literature.

Information: https://tinyurl.com/2s4uf664

 

 

 

 

 

15. New Book: “Iran’s Environmental Challenges and Movements on the Margins: Beyond the Centre” by Allan Hassaniyan, Edinburgh University Press, July 2026, 352 Pages

Interrogates the state-centric approach to Iran’s environmental crisis, reframing it as a profoundly polit-ical issue: – Draws on first-hand narratives of impacted local populations, environmental groups and NGOs. – Discusses narratives and case studies as featured in local environmental magazines and Telegram pages. – Challenges the Persio-centric approach to Iranian studies and gives a strong voice to the marginalised national communities in Iran. – Centres the previously overlooked periphery within environmental studies in Iran.

Information: https://tinyurl.com/2kju2jbs

 

 

 

 

 

16. New Book: “The Forgotten Khayr al-Din al-Tunsi’s Islamic Social Contract: Governance, Public 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 – specifically, the Maqāṣid al-Sharīʿa (Objectives of the Law).

Information: https://tinyurl.com/fvrj8saw

 

John Louis Esposito (1940-2026)

1.CALL FOR PAPERS: Arab Media and Society
Issues 42 & 43, Summer/Fall 2026 on “Media Transformation and the Public Sphere”

Arab media have long played a central role in shaping public life, political debate, cultural identity, and social imagination across the region. From the rise of the pan-Arab press and transnational broadcasting to satellite television, social media, streaming platforms, podcasts, messaging applications, and AI-assisted communication, Arab publics have continually been formed and re-formed through changing media technologies, institutions, and practices. Today, however, the relationship between media transformation and the public sphere is entering a new stage.

Public discussion in the Arab world is no longer anchored primarily in newspapers, television news, official statements, or elite political commentary. It increasingly unfolds across a networked public sphere: a dense and shifting ecology of platforms, creators, influencers, fan communities, sports commentators, entertainment formats, podcasts, livestreams, short videos, memes, private messaging groups, and algorithmically organized feeds. In this environment, public life is not only produced through journalism or formal political debate, but also through entertainment, sports, celebrity culture, satire, gaming, religious discourse, lifestyle content, branded communication, and everyday audience participation.
This special issue of Arab Media & Society invites submissions that examine how media transformation is reshaping the Arab public sphere. We are particularly interested in the changing forms, formats, and delivery systems through which communication now reaches Arab audiences. These include short-form video, streaming drama, sports broadcasting, fan media, podcasts, social media commentary, influencer-led discussion, private messaging platforms, AI-generated content, and platform-native political debate.
The issue starts from the premise that the Arab public sphere should not be understood only through formal politics or traditional journalism. Entertainment, sports, and popular culture have become major arenas of public communication. Television dramas, streaming series, comedy clips, football debates, sports mega-events, celebrity controversies, influencer campaigns, fan communities, and online talk shows now shape how publics discuss identity, morality, class, gender, nation, religion, conflict, and belonging. Political discussion itself has also changed form: it increasingly circulates through fragments, clips, hashtags, memes, reaction videos, anonymous accounts, livestreams, podcasts, and semi-private messaging networks.
These transformations raise important questions. Who speaks in the Arab public sphere today? What kinds of media formats now carry public debate? How do entertainment and sports become political without always being formally “political”? How do platforms, algorithms, AI tools, and audience metrics shape what becomes visible, credible, popular, controversial, or silenced? How are Arab publics formed across national, regional, diasporic, and transnational media spaces? And how do war, geopolitical instability, economic uncertainty, censorship, platform governance, and strategic communication reshape public communication? While earlier scholarship on Arab media systems remains important, this issue places the main emphasis on changing communication forms and the reconfiguration of public life. Questions about media systems, state power, ownership, authoritarianism, developmental media, and comparative classification are welcome, but primarily as subthemes that help explain broader changes in communication, delivery, participation, and public sphere formation.
This special issue seeks theoretically informed and empirically grounded contributions that examine the transformation of Arab media and its implications for the public sphere in a rapidly changing communicative environment.
Suggested topics
Submissions may address, but are not limited to:
1) Arab media and the networked public sphere

• The transformation of the Arab public sphere through digital, mobile, and platform-based communication
• Networked publics, connective action, and new forms of visibility, legitimacy, and authority
• The relationship between legacy media, social media, streaming platforms, and private messaging applications
• Public debate across open platforms and semi-private spaces such as WhatsApp, Telegram, and closed groups
• The changing boundaries between public, private, intimate, commercial, and political communication
• Fragmented, affective, polarized, humorous, and entertainment-driven forms of public discussion

2) Changing forms of communication and delivery

• Short-form video, livestreaming, podcasts, reels, stories, newsletters, explainers, and mobile-first formats
• The transformation of television, radio, and print in relation to platform-native media
• Streaming, on-demand viewing, and the changing meaning of broadcasting
• Hybrid formats that combine journalism, entertainment, commentary, advertising, activism, and personal storytelling
• Algorithmic recommendation, platform design, and the politics of reach and circulation
• New production cultures among creators, influencers, streamers, podcasters, and independent media producers

3) Entertainment as public sphere

• Entertainment as a space for public debate, social commentary, and cultural negotiation
• Streaming drama, television series, reality shows, comedy, satire, music, celebrity culture, and popular storytelling
• The role of entertainment in shaping debates about class, gender, youth, religion, migration, morality, and national identity
• Celebrity controversies, influencer cultures, and the politics of visibility
• Memes, fan edits, reaction videos, parody, humor, and participatory entertainment cultures
• Entertainment industries, platform economies, and the production of Arab cultural publics

4) Sports, publics, and political communication

• Sports media as a major arena of Arab public life
• Football talk, fan cultures, online sports publics, and affective forms of belonging
• Sports broadcasting, streaming, club media, athlete branding, and fan-generated content
• Sports podcasts, YouTube channels, livestreams, social media commentary, and platform-native sports journalism
• Sports diplomacy, mega-events, national image, soft power, and regional competition
• Gender, class, nationalism, masculinity, identity, and political expression in sports communication
• The commercialization of sports publics through sponsorship, advertising, influencers, and platform metrics

5) Political discussion in new media formats

• Political debate through clips, memes, podcasts, livestreams, reels, online talk shows, and influencer commentary
• The movement of political discussion from formal programming to fragmented and platform-native formats
• Humor, satire, parody, outrage, emotion, and affective publics in Arab political communication
• Hashtags, trending topics, anonymous accounts, digital campaigns, and coordinated political messaging
• Political discussion in private and semi-private communication spaces
• Online polarization, rumor, harassment, disinformation, and credibility contests
• Political speech under surveillance, censorship, content moderation, and legal risk

6) Creators, influencers, and new communicative authority

• The rise of creators, influencers, streamers, podcasters, fan commentators, and platform-native personalities
• The blurring of boundaries between journalist, entertainer, activist, marketer, political commentator, and public intellectual
• Creator economies, monetization, sponsorship, subscriptions, advertising, and platform revenue models
• Authenticity, intimacy, credibility, and trust in influencer-led communication
• Micro-celebrities, niche publics, and new forms of cultural and political authority
• The professionalization of creator work in Arab entertainment, sports, lifestyle, and political commentary

7) Audiences, fans, users, and participatory publics

• The transformation of audiences from readers and viewers into users, followers, fans, commenters, creators, and data subjects
• Youth publics, diasporic audiences, women’s digital communities, migrant communities, linguistic minorities, and marginalized publics
• Fan cultures around entertainment, sports, celebrities, political personalities, and online communities
• Audience participation through comments, sharing, remixing, reaction formats, live chats, and fan production
• Trust, authenticity, credibility, news avoidance, selective exposure, and emotional attachment
• Audience analytics, personalization, microtargeting, and the commercialization of attention

8) AI, automation, and synthetic public communication

• Generative AI in entertainment, sports media, journalism, political commentary, public relations, and content production
• AI-assisted editing, translation, dubbing, subtitling, voice generation, and Arabic-language localization
• Synthetic presenters, virtual influencers, deepfakes, AI-generated personalities, and credibility contests
• AI tools in recommendation, sports analytics, entertainment distribution, and audience targeting
• Automated moderation, Arabic dialects, linguistic inequality, and algorithmic visibility
• AI-assisted misinformation, manipulation, propaganda, verification, and fact-checking

9) Strategic communication, branding, and public visibility

• Public relations, public diplomacy, reputation management, and nation branding in the Arab public sphere
• Strategic communication through entertainment, sports, tourism, cultural festivals, and mega-events
• Branded content, influencer campaigns, sponsored media, native advertising, and promotional cultures
• Communication strategies by states, corporations, sports clubs, cultural institutions, NGOs, and political movements
• Soft power, cultural diplomacy, sports diplomacy, and regional image-making
• Crisis communication during war, disaster, economic instability, public health crises, diplomatic conflict, and reputational controversy

10) Geopolitical instability, crisis, and public communication

• How war, occupation, displacement, sanctions, regional rivalry, and humanitarian crisis reshape Arab public communication
• Entertainment, sports, and political discussion during moments of crisis
• Digital witnessing, visual evidence, verification, documentation, and the circulation of conflict-related content
• Platform governance, takedowns, moderation, demonetization, and visibility during regional conflicts
• Diasporic communication, transnational solidarity, and cross-border publics
• The ethical challenges of communicating crisis through fast-moving, visual, affective, and platform-native formats

11) Revisiting Arab media systems as a subtheme

• How changing forms of communication complicate older classifications of Arab media systems
• Revisiting Hallin and Mancini, William Rugh, and other comparative media-system frameworks in relation to new public sphere dynamics
• The limits of classifying Arab media primarily as authoritarian, developmental, loyalist, diverse, or transitional
• The role of ownership, state power, private capital, platform companies, creator economies, and transnational media flows in reshaping communication
• The relationship between national media systems and transnational entertainment, sports, and political discussion
• How legacy media institutions adapt to platform-native publics and new delivery infrastructures

12) Language, dialect, humor, and cultural form

• Arabic dialects, multilingual communication, translation, subtitling, dubbing, and localization
• Humor, irony, parody, slang, memes, and vernacular expression in entertainment, sports, and political debate
• Dialect, intimacy, authenticity, and audience belonging
• Language politics in pan-Arab, national, local, diasporic, and minority media spaces
• Cultural specificity in algorithmic recommendation, search, moderation, and platform circulation

13) Methods and research designs

• Digital ethnography, audience research, creator diaries, interviews, production studies, and newsroom research
• Platform/interface analysis, discourse analysis, visual analysis, multimodal analysis, and political economy approaches
• Comparative studies of entertainment, sports, and political discussion across platforms and countries
• Computational approaches to networks, engagement, visibility, recommendation, and circulation, with attention to their limitations
• Research ethics in studying closed groups, fan communities, minors, influencers, conflict content, and AI-generated media
• Methodological challenges in studying ephemeral, deleted, personalized, encrypted, or algorithmically ranked communication

The above list is a non-exhaustive set of suggested areas of research. We welcome contributions that explore other dimensions related to media transformation and the public sphere in the Arab world, especially work that examines new forms of delivery, entertainment, sports communication, political discussion, audience participation, platform cultures, AI, strategic communication, and the changing relationship between media and public life.
Submission guidelines
All submissions must be in Microsoft Word format (.doc or .docx), adhere to the Chicago Manual of Style 17^th edition (author-date system), and have a maximum length of 10,000 words, including footnotes and references.
Please include the author’s name as it should be published, their position and affiliation, ORCID ID, and a brief abstract of no more than 150 words.
Deadline for full papers: October 5, 2026 for all submissions.
Please email all submissions to: ams.editor@aucegypt.edu. For further information regarding publishing policies, kindly visit: www.arabmediasociety.com/publishing-policies/
For any inquiries regarding the call for papers, please contact: ams.editor@aucegypt.edu.
Thank you for your interest and support of Arab Media & Society. We look forward to your contributions to this timely and important issue.

 

 

 

 

2. 28 July 6pm at SOAS: talk on Jaleh Esfahani

You are warmly invited to a talk by Dr Sam Hodgkin, followed by an informal reception and an opportunity to meet and speak with the speaker.

The event will take place on 28 July 2026 at 6:00 pm in Room 103, Brunei Gallery Building, SOAS University of London, Thornhaugh Street, Russell Square, London WC1H 0XG.

Dr Sam Hodgkin is Associate Professor at Yale University, where he directs the Yale Central Asia Initiative. He is the author of Persianate Verse and the Poetics of Eastern Internationalism (Cambridge University Press, 2023), winner of the USC Book Prize in Literary and Cultural Studies. His current book project explores how Iranian, Turkish, and Eastern Bloc Orientalists theorised classical Persian poetics over the course of the twentieth century.

In this talk, Dr Hodgkin will consider the place of Persian poetry within mid-twentieth-century literary internationalism, drawing on the remarkable materials held in the Jaleh Esfahani Cultural Foundation archive.

The major Persian modernist poet and literary critic Jaleh Esfahani, who was forced to leave Iran for the Soviet Union in the aftermath of the Second World War, spent her years in the USSR fostering literary exchanges across Persian, Russian, and Azeri Turkish, as well as among Iranian, Tajik, and Afghan Persian literary communities.

Drawing on archival material, the talk will examine highlights from Esfahani’s work as a translator of poetry and the reception of her own poetry in translation. It will also explore her contributions to literary diplomacy between the Second and Third Worlds and her important role in introducing Iranian literary modernism to writers and intellectuals in Central Asia.

We very much hope that you will be able to join us.

Please RSVP to Bonyad@jalehesfahani.com by 25 July 2026.

 

 

 

 

 

3. Genres Without Borders: The Circulation of Iranian Literary Forms

M Ostby

Syracuse, 2026

https://press.syr.edu/supressbooks/10060/genres-without-borders/

 

 

 

 

4. Zahra Institute

Fall Programme

Fall 2026 Mini Courses – Registration Open

Zahra Institute is expanding its academic programming with a new slate of month‑long mini courses. Each course includes four synchronous online sessions (2.5 hours each), minimal homework, and curated supplemental readings. Please see the attached mini‑course flyer.

Fall 2026 offerings:

• Multimedia for Online Language Teaching
• Kurdish Cinema
• Contemporary Kurdish Literature
• Qur’an in Historical Context
• Islamic Constitutionalism and Said Nursi’s Munazarat

Learn more and register: https://www.zahrainstitute.org/Mini_Courses.html

Kurdish Language Courses – Registration Open

We also offer semester‑long synchronous online Kurdish language courses from Beginner to Advanced levels in both Kurmanji and Sorani. Please see the attached Kurdish course flyer.

Learn more and register: https://www.zahrainstitute.org/KLIOverview.html
Registration Deadline: August 15
Questions: admissions@zahrainstitute.org

2026 Fall Speaker Series Begins September 23

Our Fall Speaker Series launches September 23, featuring leading scholars discussing:

• Kurds and Kurdistan in English Writing
• Statehood Without Recognition
• Kurdish Madrasa and Intellectual Tradition
• Iran’s Security State
• Cegerxwîn and Modern Kurdish Poetry
• ‘Honour’ and Human Rights

Event details: see the attached Fall 2026 Speaker Series flyer.
Register: https://www.zahrainstitute.org/news_and_events.html

 

 

 

 

 

5. Apply for a Full Scholarship – Prophet Muhammad Summer School

Hikmat International Institute

Course Dates: 5-27 August, 2026

We are delighted to announce that a limited number of full scholarships are now available for our upcoming online international summer school:

In the Light of the Prophetic Radiance: A Historical Journey through the Life of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

This unique program brings together a distinguished international faculty to explore the life of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) through historical sources, scholarly methodologies, and engaging academic discussions.

To make this opportunity accessible to a wider audience, Hikmat International Institute is pleased to offer a number of full scholarships for eligible participants.

No payment is required to apply. Simply complete the free registration form, and our team will review your application. If selected, you will be awarded a full scholarship and will be able to participate in the course free of charge.

🔗 Register here:
https://hikmat-ins.com/the-prophet-muhammad-course/

As the number of scholarships is limited, we encourage you to register as soon as possible.

Deadline: 31 July, 2026

 

 

 

 

6. The Great Commentaries on the Holy Qur’an Project by Fons Vitae & Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought. NOW AVAILABLE in PDF & eBook formats: Up until now, these fundamental tafasir texts have remained out of reach for many English speaking Muslims (and non-Muslims). Among the most important sources for understanding the Qur’an are the tafsir works, commentaries on the Qur’an, which help to properly explain and contextualise the Revelation.

https://fonsvitae.com/product-category/islam/quran/

 

 

 

 

 

7. Iran in Context Podcast Series: First Two Episodes Now Available

The first two episodes of the Iran in Context podcast series are now available to listen to.

 

 

 

 

 

8. Needs that Bind: Materializing Nationality in Post-Ottoman Regimes

Orçun Can Okan

Needs That Bind reconsiders the dismantling of the Ottoman Empire and the construction of new regimes in the decade after World War I, to understand the consequential connections that remained among the new republican regime in Turkey and neighbouring French and British Mandates in Syria-Lebanon and Iraq.

Read more

 

 

 

 

 

9. Visiting Professorship in the Political Economy of the Middle East

American University of Beirut (AUB)

The position is open rank, and candidates at the Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor level are welcome to apply. We encourage applications from scholars trained in political science, economics or international affairs, with a specialization in Political Economy, Peace Studies, State-Building, and Post-Conflict Reconstruction with demonstrated policy professional experience in the Middle East with and particularly the Levant/Mashriq.

Deadline | Review of applications to continue until position is filled
More information

 

 

 

 

 

10. PhD in Social Anthropology with a Focus on Yemen

Austria Academy of Science (OeAW)

This is a part-time position, 30 hours per week, for a duration of 48 months (4 years), starting 1 December 2026. This position is part of the ERC Advanced Grant Project “Ideology in Context: An Agential Approach to the Study of Houthism (IDEO-YEMEN)” led by Dr. Marieke Brandt. Further information on the project is available here. We invite applications for a doctoral position focusing on the theme “Media Expressions and Rituals of Ideology”.

Deadline | 31 July 2026
More information

 

 

 

 

 

11. Lecturer in Politics and International Relations 

University of Winchester

The Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences is seeking to appoint a Lecturer to contribute to our teaching and research in Politics and International Relations. You will have specialist knowledge and expertise in Middle East and North African Politics, and/or in Global Political Economy. Candidates who can contribute to teaching across undergraduate and postgraduate curriculum in the faculty’s social sciences programmes are encouraged to apply.

Deadline | 4 August 2026
More information

 

 

 

 

 

12. Call for Papers | Special Issue on the Kurdish Diaspora

This special issue aims to explore the diaspora’s multifaceted role in contemporary conflict transformation, peacebuilding, and dialogue. We are specifically seeking to examine how these transnational communities navigate the tension between their roles as advocates for peace and their involvement in the polarizing dynamics of homeland politics.

Deadline | 15 August 2026
More information

 

 

 

 

 

13. Call for Papers | Cooperation and Conflict Special Issue Proposal (2028)

The proposed issue, “Cartographies of Dispossession: War, Statecraft, and Internal Displacement in the Middle East,” seeks to shift the International Relations (IR) discourse away from viewing internal displacement merely as a humanitarian tragedy. Instead, the issue aims to rigorously theorize displacement as a deliberate instrument of statecraft and a foundational component of modern Middle Eastern security and military architecture.

Deadline | 15 August 2026
More information

 

 

 

 

 

14. Fellowships (4-10 Months) for Early Career Researchers at the “Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies (FRIAS)”, University of Freiburg, Germany

Qualification: PhD plus a maximum of eight years of post-doctoral experience. – 4 peer-reviewed pub-lications since 1 January 2022. – At least six months’ research or study experience at academic insti-tution(s) in a country different from the country of their first academic degree. – Fellowships will be awarded to individuals with challenging and innovative research projects of top academic quality through a highly competitive, strictly merit-based selection process.

Deadline for applications: 18 September 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/3hk6ysy9

 

 

 

 

 

15. Fellowships (3-8 Months) for Senior Researchers at the “Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies (FRIAS)”, University of Freiburg, Germany

Qualification: PhD plus a maximum of eight years of post-doctoral experience. – 10 peer-reviewed publications since 1 January 2020. – At least six months’ research or study experience at academic institution(s) in a country different from the country of their first academic degree. – Fellowships will be awarded to individuals with challenging and innovative research projects of top academic quality through a highly competitive, strictly merit-based selection process.

Deadline for applications: 18 September 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/msr679s3

 

 

 

 

 

16. Chargé de mission (directeur scientifique), Institut français du Proche-Orient, Antenne de Beyrouth, Liban

Qualification : Titulaire d’un doctorat d’un établissement d’enseignement supérieur français ou d’un autre pays de l’Union européenne à la date de la candidature. – Expérience de recherche dans le monde arabe. – Expérience de pilotage de la recherche. – Maîtrise de l’anglais, de la langue arabe littérale et d’un dialecte du Proche-Orient (équivalent C2).

Date limite de candidature : 20 aout 2026. Information : https://tinyurl.com/yk4wx6p4

 

 

 

 

 

17. Chargé de mission (chercheur), Institut Français du Proche-Orient, Antenne de Jerusalem

Qualification : Titulaire d’un doctorat d’un établissement d’enseignement supérieur français ou d’un autre pays de l’Union européenne à la date de la candidature. – Maîtrise de l’anglais, de la langue arabe littérale et d’un dialecte du Proche-Orient. – Lorsque le français n’est pas la langue maternelle du candidat, une certification C2 du cadre européen commun de référence pour les langues (CECRL) est requise. – La connaissance de la région constituerait un atout.

Date limite de candidature : 20 aout 2026. Information : https://tinyurl.com/9edcpwds

 

 

 

 

 

18. Assistant Professor for Law, Politics, and Public Discourse (Focus MENA), Department of Rhetoric, University of California Berkeley

The position is open to applicants whose research and teaching critically engage with the rhetoric and traditions of politics and political thought, legal thought, legal history, law & humanities, and/or sociole-gal studies. The position is open in terms of specialization, historical period, and geographical area. We especially welcome candidates whose research in law and/or politics contributes to the Department’s historical and existing strengths in aesthetics, gender and sexuality, religion, science and technology, and the environment.

Deadline for applications: 28 September 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/6y8s7cm3

 

 

19. Assistant Professor in Islamic Studies, Department of Religious Studies, Stanford University

We seek candidates specializing in pre-modern Islam; regional focus and disciplinary approach are open. A PhD is required at the time of appointment. They must demonstrate substantial evidence of creativity and excellence in research and scholarship, engagement with the broader concerns, theories, and methodologies of Religious Studies, and dedication to teaching and advising students at both the graduate and undergraduate levels.

Deadline for applications: 26 September 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/mrm2etm6

 

 

 

 

 

20. Appel à projets 2026 « Islam et société » (Bureau central des cultes du ministère de l’Intéri-eur)

L’appel à projets 2026 ouvre les candidatures à trois types de financement : les projets postdoctoraux, les bourses de fin de thèse et l’appui à manifestations scientifiques et projets de recherche collectifs, pouvant notamment prendre la forme d’une enquête de terrain, d’un colloque, d’un séminaire fermé ou encore d’une traduction d’ouvrage.

Date limite de candidature : 7 septembre 2026. Information : https://tinyurl.com/kk57yb9sl

 

 

 

 

 

21. Oman Research Grant (3 Months) for Visiting Research Fellowships at the Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient (ZMO), Berlin, in Fields Related to Omani Studies

We are seeking to attract outstanding postdoctoral scholars at junior or senior levels of their career who are engaged in projects in research fields related to Omani Studies.

Deadline for applications: 10 September 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/3zh4hc36

 

 

 

 

 

22. “3rd Wadjih F. al-Hamwi Prize for the Best First Book in Mediterranean Studies” Announced by the Mediterranean Seminar/CU Mediterranean Studies Group

The Prize covers scholarly and trade publications published from 2024 to 2026 inclusive. The commit-tee is most interested in books that break new ground conceptually or methodologically, are compara-tive and/or interdisciplinary, that emphasize intercultural/interregional/inter-religious contact. Books treating any period will be considered, and entries from any of the relevant Humanities and Social Sciences disciplines are welcome.

Deadline for applications: 31 December 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/3cvdjnm8

 

 

 

 

 

23. ONLINE New Article: “Free Will in the Eyes of Muslims and Christians” by Ameni Mehrez and Edouard Machery, PNAS Nexus, Vol. 5, Issue 6, 11 June 2026, 13 Pages

We find that despite theological differences among Christian denominations, Christians have similar attitudes in both abstract and concrete contexts, suggesting that lay religious experience is not fully penetrated by theological differences. Muslims differ from Christians: In agreement with the “Qur’an,” they embrace both free will and divine sovereignty when answering abstract questions, but they deem-phasize free will when making concrete judgments.

View: https://tinyurl.com/4ztws4b7

 

 

 

 

 

24. New Book: “From Cairo to Jerusalem and Beyond: Studies of the Later Islamic Middle Period in Honor of Linda Stevens Northrup” Edited by Mustafa Banister and Fadi Ragheb, Brill, 8 June 2026, 574 Pages

Information: https://tinyurl.com/2s9b68fe

 

 

 

 

 

25. The Black Sea and British Foreign Policy; Sir Sidney Smith and George Monro Missions and Reports

“The Seven Years’ War created a new balance of power in European and global politics. As a result of these developments, England paid greater attention to Eastern Europe, particularly the Black Sea region. Consequently, London sought to strengthen the Ottoman Empire both politically and militarily in response to Russian expansion. In addition, the British Foreign Office dispatched military experts and agents such as George Frederick Koehler, Sir Sidney Smith, and George Monro to the region.

Information: https://tinyurl.com/2xrtjkap

 

A Medinese scholar in Injuid Shiraz: Shams al-Dīn al-Zarandī and his theorisation of Sunni imamophilism

1.‘Mecca reoriented: alms, rice, and the marketplace’

J Meloy

JRAS, 2026

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/abs/mecca-reoriented-alms-rice-and-the-marketplace/EA1AE76FFF00C28803416F1C270C9BCE?utm_source=SFMC&utm_medium=email&utm_content=Article&utm_campaign=New%20Cambridge%20Alert%20-%20Articles&WT.mc_id=New%20Cambridge%20Alert%20-%20Articles

 

 

 

 

 

2. The Department of Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures at the University of Washington calls for submissions for the third cycle of the Mo Habib Translation Prize in Persian Literature. 

Please find the details here.

Closing date (extended deadline): 31 December,  2026

 

 

 

 

 

3. Exquisite Things and Strange Wonders: In Defense of Persian Poetry

A critical edition and translation of Amir Khusraw Dihlavi’s Dībācha-yi dīvān-i ghurrat al-kamāl (Preface to the Full Moon of Perfection).

Edited and translated by Alyssa Gabbay

Written in 1294 as the introduction to a book of poetry, the Dībācha-yi dīvān-i ghurrat al-kamāl became a lauded work in its own right. Its author, Amir Khusraw Dihlavi (1253–1325), was a poet, historian, courtier, Sufi, and musician whose influence still resonates. In this extraordinary text, he defends poetry against its critics, especially religious scholars, while offering a bold system for understanding its forms and for mastering the art. Blending manifesto and autobiography, Khusraw recounts personal struggles and triumphs in a voice by turns aggrieved, proud, and humble yet always commanding.

More than a defense of poetry, the work makes audacious claims about its cultural power and about the central place of Persian poets in India. One of the earliest examples of literary criticism in Persian, it challenges assumptions about poetry, religion, and authority while opening a window onto the world of the Delhi Sultanate. Presented here in a new English translation with the Persian text in the Naskh script, Exquisite Things and Strange Wonders offers readers a vivid portrait of a poet who helped define the literary and intellectual landscape of his time.

More information at the Harvard University webpage here.

 

 

 

 

4. Classical Arabic Texts and the Pre-Modern Islamic Rhetorical Tradition: Rethinking the Qur’an and Early Arabic Poetry as Cultural Foundations”

The Open-access journal Religions (ISSN 2077-1444), has a special issue entitled “Classical Arabic Texts and the Pre-Modern Islamic Rhetorical Tradition: Rethinking the Qur’an and Early Arabic Poetry as Cultural Foundations.”

This collection brings together nine studies exploring the intricate relationship between the Qur’an and early Arabic poetry as foundational texts of Arabic-Islamic culture. The contributions examine a wide range of topics, including figurative imagery and religious discourse in pre-Islamic and early Islamic poetry, the rhetorical transformation of poetic motifs in the Qur’an, word pairs and antithesis as Qur’anic rhetorical devices, representations of Luqmān in Late Antiquity, the literary artistry of Sūrat Yūsuf, and comparative analyses of imagery shared between the Muʿallaqāt and the Qur’anic text.

Together, these studies offer fresh perspectives on how the pre-modern Islamic rhetorical tradition emerged from, engaged with, and reshaped the poetic heritage of early Arabia, inviting us to rethink both corpora as interconnected cultural foundations rather than isolated traditions.

All articles are open access and freely available at:
https://www.mdpi.com/journal/religions/special_issues/91U75R50H9

 

 

 

 

 

5. Registration Now Open — 2026 Harvard Islamic Finance Conference
As-salamualaikum. On behalf of the organizing committee, we are pleased to announce that registration is now open for the 2026 Harvard Islamic Finance Conference, which will be held on September 25-26, 2026, at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Now in its 29th year, the Harvard Islamic Finance Conference is the world’s longest-running university conference dedicated to Islamic finance. Since 1997, it has brought together leading scholars, industry professionals, policymakers, entrepreneurs, and students to discuss the most important developments shaping the industry.

This year’s theme, Global Finance in Transition: Stability, Pluralism, and the Role of Islamic Finance, will explore how evolving global markets, technological innovation, and values-driven leadership are reshaping the future of finance. Conference sessions will cover topics including Islamic finance fundamentals, artificial intelligence and blockchain, entrepreneurship, ethical and values-based investing, global market developments, and the future of higher education.

We warmly invite you to join us for two days of thought-provoking discussions, networking, and collaboration with distinguished speakers and participants from around the world.

Register and learn more: https://ifcharvard.org/

 

 

 

 

6. Congratulations to Rob Gleave

New Fellow of the British Academy

https://www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/fellows/profiles/robert-gleave-fba/

1. Lecture Series on Chinese Muslims by Marie-Paule Hille

The Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, the University of Tokyo, is hosting a two-part lecture series by Dr. Marie-Paule Hille on July 28, 2026.

The lectures will be held in a hybrid format, combining in-person and online participation. The lecture titles are:

Lecture 1: The Golden Age of a Chinese Sufi Socio-Economic Organisation. From Local Economic History to Interconnected Networks (19th–21st Centuries)

Lecture 2: Writing and Telling Miracles: Esotericism in Xidaotang Hagiographic Culture between Orality and Textuality (Gansu, 1910s–1950s–1980s)

For further details, please visit: https://www.ioc.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/news/news_en20260717160813/

 

 

 

 

2. CFP: Yale/Routledge Volume: Culture, Law and Administration (Yale WHCWG) – August 1, 2026

A spot for an essay (5000-7000 words) just opened in an already commissioned volume (under contract with Routledge). Please see the CFP below. You are welcome to submit a 400-words-abstract and a CV until August 1, 2026. The final paper will be due March 29, 2027. We in particular welcome submissions on ottoman or chinese law/administration. We also welcome submissions that treat hybridity or the transfer of institutions or practices in legal or governemental systems.

Call for Abstracts / Papers: The Yale Whitney Humanities Center Working Group “Cultural Foundations of Law and Public Administration“ publishes an edited volume on Cultures of Good Legislation / Good Administration that will address different cultural contexts (West/Global South/Asia). A hybrid symposium at Yale is also intended to foster the dialogue between the contributors.

The group is mainly interested in theoretical inquiries or empirical case studies of good legislation / good governance in a cultural or decolonized context.

We are in particular looking for essays that inquire in how cultural factors influence governance and legislation. We are also looking for essays that investigate how cultural factors have impacted legislation or cultures of administration, how they limit an evolution of legislative or administrative culture, or how they create distinct advantages for a particular legal or administrative culture.

We are also looking for essays investigating how the cultural predetermination of legislation or administration limits the transferability of legislative or administrative frameworks between different legislative or administrative cultures, in particular as part of the export of Western ideas and institutions in a globalized world (from human rights to administrative principles).

Welcome are both traditional and postcolonial perspectives. We in particular seek for papers that inquire how colonial legal or administrative concepts, institutions or practices embedded in the legislative or administrative frameworks of former colonies create challenges nowadays due to the cultural differences of the colliding legislative or administrative cultures, or how they create advantages.

We welcome general and more theoretical essay, but we are in particular looking for case studies that deal with a specific country or a specific cultural legislative or administrative challenge.

The reason for our inquiry is to understand the cultural determination of legal and administrative cultures. At the same time, we aim at developing a foundation for non-western and non-hegemonial models of Good Legislation and Good Administration.

Topics might include
Non-Western principles of good legislation

• Non-Western principles of good administration
• The principles and discontents of colonial legislation
• The discontents of colonial administration
• The cultural pre-determination of legislation, its potential and discontents
• The cultural pre-determination of administration, its potential and discontents
• The language of good legislation
• Decolonizing good legislation
• Decolonizing good administrative legislation
• Decolonizing good administration
• Decolonizing the language of good legislation
• Other empirical studies on countries of the Global South or Asia on cultural topics pertaining

to good legislation or administration.

• Cultural aspects of legal translation.
• Decolonizing legal translation
• Cultural aspects of Environmental Legislation/Politics & of Sustainable Development

Please submit a four-line abstract, a brief bio including a list of relevant publications, and a 300-400 word extended abstract  to: culturalfoundations@outlook.de

Contact Email

culturalfoundations@outlook.de

 

 

 

 

 

3. Workshop “Small Worlds in a Late Medieval Megalopolis: Patronal, Economic, and Charitable Networks in Constantinople, c. 1261-1341” as Part of the “Mediterranean Seminar 2026 Fall Workshop: The Urban Environment”, Barcelona, 18-19 September 2026

Roman and Helleno-Persian antiquity endowed the Mediterranean with a highly-developed urban character which survived the crises of Late Antiquity and flourished during the medieval revival (characterized by the expansion of Islam, the stabilization of Byzantium, and the emergence of Frankish power).

Deadline for registration: 8 September 2026. Information and program: https://tinyurl.com/47w4fbst

 

 

 

 

 

4. PraeDoc (4 Years) in Social Anthropology with a Focus on Yemen, Austrian Academy of Sciences (OeAW), Vienna

Qualification: MA in Anthropology, obtained within the last seven years. – Excellent knowledge of English and Arabic, including the ability to work with a wide range of Arabic-language materials. – Strong interest in media and visual anthropology as well as in theoretical debates in anthropology and related disciplines. – Experience with or a strong interest in digital/remote fieldwork methodologies.

Deadline for applications: 31 July 2026. Information: https://oeawnr.onlyfy.jobs/de/job/nvpoi5bi

 

 

 

 

 

5. Postdoc Position (2 Years) in Renaissance Intellectual History and Byzantine-Humanist Knowledge Transfer, University of Southern Denmark, Odense

Qualifications: PhD in Classics, Medieval or Renaissance Studies, Intellectual History, Byzantine Studies, Latin/Greek Philology, or a closely related field. – Documented expertise in both Ancient Greek and Latin. – Strong background in rhetorical theory, or conceptual history. – Experience working with philological, historical, or manuscript-based research. – Excellent written and spoken English.

Deadline for applications: 21 September 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/yrf7kxxf

 

 

 

 

 

6. Visiting Assistant Professor (2 Years) of Arabic Studies, Williams College

Specialization is open, with Ph.D. required by the beginning of the appointment. Excellent training and experience teaching all levels of Arabic language to non-native speakers are essential. We are particu-larly interested in candidates who have a record of success in teaching Arabic.

Review of applications will begin on 20 July 2026 and will continue until the position is filled. Information: https://apply.interfolio.com/188876

 

 

 

 

 

7. Petition Against Funding Cuts to the Cooperation Programmes with Global South Universities (Focus MENA) of the “German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)”

The “Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development” in Berlin plans to cut the funds for the DAAD’s programmes for university cooperation with the Global South. A petition has now been submitted to stop these cuts; if enough signatures are collected, this will lead to a parliamentary hearing (see below in German, but DeepL will help). Signing up is easy. Feel welcome to sign and share.

Deadline for signing: 18 August 2026. Download of the petition: https://tinyurl.com/2x6hhkw8

 

 

 

 

 

8. 2026 Best Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Scholars Paper Award in Druze Studies

Papers should present original research and demonstrate analytical rigor and engagement with relevant scholarship. – Submissions should follow academic standards appropriate to the author’s discipline. – Papers may be submitted in English or Arabic. – Papers are expected to be of 6,000 to 10,000 words, inclusive of notes and references.

Deadline for submissions: 30 July 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/43y7skfp

 

 

 

 

9. Eighth International Winter School: “Migrant Communities in an Age of Resurgent Nativism: Rethinking the Questions of Citizenship and Belonging”, Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies, Doha, Qatar, 9-14 January 2027

IWS8 aims to engage theoretical and empirical research exploring contemporary transformations in migration, citizenship, and belonging in the context of intensifying nativist politics, restrictive migration governance, and shifting boundaries of inclusion and exclusion across diverse global contexts. We invite submissions from advanced PhD candidates and early career scholars from various social sciences and humanities disciplines worldwide. Accommodation is provided and funding for travel ex-penses is available.

Deadline for applications: 1 August 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/2z3kfhzv

 

 

 

 

 

10. Articles on “Literature and the Body: Relations Between Being and Writing” for a Special Issue of “Nesir: Journal of Literary Studies”

This issue seeks to reconsider how literature translates bodily experience into writing and visibility, and how the body, in turn, discloses and shapes literary meaning. It welcomes essays that conceive literature as an ontological threshold, poised between meaning and sensation, writing and life, word and world.

Deadline for submissions: 1 August 2026. Information: https://tinyurl.com/yw2mxhjy

 

 

 

 

11. New Book “Modern Standard Arabic Grammar, Revised and Updated – A Comprehensive Reference and Guide” by Mohammad T. Alhawary, AUC Press, 7 July 2026, 430 Pages

This comprehensive guide to Arabic grammar is an essential resource for the first five years of language learning and beyond, now in a revised edition. Thorough and carefully organized, this book covers all the basic structures and grammar that students need for the first five years of learning Modern Standard Arabic, from beginner through to advanced proficiency levels.

Information: https://aucpress.com/9781649034038/