Shii News – Academic Items

1.The Department of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Edinburgh announces ESRC MSc/PhD studentships commencing September, 2017.

We invite applications from those who meet EU/UK eligibility criteria for our various 2+3, 1+3 (One and two-year MSc + PhD) programmes and for our 3-year PhDs.

The deadline for completed submissions/applications is 20 January, 2017.

For further information on our various MSc programmes and the application process, contact Professor Andrew Newman, a.newman@ed.ac.uk

For information on eligibility, see http://www.socsciscotland.ac.uk/studentships/eligibility

2. Persian Calligraphy – Nasta`liq

Centre for Iranian Studies, SOAS, London

Monday 16 January – Monday 27 March 2017
MBI Al Jaber Seminar Room, MBI Al Jaber Building
21 Russell Square, London WC1B 5EA

This ten-week course is suitable for all levels, from beginners to advanced. Although, previous knowledge of Persian language is not necessary for beginners, familiarity with the alphabets is an advantage. This is an exercise-based course on the writing techniques of the Nasta’liq script which is constantly engaged with Persian language and literature. You will also learn about the theory and history of Islamic calligraphy. The course will start with a general introduction to most Islamic calligraphy styles and traditional tools and materials. The letters’ shapes as the basic elements in calligraphy will be explored in detail through the course and advanced compositions and juxtaposition of forms will be covered at elementary and upper levels.

The course is held every Monday 6:30-8:30pm at the London Middle East Institute from 16 Jan – 27 March 2017.

See: http://us10.campaign-archive1.com/?u=60db293bb683b57ee889a9d54&id=420bd4a103&e=40ac9d62d2

3. CALL FOR PAPERS: BRISMES Annual Conference 2017

Movement and Migration in the Middle East: People and Ideas in Flux

IMES, University of Edinburgh | 5-7 July 2017

In collaboration with Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Edinburgh, the British Society for Middle Eastern Studies invites proposals for its 2017 Annual Conference on the theme of ‘Movement and Migration in the Middle East: People and Ideas in Flux’.

We particularly encourage proposals for papers and panels that take up the theme in innovative ways, exploring not only migration of people but movement and exchanges in relation to ideas, culture, language, borders, and social and political groups. In addition, we warmly invite proposals on any topic related to Middle Eastern Studies, regardless of their fit with the conference’s main theme.

The deadline for paper and panel proposals is 17.00 GMT, 27 January 2017. Please apply via the conference website, at http://www.brismes.ac.uk/conference/ More information at: http://www.brismes.ac.uk/conference/cfp2017/

4. Open Access materials:

Open Access Resources from ISAM – Center for Islamic Studies [Turkey]
ISAM – Center for Islamic Studies makes available some very useful databases on their library’s website: http://www.isam.org.tr/index.cfm?fuseaction=objects2.detail_content&cid=907&cat_id=5

Of particular importance are:

Salnames: http://isamveri.org/?url=salname
Ottoman articles: http://ktp.isam.org.tr/?url=makaleosm/findrecords.php
Ottoman treatises: http://ktp.isam.org.tr/?url=risaleosm

Open Access Manuscript Collection: Sakıp Sabancı Museum’s Arts of Book and Calligraphy Collection

http://www.digitalssm.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/Kitapvehat
“Sabancı University Sakıp Sabancı Museum’s Arts of Book and Calligraphy Collection includes copies of the Koran, prayer books, calligraphic compositions in the kıt’a form, calligraphic albums, calligraphic panels, hilyes, imperial firmans and berats bearing the royal tuğra (imperial cipher) by renowned calligraphers dating from the late 14th to 20th centuries, and calligraphy tools and equipment.”

5. Conference: “Gender and Muslim Spaces: Community and Academic Perspectives”, Muslims in Britain Research Network, University of Leeds, 29 March 2017

The question of gender inclusion among British Muslims is currently a high profile debate. This conference aims to unpack the many facets of this debate from a range of methodological, theoretical and community perspectives.

Deadline for abstracts: 30 January 2017. Information: http://middleorient.com/?p=7960

6. Four Scholarships for Guest Doctoral Students in Sociology, Religious Studies, History, Philosophy or Theology, University of Erfurt

The scholarships start on 1 April and 1 October 2017 and are granted for either 6 or 12 months. Requirements are: knowledge of German, English and other relevant languages; acceptance for the position of doctoral candidate at another university and secured funding of the PhD project from another source; cooperation within in the interdisciplinary context of the Max Weber Center and in particular the Kolleg Research Group.

Deadline for application: 18 December 2016. Information: www.uni-erfurt.de/fileadmin/public-docs/Max-Weber-Kolleg/6-pdfs/kfg/kfg-research-program-2014_17-eng.pdf

7. Pears Foundation PhD Scholarships at the Middle East and North Africa Centre, University of Sussex (MENACS)

These scholarships provide full funding for UK/EU or International students whose research falls into one of the Centre’s main areas of study: Middle Eastern, Israeli and North African Studies. There are no restrictions as to time period or subject area.

Deadline for application: 26 January 2017. Information: www.sussex.ac.uk/study/phd/fees-and-scholarships/scholarships/view/710

8. Assistant Professor in Middle Eastern History, Seton Hall University, New Jersey

PhD is required; teaching experience and publications focusing on the period since 1800 are advantageous.

Deadline for application: 1 January 2017. Information: http://jobs.shu.edu/mob/cw/en-us/job/492696/assistant-professor-history

9. Master’s Program in Middle Eastern Studies, Stockholm University

This is a two-year interdisciplinary program that provides deepened knowledge of the languages and cultures of the Middle East and North Africa, as well as area studies as a scientific discipline. Bachelor’s degree within the main field of Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures, or equivalent, and knowledge of English are required.

Deadline for application: 15 January 2017. Information: www.su.se/asia/english/middle-eastern-cultures-and-languages/courses-and-programmes/master-s-programme-in-middle-eastern-studies

10. Mellon-Sawyer Postdoctoral Fellowship in Comparative Revolutions 2017-2018

The Mellon Sawyer Seminar at Brandeis University invites applications for a one-year postdoctoral fellowship for 2017-2018. The position will hold the title of Mellon-Sawyer Postdoctoral Fellow in Comparative Revolutions with the rank of Lecturer. The theme for this seminar is “Misplaced Dreams and Forgotten Revolutions: Conceptualizing Twentieth Century Revolutions in Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Middle East.”

Funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the seminar will situate revolutionary movements from Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Middle East in comparative dialogue with one another in order to reconceive revolutionary theories, practices, and programs.

Applications will be received online at https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/8688. Please submit a cover letter, CV, a writing sample of no more than thirty pages, and three letters of recommendation.

The committee will start reviewing applications on January 15, 2017 and will continue until the position is filled. All candidates must have received their Ph.D. after June 30, 2013 and must have finished all requirements for the Ph.D. by September 1, 2017.

If you have any questions, contact Greg Childs (gchilds@brandeis.edu) or Naghmeh Sohrabi (sohrabi@brandeis.edu)

11. LMEI, 4 lectures, January, 2017

A series of four lectures on Four Central Asian Shrines: Islamic Architecture in Society by Robert D. McChesney, Emeritus Professor, Department of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, New York University in which he will examine the architectural development of four major Central Asian shrines found today in Afghanistan and Uzbekistan and relate the development to their social and political contexts.

January 12, 13, 16 and 17

7.00pm, Khalili Lecture Theatre, SOAS, University of London
Russell Square WC1H 0XG

Admission Free – All Welcome

https://www.soas.ac.uk/art/islac/

Posted in: Academic items