Shii News – Academic Items

1.PhD Position in International Relations, Project “Unbounding the Arab World: Anti-Colonial Geopolitics, Transnational Territorial Imaginations and Post-Imperial Worldmaking, c. 1908-1977”, University of Groningen

Qualifications: Master’s degree in International Relations, Middle Eastern Studies, Political Science, History, or related fields; interest in anti-colonial geopolitics, pan-movements, and territorial imaginations in/of the Arab World; research experience or knowledge of intellectual history; proficiency in English and preferably Arabic or other relevant regional languages.

Deadline for applications: 30 April 2025. Information: https://karimeltaki.com/phd-position-in-international-relations/

 

 

 

 

 

2. ONLINE Mediterranean Studies Summer Skills Seminar: “Reading Arabic Manuscripts”, 23-26 June 2025

This seminar will provide participants with the paleographical tools and skills to read premodern handwritten Arabic texts with greater speed and accuracy. Intensive practice sessions, both prepared and impromptu, will be paired with readings in the major reference works in English (and occasionally other modern languages).

Deadline for applications: 28 April 2025.

Information: https://www.mediterraneanseminar.org/overview-reading-arabic-manuscripts-2025

 

 

 

 

 

3. Articles for “Indonesian Journal of Religion, Spirituality and Humanity”, State Islamic University (UIN) Salatiga, Indonesia

IJORESH is committed to studying the empirical dynamics of Abrahamic religions in the Asian context, namely Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

Submission deadline: 30 May 2025. Information: https://ejournal.uinsalatiga.ac.id/index.php/ijoresh/index

 

 

 

 

4. Hybrid – Columbia University: Arabic Studies Seminars Chiara Fontana 3/27 9th-century Baghdad’s Mirabilia: Artisans and Literati

Upcoming meeting with Professor Chiara Fontana on Thursday (3/27) at 7pm EST in Faculty House.

The talk is titled 9th-century Baghdad’s Mirabilia: Artisans and Literati. Please note that due to new regulations, non CUID holders will not be allowed into Faculty House without prior notice. If you intend to be present in-person and do not have a Columbia ID, please RSVP ASAP. If we don’t receive your RSVP we will not be able to let you in. You should receive a QR code before Wednesday morning–if not, please reply to this message.  The talk will be live streamed here on ZOOM for guests who can’t make it in person.

We will begin at 7:00 pm. If you would like to join the speaker for dinner at 6:00 pm at Faculty House please RSVP to the seminar’s rapporteur (rma2152@columbia.edu). The cost of dinners is $30, payable via card or check. Attendees who are fasting may take their dinner into the seminar room.

Abstract:

The early rhetorical treatises, as testing grounds for emerging aesthetic concepts, are deeply tied to specific socio-cultural contexts and influence readers’ literary preferences. They invite reflection on the evolution of balāgha (Muslim eloquence) during the Arabic-Islamic classical period, particularly in response to the profound influence of urbanization on literature. This talk, while providing an overview of 9th-century Baghdad’s cultural growth, explores how historical moments of urban development linked to cultural enlightenment could have inspired some authors to develop a new approach to literary writing as the study of the 9th-century rhetorical treatise Kitāb al-tashbīhāt by Ibn Abī ʿAwn (d. 322/934) shows. This innovative approach enabled the Abbasid authors to explore, analyze, and employ their own languages and literary traditions as powerful tools and reflect on new literary styles, models, and perspectives whilst harmonizing a secular, progress-driven mentality with more unorthodox forms of critical thinking.

Join Zoom Meeting

https://columbiauniversity.zoom.us/j/92597500745

 

 

 

 

 

5. Post: Valparaiso University – Visiting Assistant Professor in History

https://www.h-net.org/jobs/job_display.php?id=68667

Closing date:

31 March 2025

 

 

 

 

6. Religion, Politics, and Architecture in Iran

MESA Global Academy Event, organized by the UCLA Center for Near Eastern Studies

A panel featuring Leyla Hajimehditajer (Independent Scholar), Maryam Heydarkhani (Visiting Researcher, Center for Arabic Language and Muslim Cultures, University of Calgary), and Zahra Khoshk Jan (Visiting Assistant Professor of Political Sociology, University of Chicago)

Moderator: Nayareh Tohidi (Professor Emerita, Cal State Northridge)

Wednesday, May 7, 2025

1:00 PM – 2:30 PM PST

Online

https://www.international.ucla.edu/cnes/event/17152

 

Posted in: Academic items