Shii News – Academic Items
1.The University of Edinburgh – Teaching Fellow in Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies Vacancy
https://elxw.fa.em3.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/CX_1001/job/12516
Closing date: 17/06/2025, 23:59
2. Arash Ghajarjazi, Remembering ʿUmar Khayyām: Episodes of Unbelief in the Reception Histories of Persian Quatrains, Berlin: De Gruyter, 2025. (see https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783111626017/html?srsltid=AfmBOooksJSvTLcblM9WuJCSimQksQd4Db9ec9KmswUfRrHnM1ic4M8a and https://beyondsharia.nl/2025/05/08/book-talk-remembering-khayyam-in-modern-iran/)
3. Kings and Dervishes
Sufi World Renunciation and the Symbolism of Kingship in the Persianate World
S A Arjomand
University of California Press, 2025
https://www.ucpress.edu/books/kings-and-dervishes/hardcover#table-of-contents
4. The Department of Near Eastern and South Asian Languages and Cultures (NESA) at The Ohio State University is hiring a full-time lecturer (non-tenure track) in Arabic culture for the 2025-2026 academic year. This is a one-year position with the possibility of renewal. The position will involve teaching eight (8) courses in Arabic culture, literature, and/or language in-person, with the possibility of some courses online. Required: Master’s degree or PhD in Arabic language or a related field. Preference will be given to applicants who are highly proficient in both Arabic and English; have demonstrated excellence in teaching Arabic culture, literature, and/or language courses at the college level; and have experience using technology to enhance undergraduate learning.
For more information: https://osu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/OSUCareers/job/Columbus-Campus/Lecturer-in-Arabic_R128740-1
5. The American University of Beirut (AUB) Press announced the latest addition to the Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Series on Arabic and Islamic Texts and Studies: a groundbreaking study titled Poetry and Spiritual Insights: A Study and Edition of Kitāb al-Shawāhid wa-l-Amthālby Abū Naṣr al-Qushayrī (d. 514/1120), presented by Professors Bilal Orfali, Ramzi Baalbaki, and Francesco Chiabotti.
Based on the Ayasofya 4128 manuscript from Turkey, this volume illuminates Qushayrī’s influential work, renowned for embedding Sufi teachings within the framework of adab—a synthesis of literary and ethical traditions—appealing to scholars and general audiences alike.
This publication brings to light the role of Kitab al-Shawāhid wa-l-Amthāl in weaving Sufism into the cultural and scholarly landscape of medieval Islam. Qushayrī’s innovative use of both oral and written forms to communicate Sufi doctrines, blending poetry with accessible language, effectively “translated” complex mystical concepts for the literati and religious scholars of his time. “This work, which took over a decade to complete, offers a crucial lens on Sufi poetry’s unique role in bridging the mystical and the literary,” shared Orfali.
Through Kitab al-Shawāhid, readers are invited to explore how Sufi teachings evolved within the sophisticated intellectual society of Nishapur, enriching the tradition’s adaptability and resonance across audiences. Baalbaki underscores the value of publishing Arabic manuscripts as “an essential contribution to preserving the textual heritage of Islamic culture,” while Chiabotti highlights Kitab al-Shawāhid‘s significance within Sufism, “a spiritual tradition with profound global impact and relevance.”
The authors’ meticulous study of Kitab al-Shawāhid not only provides an essential resource for understanding the dynamics of language, spirituality, and adaptation in medieval Islamic society but also advances scholarly discourse on the enduring legacy of Sufi poetry within Islamic culture.
The book will be launched during the 66th Beirut Arab International Book Fair during May 2025. For further details on this volume and other titles in the Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Series, please visit the AUB Press official website.
To purchase the book, check:
www.aub.edu.lb/aubpress/Pages/shawahid.aspx
6. Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowships MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2025 | Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
in the School of Modern Languages & Cultures, Durham University
The School of Modern Languages & Cultures at Durham University invites expressions of interest from outstanding candidates who wish to apply for a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship through Durham University.
Modern Languages and Cultures at Durham gathers together our eight language areas (Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Hispanic Studies, Italian, Japanese and Russian) and Translation Studies, working within and across these to enable interdisciplinary investigations. Four areas of particular strength characterise our research activities: Medieval and Early Modern Studies;
Digital, Environmental and Medical Humanities; Translation; Visual and Performance Studies. We welcome enquiries from eligible candidates particularly those related to the key research themes in the department (https://www.durham.ac.uk/departments/academic/modern-languages-cultures/research/groups/ ), or to relevant Research Centres and Institutes (https://www.durham.ac.uk/departments/academic/modern-languages-cultures/research/centres-institutes/).
Candidates are invited to contact a prospective mentor in the School in the first instance (https://www.durham.ac.uk/departments/academic/modern-languages-cultures/about-us/our-people/#d.en.466981), with an up-to-date CV and summary of their research proposal (1 A4 page max) by 13 June 2025. If the mentor agrees to support your application, candidates will be supported through an internal review process ahead of submission to the external funder by 10 September 2025.
Further information, including details of eligibility criteria, can be found at: https://marie-sklodowska-curie-actions.ec.europa.eu/actions/how-to-apply
For any informal enquiries, please contact Dr Amaleena Damlé at amaleena.damle@durham.ac.uk
7. The Book of Sana’a
Edited by Laura Kasinof
Comma Press, 2025
https://commapress.co.uk/books/the-book-of-sanaa
8. The editorial board of MELA Notes, the official journal of the Middle East Librarians Association (MELA), invites submissions for a special issue dedicated to exploring the history and legacy of pioneer libraries and archives, as well as the contributions of influential librarians and bibliographers in the field of Middle East Studies.
This issue seeks to illuminate the foundational roles these institutions and individuals have played in shaping scholarship, preserving cultural heritage, and supporting research across the region.
We seek original short articles and entries (minimum 3,000 words) that examine the development, impact, and historical significance of libraries, archives, librarians, and bibliographers across the Middle East. Submissions may focus on:
- Underrepresented or lesser-known research libraries and archives that have contributed to local or regional scholarship, as well as the broader field of Middle East Studies
- Major national or institutional libraries and archives that have significantly influenced academic research, public knowledge, or cultural preservation
- Institutions notable for their stewardship of rare manuscripts, archival collections, or unique primary sources
- Case studies of libraries and archives that have played pivotal roles in the development of the field of Middle East Studie, bibliographic innovation, or international scholarly collaboration
- Biographical or critical studies of influential librarians, bibliographers, or information professionals whose work shaped library collections, research practices, or bibliographic knowledge in the field of Middle East Studies
We welcome interdisciplinary approaches and encourage contributions from scholars, librarians, archivists, and practitioners engaged in Middle Eastern studies, library and information science, archival studies, manuscript studies, and related fields.
Submission Guidelines
- Length: Submissions must be a minimum of 3,000 words
- Language: Submissions must be in English
- Formatting: Please adhere to the journal’s Guidelines for Contributors, which include instructions on formatting, transliteration, and citation style
- Peer Review: All short articles and entries will undergo double-anonymous peer review
- License: Accepted pieces will be published under a CC BY 4.0 license
Important Dates
- Submission of Abstracts Deadline: Monday, June 30, 2025
- Submission of Full Short Articles and Entries Deadline: Monday, August 11, 2025
Please submit your abstract and, later, your manuscript through the MELA Notes submission portal.
Ensure that your final submission includes your name, institutional affiliation, and current mailing address at the conclusion of the text, if you expect to receive offprints.
For inquiries or further information, please contact:
Farshad Sonboldel,
Editor-in-Chief, MELA Notes
University of California, San Diego Library
Email: fsonboldel@ucsd.edu
9. Yale Library seeks a highly collaborative, knowledgeable, and user-centered Catalog/Metadata Librarian to join the Bibliographic Description Unit within Special Collections Technical Services, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
Reporting to the Associate Director of the Bibliographic Description Unit, the Catalog/Metadata Librarian creates, enhances, and maintains original and complex bibliographic and authority records for a wide range of special collections materials in various formats. They may plan, direct, and review the work of cataloging assistants and/or student assistants and provide project management for cataloging and metadata projects. The incumbent will collaborate closely with colleagues across functional units and throughout special collections and the Library in support of the sustainable stewardship and discovery of special collections materials.
Required Skill/Ability 1:
Excellent reading and writing knowledge of Arabic.
Preferred Education, Experience and Skills:
Fluency in Persian, Coptic, Syriac, Turkish, or Armenian. Academic training in Islamic studies or Middle Eastern studies. Experience with Arabic script paleography. Special collections cataloging experience according to AACR2, RDA, and/or Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials (DCRM). Record of involvement or desire to engage with special collections and other cataloging communities.
Questions? Please contact Michelle Al-Ferzly: michelle.alferzly@yale.edu
Curator, Yale Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library
10. Summer School on Digital Humanities for Islamic Studies
Date: September 1, 2025 – September 4, 2025
Location: Switzerland
Subject Fields: Digital Humanities, Islamic History / Studies
The University of Bern is pleased to host a four-day summer school on Digital Humanities for Islamic Studies, designed for early-career researchers working with Arabic-script materials. This course provides a unique opportunity to gain hands-on experience with digital tools and methodologies, engage in scholarly exchange, and explore the latest developments in the field.
The program will feature expert-led sessions by renowned scholars in the field:
- Alicia González Martínez (University of Hamburg)
- Maxim G. Romanov (University of Hamburg)
- Peter Verkinderen (Aga Khan University, London)
Participants will explore key topics such as text digitization, computational analysis, data modeling, and digital corpora, with a focus on Islamic and Arabic-script historical sources.
Application Process
Due to the practical nature of the sessions, on-site participation is limited to 20 participants. Interested candidates must apply by Friday, June 13, 2025, by submitting the following documents:
Motivation Letter (explaining research interests and how the course aligns with them)
Curriculum Vitae (max. 3 pages, highlighting major achievements)
Additional Supporting Documents (if applicable, indicating previous experience in the field)
Format: All documents must be submitted as a single PDF file named “LastName_Name_Bern_IslamicateDH2025”
Submission: Send your application to Sefer Korkmaz at sefer.korkmaz@unibe.ch
Financial Support
A limited number of (partial) scholarships are available for participants who are unable to secure funding from their institutions. If so, please add a statement in your motivation letter specifying that you are also applying for financial support for the travel costs and not only for admission to the summer school.
Scientific Board
Prof. Tobias Hodel
Prof. Serena Tolino
Additional Information
The final program and reading list will be shared with accepted participants. More details will be available soon on the official webpage: University of Bern Summer Schools (https://www.unibe.ch/studies/programs/summer___winter_schools/index_eng.html)
For inquiries, contact organizers:
Sefer Korkmaz (sefer.korkmaz@unibe.ch)
Ilyes Mechentel (mohamed.mechentel@unibe.ch)
Please, find the flyer in this link: https://networks.h-net.org/system/files/attachments/2025summerschoolislamicateflyerv4-kopyasi.pdf
11. Call for Papers
The AHRC-Funded First International Conference of the Syrian Academics and Researchers’ Network in the UK (SARN UK)
18-19 September 2025 | University of Sussex, Brighton, United Kingdom
The Syrian Academics and Researchers’ Network in the UK (SARN-UK) and the Middle East and North Africa Centre at Sussex (MENACS), in association with SARN UK’s partner, the British Society for Middle Eastern Studies (BRISMES) will co-host SARN UK’s first international conference, which is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC).
We are pleased to announce that our call for papers is now open. In addition to submissions aligned with the conference theme, ‘Rebuilding Syria: Reflections, Innovations and Collaborations’, we welcome papers on a range of topics related to Syrian culture, art, history and politics.
We accept individual as well as co-authored paper proposals.
Please complete this form to submit your proposal by 23.59 (BST) on 20 June 2025.
If you have any queries, please write to Feras Alkabani at f.alkabani@sussex.ac.uk
Conference Themes
Rebuilding Syria: Reflections, Innovations and Collaborations
The collapse of the 54-year Assad dictatorship on 8 December 2024 took the world by surprise. For many Syrians, this was a dream that eventually came true after 14 years of a bloody struggle that left much of the country in ruins.
Yet Syrians continued to work, resist and rebuild. Now more than ever, Syrians need to come together to share, discuss and envisage their future and that of their country.
This interdisciplinary conference invites academics and researchers working on Syria from within the UK and around the world to share their latest research in their areas of expertise to reflect, innovate and collaborate on rebuilding the new Syria.
Themes may include (but are not limited to) the following topics:
- The role of education in the rebuilding process
- Historical approaches and imaginative futures
- The role of art and music in healing and building bridges
- Transitional justice
- Civil liberties, gender relations and sexuality in civic society
- Diasporic connections and intercultural innovations
- Reflective storytelling in literature, art, cinema and dance
- Political plurality and civil society
- Cross-sectarian dialogue
- Multiple identities and belonging
- Syrian culture and soft power
Hardship Fund
We are not charging a registration fee, thanks to our AHRC fund.
We expect scholars with institutional affiliations to request funding to cover their travel and accommodation expenses from their institutions where possible.
However, we may be able to help cover (some of) the travel and/or accommodation costs for a small number of successful UK-based speakers up to a limited maximum total of funds (to be determined later).
But please note that this is the exception (not the norm). We, therefore, encourage you to seek external funding to pay for your travel and accommodation costs if you need to.
Best wishes,
SARN UK
12. Applications Open for Fall 2025 M.A. in Kurdish Studies
Zahra Institute is delighted to announce the opening of applications for our M.A. Program in Kurdish Studies. The deadline for applications for the Fall semester is 15 July 2025. The online, two-year M.A. program consists of 31 credits and welcomes full-time and part-time students.
The Master of Arts in Kurdish Studies is the first of its kind in the United States. It provides access to the language and cultures of approximately forty million Kurds, a Middle Eastern people living in Kurdistan and beyond, spread across the borders of several modern states and linguistic and cultural zones. It focuses on the humanities aspects of Kurdish Studies including history, literature, music, visual arts, and cinema.
For Fall 2025, we offer the following courses: Approaches to Kurdish Studies, History and Literature of the Kurds, Religion in Kurdish Society, and Kurmanji and Sorani Kurdish language courses.
Zahra Institute offers both M.A. and Certificate in Kurdish Studies. Kurdish language courses can be taken as electives in the M.A. program, or as standalone courses. In addition, we offer M.A. and Certificate in Critical Muslim Studies.
For application information, please visit our website: www.zahrainstitute.org.
13. AKU-ISMC’s Short Course on Governing Diversity: Toronto and London
The Aga Khan University (International) in the UK, in collaboration with the Ismaili Centre and the Aga Khan Museum, is pleased to offer an in-person short course in Toronto and London.
Governing Diversity: Engaging with a Complex World
This thought-provoking course explores how different states – from the Roman and Mughal Empires to modern Europe and North America – have approached ethnic and religious diversity. Through a mix of historical case studies, participants will examine how communities saw themselves represented (or not) in state structures, how they managed internal affairs, and how leadership balanced community needs with state demands.
Highlights include:
- Comparative analysis of minority experiences across time and geography
- Insights into legal, political, and demographic impacts on diversity
- A study session at the Aga Khan Museum
- Reflections from the local Ismaili community on historical lessons for today
Full Programme Agenda for Toronto Here.
Full Programme Agenda for London Here.
Please note that the agenda is subject to change, and the final version will be emailed to all registered participants before the event.
Toronto Programme Details
Date
September 16 – 12:00 pm EDT
September 18 – 5:30 pm EDT
Location
The Ismaili Centre, Toronto
49 Wynford Drive Toronto, ON M3C 1K1 Canada
London Programme Details
Date
November 4 – 12:00 pm GMT+1
November 6 – 5:30 pm GMT+1
Location
The Ismaili Centre, London
Cromwell Gardens, London, SW7
Register at:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/governing-diversity-engaging-with-a-complex-world-tickets-1259761022129?aff=oddtdtcreator – for Toronto
14. A Sufi Commentary on the Tao Te Ching: The Way and Its Virtue
Sufi commentary of Tao Te Ching by Seyyed Hossein Nasr
https://fonsvitae.com/product/a-sufi-commentary-on-the-tao-te-ching-the-way-and-its-virtue/
15. Postdoctoral researcher: “Genealogies of ‘humanity’ in Islamic charity’”
for the ERC project ‘Entangled Universals of Transnational Islamic Charity’, based at Leiden University.
The deadline for applications is 15 June.
16. HYBRIDE Atelier-rencontre avec Mehdi Berriah (Ifpo) autour de l’ouvrage “The Medieval Jihad. Texts, Theories, and Practices”, Mehdi Berriah et Abbès Zouache (eds.), IISMM, Paris, 18 juin 2025, 13h00 – 15h00 CET
Loin d’être une simple réaction de l’islam à la croisade ou d’être une idéologie monolithique déclinant un droit de la guerre imposant des normes de comportement à l’ensemble des acteurs sociaux, le jihad est un phénomène revêtant de multiples dimensions : religieuse, jurisprudentielle, idéologique, militaire, politique, économique, sociale, culturelle et littéraire. C’est à ces multiples dimensions que les auteurs de cet ouvrage ont été invités à réfléchir.
Information : https://iismm.hypotheses.org/files/2025/05/Affiche-IISMM_RencontreMBerriah.pdf .
Inscription : https://tinyurl.com/5zjrka5w
17. Conference “Pius XII and Decolonization: Catholicism in North Africa and the Levant, 1939-1958”, Netherlands-Flemish Institute in Cairo, 10-11 November 2025
Key questions: What role did the Catholic Church – both as an institution and as a diverse religious community – play in decolonization? How did Vatican diplomacy interact with local clergy, indigenous populations, and political movements? To what extent were these interactions shaped by competition, hybridization, and exchange? The con-ference aims to critically engage with newly available sources, prioritizing transnational perspectives and highlighting the agency of marginalized actors.
Deadline for abstracts: 10 June 2025. Information: https://iismm.hypotheses.org/files/2025/05/Cfp-Cairo.pdf
18. Postdoctoral Research Associate (2 Years) in the Project “Economic and Cultural Connections within Mediterranean Ecosystems, c. 1250 – c. 1550” (Arabic and Hebrew Sources), King`s College London
Qualification: PhD qualified in relevant subject area. – Good research skills in historical methods e.g. the ability to carry out relevant research, including the relevant linguistic, bibliographic, and, if necessary, palaeographic skills. –
Ability to work with late medieval/early modern sources in Arabic and/or Hebrew and an understanding of the relevant communities under study, their history and historiography.
Deadline for applications: 1 June 2025. Information: https://tinyurl.com/mtb8a7j7
Posted in: Academic items
- May 24, 2025
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