Conference: Modern Arabic Historical Scholarship on the Ancient and Medieval Periods

The development of the historical profession in the Arab World since 1945 has received scant attention from Western scholars of the region. This is particularly the case regarding modern Arabic studies on Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Even in the field of medieval Islamic history, there is generally little awareness on the part of scholars based in the West, about the research and publications of their colleagues in the Arabic-speaking countries. As a consequence, Arabic secondary sources are rarely utilized and reviewed by Western historians of the medieval Islamic period.

Our conference aims to address this serious bibliographical gap. We will bring together an international group of specialists in a variety of pre-modern historical disciplines ranging from Assyriology to Mamluk Studies who will discuss contemporary Arabic-language scholarship in their respective fields. Some presentations will give an overview of a particular discipline across the entire Arabic-speaking World while others will focus on an historiographical “school” or a single major scholar as a case study. The conference will be a stepping-stone in the production of a multi-author handbook which will consist of studies and bibliographies of Arabic scholarship on Ancient and Medieval history.

Reissue of Byzantium and the Arabs of Irfan Shahîd

Reissue of Byzantium and the Arabs of Irfan Shahîd

Dumbarton Oaks has announced that all seven volumes of Irfan Shahîd’s monumental Byzantium and the Arabs, published by Dumbarton Oaks Publications, are available for free download from their website here: https://www.doaks.org/newsletter/byzantium-and-the-arabs 

The Historcial Context of Homer's Iliad: A Lecture in Arabic (Kuwait, 1975 or 88?)

The Historcial Context of Homer's Iliad

The You Tube hosts an extensive lecture in Arabic about the historical context of Homer's Iliad. The lecture is delivered by one of the pioneering Egyptian classicists and papyrologists; Prof. Abdellatif Ahmed Ali. It is uploaded by his son Dr. Moones Ali (Thanks, Dr. Moones, for this valuable addition). Prof. Ali took his PhD from University of Michigan in 1949. He came back to teach in Cairo University (department of Classics and History) until 1974. In this year he moved to Kuwait, where he was teaching Greek and Roman History. The lecture seems to be delivered in Kuwait in 1975 or after this year. In the calendar behind the moderator, I can see a date reading Monday 15/4/88 or 85. With a map and extensive knowledge of the Greek history and mythology, he relates the epic as well as the modern history of scholarship about it in a very interesting, sensational and lively (sometimes theatrical) manner as evidenced by the audience' laughter. Enjoy watching and hearing !

Part I

Part II

Part III

Part IV

Peter E. Porman on Classical Scholarship and Arab Modernity

A very interesting chapter in Sarah C. Humphreys and Rudolf G. Wagner's Modernity's Classics (Springer 2013) by Peter E. Porman; Classical Scholarship and Arab Modernity , pp.123-141:https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-3-642-33071-1_6

Here is an excerpt from the auther's conclusions

"We find many reflections and refractions of the role of classical studies in
contemporary Arab and Muslim societies. Ahmad ʿEtma¯n’s play The Goats of
Oxyrhynchus, for instance, engages on at least three levels with the classical past:
firstly, it draws on a Greek source; secondly, it considers Egypt’s relation to her
Hellenistic heritage; and thirdly, it comments critically on the place of this heritage
in modern Egypt. The struggle for modernity continues in many countries of the
Middle East. The interpretation of texts takes centre stage in this process. Here
classical studies have contributed significantly to debates about cultural and religious
authority and identity, as we have seen throughout this article. Again and
again, intellectuals who were trained in the methods of classical scholarship have
provoked controversy by offering interesting perspectives on the history of Arabic
and Islamic thought. These debates, to be sure, continue today with even greater
vigour, as Greek and Latin studies are thriving in Egypt."

The Classical legacy in Tawfiq al-Hakim's Drama

Tawfiq al-Hakim, the prominent Egyptian novelist and playwright, was not only aware of the Greek and Latin theater, but used it extensively in his plays.

This is very evident from the titles of three of his works; Praxa/The problem of ruling (1939), Pygmalion (1942) and Oedipus the King (1949). Yet Ahemd Etman, in his study about the classical sources of Tawfiq al-Hakim's Drama, reveals to us more about the interest of this novelist with the Greek and Roman Literature. The comparative study was published in 1993 in Cairo by The Egyptian International Publishing Co-Longman (ISBN 977-16-0106-7).  It consists of an introduction, five chapters and a conclusion in 345 pages. Here is the book cover. 

Contesting Antiquity in Egypt, AUC press 2015 by Donald Malcolm Reid

[ from the publisher's website 13-08-2016]

The history of the struggles for control over Egypt's antiquities, and their repercussions during a period of intense national ferment 

The sensational discovery in 1922 of Tutankhamun’s tomb, close on the heels of Britain’s declaration of Egyptian independence, accelerated the growth in Egypt of both Egyptology as a formal discipline and of ‘pharaonism'—popular interest in ancient Egypt—as an inspiration in the struggle for full independence. Emphasizing the three decades from 1922 until Nasser’s revolution in 1952, this compelling follow-up to Whose Pharaohs? looks at the ways in which Egypt developed its own archaeologies—Islamic, Coptic, and Greco-Roman, as well as the more dominant ancient Egyptian. Each of these four archaeologies had given birth to, and grown up around, a major antiquities museum in Egypt. Later, Cairo, Alexandria, and Ain Shams universities joined in shaping these fields. Contesting Antiquity in Egypt brings all four disciplines, as well as the closely related history of tourism, together in a single engaging framework. Throughout this semi-colonial era, the British fought a prolonged rearguard action to retain control of the country while the French continued to dominate the Antiquities Service, as they had since 1858. Traditional accounts highlight the role of European and American archaeologists in discovering and interpreting Egypt’s long past. Donald Reid redresses the balance by also paying close attention to the lives and careers of often-neglected Egyptian specialists. He draws attention not only to the contests between westerners and Egyptians over the control of antiquities, but also to passionate debates among Egyptians themselves over pharaonism in relation to Islam and Arabism during a critical period of nascent nationalism. Drawing on rich archival and published sources, extensive interviews, and material objects ranging from statues and murals to photographs and postage stamps, this comprehensive study by one of the leading scholars in the field will make fascinating reading for scholars and students of Middle East history, archaeology, politics, and museum and heritage studies, as well as for the interested lay reader.

See more and order the book at : http://www.aucpress.com/p-4946-contesting-antiquity-in-egypt.aspx

Classical Reception Studies: Reconceptualizing the Study of the Classical Tradition by Maarten De Pourcq

Full papers in academia.edu

Classical Reception Studies: Reconceptualizing the Study of the Classical Tradition
Maarten De Pourcq

https://www.academia.edu/2386554/Classical_Reception_Studies_Reconceptualizing_the_Study_of_the_Classical_Tradition

Classics in Post-Colonial Worlds, by Lorna Hardwick and Carol Gillespie, 2007

ABSTRACT [ from Oxford Scholarship Online]

Classical material was traditionally used to express colonial authority, but it was also appropriated by imperial subjects to become first a means of challenging colonialism, and then a rich field for creating cultural identities which blend the old and the new. Nobel prize winners such as Derek Walcott and Seamus Heaney have rewritten classical material in their own cultural idioms, while public sculpture in southern Africa draws on Greek and Roman motifs in order to represent histories of African resistance and liberation. These developments are explored in this collection of essays by scholars who debate the relationship between the culture of Greece and Rome, and the changes that have followed the end of colonial empires.

http://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199296101.001.0001/acprof-9780199296101

Classics and colonialism by Barbara Goff (2005)

This collection of well-focussed essays is the first to examine explicitly the role played by the literature and culture of classical antiquity in the various discourses that established, maintained or undermined the British empire. Drawing on reception studies and postcolonial studies, the contributors investigate topics such as the intersections among nineteenth- and twentieth-century theories of the Greek, Roman and British empires, the place of neo-classical poetry and classical education in the Caribbean, and adaptations of Greek drama by postcolonial writers in Africa and elsewhere. There is a substantial introduction that discusses the role of classics within the British empire, why it should compel our attention and how it might provide fruitful ground for further enquiry. The emphasis throughout is on the diverse ways in which the classical tradition has been used both by those who identified themselves with imperialist goals and by those engaged in struggle against imperialism. - See more at: http://www.bloomsbury.com/us/classics-and-colonialism-9780715633113/#sthash.CZWmG4IV.dpuf

http://www.bloomsbury.com/us/classics-and-colonialism-9780715633113/

Master of Arts (M.A.) in Ancient Civilization Studies (Altertumswissenschaften); Saarland's Example !

See here how a German an Ancient Civilization Studies MA look like !

Here is a brief description:

Venus of Willendorf, the prince's grave in Gommern, Homer's epics, Martial's epigrams, Greek statues, Pompeian homes, the Greek city-states and the Roman empire are just some of the many facets of early European art, literature and history explored by students on the M.A. programme "Ancient Civilization Studies" at Saarland University. The programme is unique in Germany, offering students a combination of ancient history, classical archaeology, classical philology, prehistory and early history to provide them with insight into the early phases of Europe and its cultures.


The Master's degree programme "Ancient Civilization Studies" follows on from the more broad-based Bachelor's programme and provides students with the specialist skills needed for challenging professional positions. Students select one of the four core subject areas as their main subject. Depending on their choice, they focus on the analysis and interpretation of Greek and Latin texts, or of pictorial and visual sources, or of material culture. Excursions, practical training and archaeological excavations complete the M.A. programme. Students will develop and deepen their understanding of their chosen fields and the associated scientific and academic methodologies. The Master's programme enables them to earn a specialized qualification that reflects their individual interests, while at the same time specifically encouraging interdisciplinary learning and research. In addition to their main subject, students also select a subsidiary subject either from the field of ancient civilization studies or from another subject area.


Students should choose a combination of subjects that reflects the career areas in which they later wish to work. By combining a core subject area with individual areas of specialization, graduates can prepare themselves for museum work, curating exhibitions, working on archiving projects or on the preservation of archaeological sites, or for work in journalism, publishing, adult education, tourism, or cultural and public relations. Graduates with a good Master's degree can of course also go on to study for a doctoral degree and a career in academic

The 2nd Circular of " Thought and Culture in Byzantine Egypt" 1st -3rd April 2014 ( Ain Shams University)

Prof. Dr. Tarek M. Muhammad, Professor of Medieval History (Byzantino-Islamic) in Ain Shams University, has kindly sent me the 2nd circular of the coming conference in Ain Shams University. An Image of the circular is attached to this post.

The Future of Classical Studies in Egypt by Prof. Dr. Tarek M. Radawn

Some years ago Prof. Dr. Tarek M. Radawn of Al-Azahar University had published an article entitled "The Computer, Modern Technologies and the Future of Classical Studies in Egypt", Bulletin of the Center of Papyrological Studies ( Ain Shams Uuniversity), Vol. (?), pp. (?)  The article was intended as a guide to the Arabic student/research in the filed of Classics how to adjust his computer as well as his research for the digital age. No other work has since then addressed this problem ( in the Arabic sphere), therefore the Department of Greek and Latin Studies in Cairo university has produced an online version of this paper ( with some links to the stated websites) to maximize the availability of this valuable paper. The online version of this paper could be accessed through this link.

The importance of learning Humanities and Ancient Languages

Wise in cooperation with Qatar Foundation has releases a video to pay the attention of the students to the merits of learning Humanities and Ancient Languages in comparison to learning Medicine and Law ! The video is not in Arabic, but an Arabic synchronization is available.

Video series of "Greco-Roman Egypt" course in Mansour University

High quality video in Arabic (poor content, I'm sorry to say it !) of "the history of Greco-Roman Egypt" in Mansoura University, Faculty of Education. The video is published by Mansoura University on Feb 24, 2013.

Arabic Contributions to the Study of Greco-Roman Egypt

It seems that I'm not the only interested person in the Arabic contributions in modern times. The renowned  Prof. Emeritus Mostafa El Abbadi of Alexandria University had expressed his interest in the same topic in 1987 - when I was just nine years old ! - in his article:

 Mostafa El Abbadi, "Arabic Contributions to the Study of Greco-Roman Egypt." in Egitto e storia antica. Atti del Colloquio internazionale. Bologna, 31.8-2.9.1987, 383-395.

Egyptian Academic Literature in Classics : A Bibliometrical Study.

The academic literature in Greek and Latin studies  appears to have caught the attention of the Egyptian scholars in the field of  Library and Information sciences, who is called Samia Abdullah Al-Kafoury. A bibliometric study is now available for this literature from its beginning, probably from Rifa'a al-Tahtawi, until 2004; the day which the dissertation/book is said to be approved/released. I'm trying to have a copy of this dissertation/book, with the help of my Egyptian colleagues,  to be posted here in the blog.