Arabic Dictionaries Online
In 1981, while visiting Egypt for a consulting assignment with USAID, I purchased the old Cairo edition of the massive dictionary Tāj al-‘Arūs of Murtaḍā al-Zabīdī (d. 1790).…
Author: tabsir
Cholera, Cluster Bombs and Summer Vacation
This post can be read at MENA Tidningen.
al-Juwayni on Islamic Law
David R. Vishanoff has recently published online A Critical Edition, English Translation, and New Commentary on Imām al‑Ḥaramayn al-Juwaynī’s Leaflet on the Sources of Law (Kitāb al‑Waraqāt fī…
Pierre Cachia 1921-2017
Pierre Cachia 1921-2017 Pierre Cachia slipped away peacefully on 1st April, a few days shy of his 96 th birthday, surrounded by his children and grandchildren. With the…
Sadiq al-Azm (1934-2016)
The loss of a true intellectual. May he rest in peace as the world he loved continues to spiral in conflict.
Sadiq al-Azm (1934-2016)
The loss of a true intellectual. May he rest in peace as the world he loved continues to spiral in conflict.
Film on Cairo’s Zabbalin
There is a recent documentary on the Zabbalin garbage collectors of Cairo, produced by RT.
Persian Muscle Men
Following the Iranian Revolution of 1979, the sporting activities in the Zurkhaneh were declared inappropriate. Nowadays, however, they have become a symbol of Iranian national pride. Persia’s …
Al-Nuwayri on the Pleasures of Life
A post about the famous 14th century Mamluk text of al-Nuwayri, with a new English translation of excerpts from this classic compendium now available.
Weapons of the Syrian War
For an animated video of the weapons used by all sides in Syria, click here. by Ben Watson, Defense One, July 19, 2016 From chlorine gas to Kalashnikovs,…
Onomasticon Arabicum
Onomasticon Arabicum (OA) is a long-living database project. This new online-version informs on more than 15000 scholars and celebrities from the first Muslim millenary. Its entries in Arabic…
Trump’s Muslim Bashing
The Atlantic (June 16) has a powerful piece by Uri Friedman on Donald Trump’s rampant Muslim bashing with responses by six Muslim commentators and scholars. It is well…
Arabic Writing before Islam
In most world history survey courses, Arabia is introduced for the first time only as backstory to the rise of Islam. We’re told that there was a tradition…
Advanced Course in Arabic Manuscript Studies
Scholars, Scribes, and Readers: An Advanced Course in Arabic Manuscript Studies6-10 June 2016, Cambridge University Library, Cambridge, UK The Islamic Manuscript Association, in cooperation with Camb…
Reforming Saudi Arabia?
Mystique of Monarchy Post-War Watch – April 19, 2016 https://postwarwatch.com/2016/04/19/mystique-of-monarchy/ MADAWI AL-RASHEED — Limited social and political reforms in Saudi Arabia only prolong t…
On Drones
Al-Jazeera has recently published an article on an American serviceman who helped design the drone program in Afghanistan. The article is online here. I published my critique of…
The Brussels attack and liberal Islamophobia
“WICHITA, KS – MARCH 5: A group of Muslim students take selfies before Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump made a speech at a campaign rally on March 5,…
Flora of Qatar
For anyone interested in photographs of the flora of Qatar, there is a fine website produced by Dr. Alexey Sergeev. You can even search by species. Overall the…
Webinar in Islamic Material Culture “The Rise of an Agricultural Empire”
Economy and Material Culture in the Early Islamic Empire Bi-Weekly, Wednesday, 4-6 pm CEST Starting April 6, 2016 Islamic Material Culture The Universität Bonn (Bethany Walker), the Ludwig-Maximilian…
Women of Iran’s Past
The women of Iran – 120 years ago Antoin Sevruguin, the father of Iranian society photography, captured portraits of Iranian women in the early 20th century, from well-known…
Metropolitan Museum of Art Books
You can download fifty years of publications by the Metropolitan Museum of Art for free. Yes, for free. There are books on the art of Islamic Spain, Egypt,…
Muslims in Medieval France
Early Medieval Muslim Graves in France: First Archaeological, Anthropological and Palaeogenomic Evidence Yves Gleize , Fanny Mendisco , Marie-Hélène Pemonge, Christophe Hubert, A…
Arabic Papyrology Database
Andreas Kaplony, H-Mideast-Medieval, Saturday, January 2, 2016 The Arabic Papyrology Database (APD) team wishes you a happy New Year. Our present: new, handy features implemented in the APD…
Afghans before the Taliban
Family bond: Two colourful sisters, hand in hand, pose for a photograph in Kabul, surrounded by trading locals The Daily Mail, a British newspaper, has an online gallery…