Relying on a multidisciplinary approach, this reading seminar aims to provide students with theoretical and empirical tools for the apprehension of contemporary Arab and Islamic history (570-1920).
Through the reading and discussion of academic pieces and with the focus on specific themes throughout the period, students will be encouraged to take a critical look at the way some key issues are handled within the field.
This reading seminar also aims to explore major moments of Arab & Islamic History, from the birth of Muhammad (570) to the end of the First World War and the subsequent collapse of the Ottoman Empire (1914-1924). From Córdoba to Samarkand, we will rely on sociological, political and geographical notions in order to explore together 1,500 years of historical processes.
Questions, commentaries or discussion suggestions are more than welcome. Participation in class is required and fundamental!
Henri DU PÉRIER,Damien SAVEROT,Eva ZAHIRI,Charlotte GASC,Alaa BADR
Cours magistral et conférences
English
aucun
Autumn and Spring 2023-2024
• Discussion & in-class participation (10% of the final mark)
• In-class tests (20% of the final mark)
• Article review (30 % of the final mark)
• Research paper (40% of the final mark)
SESSIONS:
Session 1: « Reading & Writing Biographies of Prophets »
Discussion: Robert HOYLAND, « Writing the Biography of the Prophet Muhammad: Problems and Solutions », History Compass, 5/2 (2007), 581–602.
Further reading: J.R. PORTER, « Muhammad's Journey to Heaven », Numen, Vol. XXI, Fascicule I, April 1974, pp. 64-80.
2. « Religious & Political Authorities in Early Islam »
Discussion: Asma ASFARUDDIN, « The "Islamic State": Genealogy, Facts, and Myths », Journal of Church
and State, Winter 2006, 48-1, pp. 153-174.
Further reading: Fred M. DONNER, « The Formation of the Islamic State », Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 106, No. 2 (Apr. - Jun., 1986), pp. 283-296.
Further reading (2): Nasser RABBAT, « The Meaning of the Umayyad Dome of the Rock », Muqarnas, Vol. 6, 1989, pp. 12-21
3. « Social & Cultural Landscape during the Abbasid ‘Golden Age' (IX-XIIth C.) »
Discussion: Joan E. GILBERT, « Institutionalization of Muslim Scholarship and Professionalization of the 'Ulamā' in Medieval Damascus », Studia Islamica, no. 52, 1980, pp. 105-134.
Further reading: Khalil ATHAMINA, « The Black Banners and the Socio-Political Significance of Flags and Slogans in Medieval Islam », Arabica, T. 36, Fasc. 3, Nov. 1989, pp. 307-326.
Further reading (2): Franz ROSENTHAL, « The Stranger in Medieval Islam », Arabica, volume 44, 1997, pp. 35-75
4. « Building Convivencia? A political & social history of Al-Andalus »
Discussion: Janet L. ABU-LUGHOD, « The Islamic City-Historic Myth, Islamic Essence, and Contemporary Relevance », International Journal of Middle East Studies, Vol. 19, No. 2, May, 1987, pp. 155-176
Further reading: John J. SAUNDERS, « Islam and the Mongols: The Battle of Goliath's Spring », History Today, 1961, pp. 843-851.
Further reading (2): Stephen TURNBULL, « Building an Empire », Genghis Khan & the Mongol Conquests – 1190-1400, Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2003, pp. 28-73
5. « The East as seen by the West; the West as seen by the East »
Discussion: Edward SAÏD, « Introduction », in Orientalism, Penguin Books, London, 1978, pp. 7-36.
Further reading: Bernard LEWIS, « English Travellers in the East », Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. 4, No. 3, April 1968, pp. 296-3.
6. « The Ottomans: The Last Caliphate? »
Discussion: Donald QUARTET, The Ottoman Empire (1700-1922), New Approaches to European History, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p. 1-53.
Further reading: Kathryn BABAYAN, « The Safavid synthesis: from Qizilbash Islam to imamite Shi'ism », Iranian Studies, 27:1-4, pp. 135-161.
Further reading (2): Peter M. HOLT, « The Mamluk Institution », in Youssef M. CHOEIRI (ed.), A companion to the History of the Middle East, Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2005, pp. 154-169.
Further reading (3): Selim DERINGIL, « Legitimacy structures in the Ottoman State: The Reign of Abdülhamid II (1876-1909) », International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. 23, n°3, August 1991, pp. 345-359
Ira LAPIDUS, A History of Islamic Societies, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002, 1002 pp.