"Universities can't survive without students" is an obvious fact that a lot of people have talked themselves into forgetting.

The university just decided to cancel our event. Dark times for academic freedom and international law and a very dangerous precedent

www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/franc...

Die Forderungen, die Veranstaltung mit Dr. @franceskalbs.bsky.social und Dr. Eyal Weizmann @forensicarchi.bsky.social abzusagen, werden lauter und schriller. Sie werden von Personen artikuliert, die über die letzten Monate immer wieder mit Impulsen aufgefallen sind, ihnen unliebsame Veranstaltungen

Introduction. Ruins of the Welfare State: Material Legacies of Soci... A Stroll through the City of Arts in Giza In the Giza neighborhood of Cairo, scattered along the newly refurbished Khatam al-Mursalin Street, lies an impressive collection of buildings dedicated to...

We think of ruins as ancient, but the ruins of the welfare state in Egypt and Sudan are both more recent and more ubiquitous. Great special issue from one of my favorite journals.

journals.openedition.org/esma/3297

Tomorrow: "Rebellion and State-Building in Early Islam: The Case of the Zubayrid Caliphate"! Come join us on Zoom to hear Hassan Bouali (Paris Nanterre) present his research - Tues, 11 Feb, 4:00 pm CET. To register, email score.aai@uni-hamburg.de. 👇

I have a very simple paper in this issue on occasional literature that recently came out (with a backdated publication date). There are some fascinating studies in this collection; just please don't read too much into mine if you happen to look at it.

riviste.unimi.it/index.php/in...

UW announces the publication of its first-ever roundtable! it showcases a variety of perspectives on the Global Middle Ages—its possibilities, perils, & problems—from fields associated w/ Middle Eastern & Islamic Studies.

El racismo en la era Trump: “No hables ese español de mierda en mi país”

“No hables ese español de mierda en mi país”. Hablar español o tener la piel oscura ha pasado a ser un problema en EE UU, pues Trump ha creado un nuevo enemigo interno: el migrante latino, al que hay que identificar, señalar y expulsar

Please share widely and join us!

Conditions of Life Calculated to Destroy
Legal and Forensic Perspectives on the Ongoing Gaza Genocide

with Francesca Albanese
& Eyal Weizman

19.02.2025, 10-12
@ FU Berlin, Hörsaal 1a

NEU!! SNEAK-PREVIEW - SCHNUPPER-VORSCHAU - OFFENES KOLLOQUIUM Sonntag, 9. Februar 2025 - 11 bis 13 Uhr - ONLINE - hybrid (Berlin) - Das Kapitalozän denken - Alex Niehoff-Toral stellt sein noch unveröffentlichtes Buch vor #staytuned

steadyhq.com/de/rueckenwi...

From Beirut to Khartoum, the Arab world is changing beyond our recognition | Nesrine Malik The Arab world is increasingly divided between those who are losing everything, and those who have everything For the past few months, there has been a grim new ritual whenever I meet people from some Arab countries. It’s a sort of mutual commiseration…

From Beirut to Khartoum, the Arab world is changing beyond our recognition | Nesrine Malik

The Koran Does Not Forbid Images of the Prophet - Newsweek The Charlie Hebdo killers were operating under a misapprehension.

Yes, that is the most frequent misunderstanding about Islamic art, which abounds in figural imagery. What is true is that Islamic art avoids figural imagery in religious contexts. In non-religious contexts figures are common, even including images of the Prophet www.newsweek.com/koran-does-n...

Alright *cracks knuckles* let's do this!

Today I'm inaugurating an episodic Monday series titled History of Islamic Art in 100 Objects. But we have to ask the most important question first:

What is Islamic art? Also, why is this even a question? 🧵 #IslamicArt100Objects

We're hiring a postdoc and 6 PhD students for the Research Training Group "Empires", in which I will be one of the faculty members. If you know of people who might be interested in applying, please spread the word!
www.grk2571.uni-freiburg.de/jobs-and-opp...

The first books the Nazis burned weren't the Torah.

They were German medical and scientific studies detailing the reality of the existence of transgender people.

Ninety years ago, fascists used the irrational fear of trans people as their keyhole into power.

And here we are...

"If a woman doesn't look woman enough to a Republican, they want to be able to inspect your genitals to use a bathroom? It's disgusting.

Everyone should reject it completely... they're endangering women, they're endangering girls of all kind, and everyone should reject it. It's gross." - AOC

map of the area around the Caspian Sea showing Ibn Fadlan's likely route (921-2) from Baghdad to Bukhara, then on to Bolgar

New article alert!

10th-c. traveler Ibn Faḍlān describes non-Muslim Rūs: “When the chieftain dies, the members of his household ask his jawārī and ghilmān, ‘Who will die with him?’ One answers, ‘I will.’”

Arabic texts suggest most funerary sacrifices among the Rūs were women

Be brave and impose minimum tax on world’s billionaires, urges Spanish minister Carlos Cuerpo calls on G20 leaders to act and says election results show citizens want redistribution of wealth Spain’s economy minister has urged the world’s richest countries to “be brave” and redouble efforts to reach an agreement on a global minimum…

Be brave and impose minimum tax on world’s billionaires, urges Spanish minister

What more could you want from the Middle East Medievalists Bluesky than a Middle East Medievalists starter pack?
Connect with Middle East Medievalists MEMbers on Bluesky. If you are a MEMber of MEM and want to be included, let us know.
go.bsky.app/PFgkbsW

DISSEMINATING AL-ANDALUS

Check out "Al-Andalus y la Historia", an online free journal with the voices of experts such as M. Fierro, B. Catlos, A. García-Sanjuán, E. Cardoso, S. Kimmel, J. Bellver, G. Wiegers and much more

New English section thanks to Ann Christys.

www.alandalusylahistoria.com

Happy to share one of my latest (edited) books: "Al-Andalus and War", with chapters by Alejandro García-Sanjuán, Manuela Marín, Marco Demichelis and much more
laergastula.com/producto/al-...

Giving a talk next Tuesday at NYU, on the source(s) of Qāniʿī Ṭūsī's 7th/13th c. versification of Kalīla and Dimna. It is a hybrid event.