2020-2021

Taking as its central theme the cultural situatedness of the earliest systems of mathematics and astronomy-from their origins in ancient Mesopotamia (Iraq, c. 3400 BCE) until the Common Era (CE)-this course explores topics in mathematical language and script, metrology, geometry and topology, music theory, definitions of time, models of stars and planets, medical astrology, and pan-astronomical hermeneutics in literature and an ancient board game. Pushing against boundaries separating the humanities and social and physical sciences, students discover how histories of science and mathematics could be decisively shaped not merely by sensory experience or axiomatic definition, but also by ideas and imagery derived from the cultures, societies, and aesthetics of their day.

This graduate seminar offers a historiographical overview of the approaches to sect, religion, minority and gender in colonial and postcolonial contexts in the Middle East. We will discuss the conceptualizations of nationalism by different social scientists; explore the characteristics of Iranian, Turkish and Arab nationalism[s] in the years 1860-1979; examine the history of science and technology in the region and its influence on perceptions of Islamic modernity,; and ask whether sectarianism an old phenomenon or a new one, paying heed to the relationship between minorities and religions in the region.

The class explores the history of Iraq during the years 1917-2015. We will discuss the rise of the Iraqi nation state, Iraqi and Pan-Arab nationalism, and Iraqi authoritarianism. The class will focus on the unique histories of particular group in Iraqi society; religious groups (Shiis, Sunnis, Jews), ethnic groups (especially Kurds), classes (the urban poor, the educated middle classes, the landed and tribal elites), Iraqi women, and Iraqi tribesmen. Other classes will explore the ideologies that became prominent in the Iraqi public sphere, from communism to Islamic radicalism. We will likewise discuss how colonialism and imperialism shaped major trends in Iraqi history. The reading materials for the class are based on a combination of primary and secondary sources: we will read together Iraqi novels, memoirs and poems (in translation), as well as British and American diplomatic documents about to Iraq.

Prior knowledge of the Middle East not required. This course aims to facilitate a general understanding of some key factors that have shaped life in this region, with primary emphasis on modern conditions and their background, and to provide exposure to some of the region's rich cultural diversity. This course can serve as a basis for the further study of the history, politics, and civilizations of the Middle East.

This course covers the period from ca. 1750 to the present, focusing on Western military, economic, and ideological encroachment; the impact of such ideas as nationalism and liberalism; efforts at reform in the Islamic states; the emergence of the "modern" Middle East after World War I; the struggle for liberation from Western colonial and imperial control; the Middle Eastern states in the cold war era; and local and regional conflicts.

NOTE TO UNDERGRADS: This course does not fulfill Civilization Studies requirements in the College.

This course, a continuation of Islamicate Civilization I, surveys intellectual, cultural, religious and political developments in the Islamic world from Andalusia to the South Asian sub-continent during the periods from ca. 950 to 1750. We trace the arrival and incorporation of the Steppe Peoples (Turks and Mongols) into the central Islamic lands; the splintering of the Abbasid Caliphate and the impact on political theory; the flowering of literature of Arabic, Turkic and Persian expression; the evolution of religious and legal scholarship and devotional life; transformations in the intellectual and philosophical traditions; the emergence of Shi`i states (Buyids and Fatimids); the Crusades and Mongol conquests; the Mamluks and Timurids, and the "gunpowder empires" of the Ottomans, Safavids, and Moghuls; the dynamics of gender and class relations; etc. This class partially fulfills the requirement for MA students in CMES, as well as for NELC majors and PhD students.

NOTE TO UNDERGRADS: This course does not fulfill Civilization Studies requirements in the College.

This course covers the rise and spread of Islam, the Islamic empire under the Umayyad and early Abbasid caliphs, and the emergence of regional Islamic states from Afghanistan and eastern Iran to North Africa and Spain. The main focus will be on political, economic and social history.

NOTE TO UNDERGRADS: This course does not fulfill Civilization Studies requirements in the College.

Using the original tablets excavated by the Oriental Institute in Nippur, we will read different texts found in House F, an Old Babylonian School. The class will include introductions to typical genres like lexical texts, model contracts, and literary school texts.

"The first man on moon", "the first Thanksgiving," or "the first kiss"--our society is still fascinated and remembers the exact moment something happened for the first time. The history of the Ancient Near East, especially the ancient civilization of Mesopotamia (modern Iraq), is quite rich of such "firsts in history." From the moment, writing is discovered there is an abundance of textual record, covering the first documents about politics, law, and economics. The first private documents allow us a glimpse into what living and dying were like more than 5,000 years ago. This course will explore what the cultural conditions of those innovations were, how innovations transform societies, and why it matters to study ancient civilizations. By discovering primary sources (in English translation), the fascination of reading those texts for the "first" time will be experienced. Visits at the Oriental Institute Museum will link textual record and object-based inquiry.

Introduction to the grammar of Akkadian, specifically to the Old Babylonian dialect. The class covers the first half of the Old Babylonian grammar, an introduction to the cuneiform script, and easy translation exercises.