Centre of Islamic Studies
The Qur'an: Text, Interpretation & Translation Conference 2005
Conference Schedule
Provisional Schedule
Thursday 10 November:
Morning:
Literary Strategy Chair: Stefan Sperl (9.35-11.20)
9.35 | Hanadi Behairi (Soas), 'Dialogism in the Qur'an' |
10.00 | Anthony Johns (Australian National University), 'The Sura as Unity: An Exploration of the Internal Dynamics of Surat al-A'raf' |
10.25 | Shawkat Toorawa (Cornell University), 'Parallelism and Echoing in Surat Maryam (Q. 19)' |
11.20 | Coffee break |
Translation Chair: Muhammad Abdel Haleem (11.40-12.50)
11.40 | George Grigore (University of Bucharest), 'Secondary Religious Vocabulary and the Translation of the Qur'an' |
12.05 | Reuven Firestone (Hebrew Union College), 'A New Hebrew Translation of the Qur'an' |
Lunch (12.50-14.00) | |
Lunchtime Presentation: Yousef Meri (Aal al-Bayt Foundation), 'The Significance of the Great Tafsirs Project' |
Afternoon:
Philosophical Approaches Chair: Ayman Shihadeh (14.00-15.45)
14.00 | Jules Janssens (University of Leuven), 'Al-Kindi: The Founder of Philosophical Exegesis of the Qur'an' |
14.25 | Alexander Treiger (Yale University), 'Monism and Monotheism in Ghazali's Exegesis of the Verse of Light' |
14.50 | Toby Mayer (Institute of Ismaili Studies), 'Shahrastani on the Arcana of the Qur'an: A Preliminary Evaluation' |
15.45 | Coffee break |
Sufi Hermeneutics Chair: Gavin Picken (16.05-17.15)
16.05 | Annabel Keeler (University of Cambridge), 'Sufi Tafsir as a Mirror: Qushayri the Murshid in his Lata'if al-Isharat' |
16.30 | Sajjad Rizvi (University of Exeter), 'The Existential Breath of al-Rahman and the Munificent Grace of al-Rahim' |
17.15 | Coffee break |
Tafsir: The Classical Age Chair: Gerald Hawting (17.30-19.15)
17.30 | Andrew Rippin (University of Victoria), ''Abd al-Qahir al-Baghdadi and the Development of Tafsir' |
17.55 | Karen Bauer (Princeton University), 'A Preference in this World and the Next: Aspects of the Exegetical Gender Debate' |
18.20 | Sebastian Guenther (University of Toronto), 'The Ten Commandments and the Qur'an' |
Friday 11 November
Morning:
Issues in Hermeneutics: Chair: Oliver Leaman (9.15-11.35)
9.15 | Brannon Wheeler (US Naval Academy), 'The Historicity of Accounts of the Arab Prophets' |
9.40 | Abdul Karim (King Saud University), 'Cragg and the Qur'an: A Critical and Analytical Survey' [in Arabic] |
10.05 | Massimo Campanini (University of Milan), 'The Qur'an as a Structure' |
10.30 | Hasan Al-Shafie (International Islamic University, Islamabad), 'Modern Readers: Between Responsibility and Respect for the Text' [in Arabic] |
11.35 | Coffee break |
Qur'an as Text: Chair: Marianna Klar (11.50-13.00)
11.50 | Thomas Hoffmann (University of Copenhagen), 'The Qur'an in the Mind's Eye: Functionalist Notes on Imagery, Cognition, and Memory' |
12.15 | Walid Saleh (University of Toronto), 'Furqan and Revelation: The Qur'an's Self-Presentation' |
Lunch and Jumu'a (13.00-14.30) (Jumu'a prayers will be held in Soas) |
Afternoon:
Qur'an: Society and Culture Chair: Harry Norris (14.30-16.50)
14.30 | Sheila Blair (Boston College), 'Transcribing God's Word: Qur'an Codices in Context' |
14.55 | Richard Natvig (University of Bergen), 'The Qur'an as Icon and Text in Contemporary Popular Prints' |
15.20 | Herbert Berg (University of North Carolina), 'Early African American Muslim Movements and the Qur'an' |
15.45 | Bilal Gokkir* (Suleyman Demirel University), 'Interpreting the Qur'an through Miniature Paintings' |
16.50 | Coffee break |
Structure and Style Chair: Hussein Abdul Raof (17.10-18.55)
17.10 | Ma'ahad Mokhtar (International Islamic University, Malaysia), 'A Study of the Meanings of Iltifat in Suras 31 and 57' [in Arabic] |
17.35 | Devin Stewart (Emory University), 'Cognate Paranomasia in the Qur'an' |
18.00 | Tammam Hassan (Cairo University), 'Proximity and Distance within the Qur'anic Sentence' [in Arabic] |
* Paper co-authored by Bilal Gokkir and Bahattin Yaman (Suleyman Demirel University)
Saturday 12 November
Morning:
Tafsir: The Modern Period Chair: Mustansir Mir (9.30-11.15)
9.30 | Rachel Scott (Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University), 'Egyptian Qur'anic Interpretation: Christians and the Modern Islamic State' |
9.55 | Shuruq Naguib (University of Glasgow), 'Bint al-Shafi's Approach to Traditional Tafsir' |
10.20 | Neal Robinson (Catholic University Leuven), 'An Evaluation of Mohammed Arkoun's Approach to the Qur'an' |
11.15 | Coffee break |
Literary Use of Qur'anic Material Chair: Ayman El Desouky (11.35-13.20)
11.35 | Amer Latif (Marlboro College), 'Rumi's Interpretations of the Qur'anic Story of Moses and Pharaoh' |
12.00 | Roberto Tottoli (University of Naples), 'The Case of Zamharir (Q. 76:13) among Hell Punishments' |
12.25 | Bruce Fudge (Southwestern University), 'Signs of Scripture in "The City of Brass"' |
Lunch (13.20-14.30) | |
Lunchtime presentation: Arjan Van Dijk (IDC Publishers), 'Early Printed Qur'ans: The Dissemination of the Qur'an in the West' |
Afternoon:
Textual Mechanics Chair: Salwa El Awa (14.30-16.10)
14.30 | Carl Ernst (University of North Carolina), 'Reading Strategies for Introducing the Qur'an' |
14.50 | Intisar Rabb (Yale University), 'Qur'an Manuscript Production before the Traditionist Milieu' |
15.15 | Ahmed Moustafa, 'The Analogical Invariant in the Artistry of Arabic Penmanship' |
16.10 | Coffee break |
Law and the Qur'an Chair: Abdul Hakim al-Matroudi (16.30-18.15)
16.30 | Joseph Lowry (University of Pennsylvania), 'How Qur'anic Wisdom (Hikma) Became the Sunna of the Prophet' |
16.55 | Christopher Melchert (University of Oxford), 'When Not to Recite the Qur'an' |
17.40 | Muhammad Abdel Haleem (Soas), Closing address |
Details for the 2005 conference are as follows:
Date: 10-12 November 2005
Venue: SOAS, University of London, G2 (Main College Buildings), Russell Square, Thornhaugh Street, London WC1H 0XG (on how to find us click here)
Contact: cis@soas.ac.uk / 0207 898 4380
No registration is required for this conference and all are welcome to attend.