Global Islamic Studies Center Awarded NEH Grant

by Susan Douglass

Global Islamic Studies Center Awarded NEH Grant

The Ali Vural Ak Center for Global Islamic Studies won a “Bridging Cultures” grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities for its proposal to run a program entitled, “The Legacies of Muslim Societies in the Emergence of Global Modernity, 1300-1900.”

The Center for Global Islamic Studies is partnering in the project with the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, a statewide, non-profit, educational organization, created as Virginia’s State Humanities Council in 1974. Its purpose is to discover and share untold stories, encourage lifelong learning, and promote civil discourse. Headquartered in Charlottesville, VFH supports research, education and programs in the humanities.

In March 2011, the Center for Global Islamic Studies will convene a two-day scholarly forum focusing on the political, cultural, artistic and social achievements of Muslim societies from 1300-1900 and their role in the formation of global modernity. A roster of nearly 30 leading scholars of Islamic history and culture will present recent work on the period, providing a rare opportunity for sharing ideas across disciplines and specializations in the fields of Ottoman, Safavid and Mughal studies, as well as world history. After the scholars’ forum, participants will travel to Charlottesville for a workshop with representatives of the VFH and other organizations engaged in public programming. The focus of these meetings will be to create a plan to disseminate the findings of the forum to a larger public audience, and to participate in the Virginia Festival of the Book. The 2011 Festival (March 16-20), the largest of its kind in the Mid-Atlantic region, will feature panels by Forum participants with recent books on modern Islamic issues.

The grant was highly competitive, with nearly 100 entries from institutions across the United States. Eight cultural and educational institutions around the country have been chosen to host these public forums designed to share the best of recent humanities research with members of the general public.

Image: Cemil Aydin (left), director of Mason's Ali Vural Ak Center for Global Islamic Studies, moderates questions for Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the center's inaugural program. Photo courtesy of Evan Cantwell, Creative Services.
September 20, 2010