faculty news

Aun Hasan Ali featured in Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine

Alex Hartburg — Wed, 19 Mar 2025 14:48:47 +0000

Aun Hasan Ali featured in Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine Alex Hartburg Wed, 03/19/2025 - 08:48

We are excited to share that Professor Aun Hasan Ali was recently featured in the Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine in the article, "91��ý Religious Studies Professor Says Twelver Shi’ism Is Open to Discourse," by Bradley Worrell. The article highlights his contributions to the study of Twelver Shi’ism and explores the origins and themes of his book, The School of Hillah and the Formation of Twelver Shi’i Islamic Tradition.

In the article, Professor Ali answers questions pertaining to the School of Hillah, shares insights directly from his book, and voices his hopes for how the book will continue to contribute to the field of Islamic studies.

To read the full article and view other great features, visit Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine.

Full article here!

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Digital Humanities and the Intellectual History of al-Andalus with Covadonga Baratech

Alex Hartburg — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 19:24:18 +0000

Digital Humanities and the Intellectual History of al-Andalus with Covadonga Baratech Alex Hartburg Thu, 03/13/2025 - 13:24

Digital Humanities and the Intellectual History of al-Andalus
A talk by
Covadonga Baratech
(Institute of Languages and Cultures of the Mediterranean and the Middle East (ILC - CSIC))

What was the life expectancy of Andalusi scholars? What were the ten most common activities Andalusi scholars were involved in? In which century do we have the largest number of scholarly families? Where were they located? To which places did Andalusi scholars travel the most? A couple of decades ago, answering these questions would have taken weeks, even months to answer. However, thanks to databases like Prosopografía de Ulemas de al-Andalus (PUA) and programming languages like R, they are just a couple of lines of code away.
For this talk Covadonga Baratech provides an introduction to Prosopografía de Ulemas de al-Andalus, the main database for scholars of Muslim Iberia.She will discuss its strengths as well as some areas for improvement and share some of the results obtained when combined with a programming language such as R. The goal is to encourage people to explore the possibilities of these tools and apply new methodologies in their research.
She also invites people to think about data in new ways. How representative is the data we work with? Does it apply to most of the population? For example, analyzing PUA’s data we discover that the life expectancy of Andalusi scholars was 70,93 lunar years. However, we only know the life span of 1998 people or 17% of the dataset. Can we apply these findings to the rest of the scholars in the database? And what about the non-scholars of al-Andalus? What strategies can we use to make this data more fiable?
This talk will be of interest to scholars of Middle East and Islamic Studies, medievalists, historians of all places and periods, and any Humanities and Social Sciences Scholars interested in working with digital databases.

Covadonga Baratech is a PhD student at the Institute of Languages and Cultures of the Mediterranean (CSIC). She is a member of the research project directed by M. Penelas and M. Fierro dealing with the migration of Andalusi and Maghribi scholars to other regions of the Islamic world (8th-15th centuries) and their intellectual and religious impact (PID2020-116680GB-I00). Her research focuses on the times of Saladin and the Ayyubids (1171-1260). She aims to study the intellectual exchanges between the Andalusi and Maghribi scholars and their Mashriqi colleagues. In particular, she intends to comprehend the spread of knowledge produced in the Maghrib into de Mashriq. Her main work areas are intellectual history, manuscript tradition and digital humanities.

Wednesday, 19 March • noon
HUMN 230

Open to faculty, students, staff and members of the community
Please register in advance here

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The Migration of Miniatures in Italian Manuscripts of the Roman de Troie with Marilynn Desmond

Alex Hartburg — Mon, 24 Feb 2025 22:35:55 +0000

The Migration of Miniatures in Italian Manuscripts of the Roman de Troie with Marilynn Desmond Alex Hartburg Mon, 02/24/2025 - 15:35

Join the CU Mediterranean Studies Group for: The Migration of Miniatures in Italian Manuscripts of the Roman de Troie.

Monday, 24 February 2025
5:00pm • HUMN 250

Marilynn Desmond (English, General Literature and Rhetoric: SUNY Binghamton) will present, and the presentation will be followed by a discussion with CU faculty:
Kirk Ambrose (CLAS)
Charlie Samuelson (FRIT)
Nuria Silleras-Fernandez (SPAN)

These events are made possible by the generous support of Jewish Studies, History, French & Italian, Asian Languages and Civilizations, Spanish and Portuguese, and Philosophy at the University of Colorado Boulder.
Administrative support provided by Religious Studies.

For more information please visit: www.cumediterranean.info

Join the CU Mediterranean Studies Group for: The Migration of Miniatures in Italian Manuscripts of the Roman de Troie

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Need Stress Relief? Move & Meditate at the Rec Center

Alex Hartburg — Mon, 09 Dec 2024 21:53:37 +0000

Need Stress Relief? Move & Meditate at the Rec Center Alex Hartburg Mon, 12/09/2024 - 14:53

Join CALM, WorkWell and the Rec Center for an end-of-semester embodied meditation and free-form movement class designed to help you process stress and cultivate joy and resilience.

Releasing Stress Through Movement
with Holly Gayley and Rick Merrill

FREE FOR STUDENTS & STAFF
Tuesday, December 10, 5pm to 6pm
Rec Center, Studio 2

Everyone is welcome, no previous experience necessary.

Rick Merrill has a lifetime of experience in dance, choreography, meditation and tai chi. He leads meditation and movement workshops for all ages and backgrounds to encourage us all to rediscover our embodied wisdom, compassion and creativity. He is a Buddhist Chaplain certified by the Upaya Zen Center and the Shambhala Buddhist Community.

Holly Gayley is a scholar and translator of Buddhist literature in contemporary Tibet and associate professor at the University of Colorado Boulder. She is a founding member of a Contemplative Resource Center at 91��ý (now CALM: Contemplative Arts, Learning, and Meditation) and regularly leads Mindful Campus groups through the Renée Crown Wellness Institute.

Check out other upcoming events!

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Curious About Our MA Program? Drop-In Zoom Hours for Prospective Students

Alex Hartburg — Wed, 20 Nov 2024 21:22:27 +0000

Curious About Our MA Program? Drop-In Zoom Hours for Prospective Students Alex Hartburg Wed, 11/20/2024 - 14:22

Are you considering applying to our MA program? Come chat with us! We’re hosting drop-in Zoom hours where you can connect with our Graduate Program Assistant to ask questions about the program and the admissions process.

November Drop-In Zoom Hours:

Wednesday, November 20 | 4-5 PM

Friday, November 22 | 12-1 PM

Wednesday, November 27 | 12-1 PM

December Drop-In Zoom Hours:

Monday, December 2 | 4-5 PM

Friday, December 6 | 12-1 PM

Tuesday, December 10 | 2-3 PM

Monday, December 16 | 12-1 PM

Friday, December 20 | 2-3 PM

January Drop-In Zoom Hours:

Thursday, January 2 | 4-5 PM

No appointment needed—just hop in the Zoom meeting and ask away! If these times don’t work for you, and you have questions about the admissions process, please reach out to us anytime at religious.studies@colorado.edu. International applications are due December 15, 2024, and domestic applications are due January 3, 2025.

Link to Zoom meeting!

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Brian Catlos's Book Available in New Translation

Alex Hartburg — Thu, 14 Nov 2024 18:36:50 +0000

Brian Catlos's Book Available in New Translation Alex Hartburg Thu, 11/14/2024 - 11:36

Professor Brian Catlos’s book, Kingdoms of Faith: A New History of Islamic Spain (Basic Books, 2018) has now been published in Turkish as Endülüs: Müslüman İspanya'nın Yeni Tarihi by the publisher Kronik Kitap.

The book has already appeared in Spanish, German, Polish, Complex Chinese, and Korean, and is forthcoming in Simplified Chinese and Arabic. This is Catlos’s second book to be translated into Turkish, after his earlier Ortaçağ Latin Hristiyan Âlemi Müslümanları: 1050-1614 (Muslims of Medieval Latin Christendom, 1050-1614)

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Loriliai Biernacki Wins 2024 American Academy of Religion Book Award

Alex Hartburg — Fri, 01 Nov 2024 19:10:51 +0000

Loriliai Biernacki Wins 2024 American Academy of Religion Book Award Alex Hartburg Fri, 11/01/2024 - 13:10

We are delighted to announce that Loriliai Biernacki has won the 2024 American Academy of Religion Book Award for Excellence in the Study of Religion for her 2023 book, The Matter of Wonder!

Award for Excellence in the Study of Religion: Constructive-Reflective Studies

Loriliai Biernacki

The Matter of Wonder: Abhinavagupta's Panentheism and New Materialism (Oxford University Press)

From the jury:

Loriliai Biernacki makes a fascinating case for the contemporary relevance of Abhinavagupta’s 11th-century Indian philosophy, which she reads closely in conversation with questions and perspectives of New Materialism. By analyzing wonder (camatkāra) as rooted in the material rather than in a cognitive faculty, The Matter of Wonder is both striking and original in its approach. The links she draws with viruses and AI in particular make this work pertinent and fresh. It is overall a very sophisticated and provocative book.

Congratulations Loriliai!

Full Announcement from AAR

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Fall 2024 Lester Lecture: "Polyvalence, Ambiguity and the Politics of Islamic Studies"

Alex Hartburg — Tue, 29 Oct 2024 22:22:58 +0000

Fall 2024 Lester Lecture: "Polyvalence, Ambiguity and the Politics of Islamic Studies" Alex Hartburg Tue, 10/29/2024 - 16:22

We invite you to join us for the Fall 2024 Lester Lecture: "Polyvalence, Ambiguity and the Politics of Islamic Studies," by Dr. Marion Katz.

Thursday, November 14th, 5:30 PM

Eaton Humanities 250

Over the last several decades, polyvalence (in the sense of the simultaneous recognition of multiple potentially valid meanings) and the related phenomenon of ambiguity have become established themes –and implicitly central values- of the western academic study of premodern Islam. Conversely, accounts of the impact of colonialism and the transition to modern forms of Islamic thought have often thematized the rise of monovalent and unambiguous ways of reading and thinking. This trend has helpfully highlighted the diversity and richness of premodern Islamic thought. However, it has also become a trope with unexamined political valences.

Marion Katz is a Professor of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies at New York University. Her books include Prayer in Islamic Thought and Practice (2013), Women in the Mosque: A History of Legal Thought and Social Practice (2014), and Wives and Work: Islamic Law and Ethics Before Modernity (2022).

This event is free and open to the public. Snacks and refreshments will be served.

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Manufacturing Consent for Hindu Rashtra (Rule) with Professor Dheepa Sundaram

Alex Hartburg — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 17:31:49 +0000

Manufacturing Consent for Hindu Rashtra (Rule) with Professor Dheepa Sundaram Alex Hartburg Wed, 09/18/2024 - 11:31

We welcome you to mark your calendars for a talk with Professor Dheepa Sundaram on Manufacturing Consent for Hindu Rashtra (Rule): How the Virtual Ramjanmabhoomi Movement Operates as Political Religion.

Thursday, September 26, 2024
5:30PM - 6:30 PM
Eaton HUMN 250

On November 9, 2019, the Indian Supreme Court (ISC) rendered a decision granting Hindus the right to build a Rama temple on the location of Babri Masjid razed by Hindu extremists in 1992. This talk explores the broad contours of the ISC judgement, how Facebook and Twitter communities discuss it, and why this matters politically in India. Prof. Sundaram shows how the ISC’s judgement becomes possible through the production of a mediatized, transnational, Hindu belief community (e.g. social media, blogs, and the sharing of journal/televised news pieces) that takes shape through a virtual/digital network of likes, shares, and hashtags.

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Reading and Writing Philosophy and Theology in the School of Hilla with Aun Hasan Ali

Alex Hartburg — Thu, 12 Sep 2024 15:48:28 +0000

Reading and Writing Philosophy and Theology in the School of Hilla with Aun Hasan Ali Alex Hartburg Thu, 09/12/2024 - 09:48

Please join Aun Hasan Ali for “Reading and Writing Philosophy and Theology in the School of Hilla” on Wednesday, September 18 at 4:30 pm in the Lory Student Center at Colorado State University.

From the second half of the 12th to the last decades of the 14th century, the city of Hilla in southern Iraq was the center of Twelver Shii scholarship. During this time, Twelver Shii scholars produced outstanding and landmark works in practically every field of classical Islamic scholarship. In the first part of this presentation, Ali examines how the legacy of philosophy and theology shaped the representation of Twelver Shii tradition in Hilla. In the second part, he examines the actual study of and writings on philosophy and theology in Hillah. Ali argues that modern scholars’ interest in the high theology and philosophy has led to a distorted picture of what is recognizable as the formative period of Twelver Shii tradition.

Aun Hasan Ali is an associate professor here in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder. He received his PhD in Islamic Studies from McGill University. His research revolves around Shi’i intellectual history, especially law and legal theory.

More information!

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