The 2nd Annual Interdisciplinary Research Conference on Near Eastern Studies: A Great Success!

NELC-SA’s second annual research conference on Near Eastern studies–”Spanning Time and Place”–was an incredible success! The presentations covered a wide range of time periods, regions, and topics. From Tunisia to Kyrgyzstan, from the 2nd century Bar Kokhba Revolt to the present-day AK Parti, from comparative literature to public health, the presentations showed the breadth and diversity of research that is possible within Near Eastern studies.  We hope that everyone who partook in the event had an educational, engaging, and dynamic experience. Thank you to all of the presenters, faculty moderators, and attendees, as well as our departmental sponsors and student assistants.

For photos from the conference, please click here or on the photo below (thank you to our photographer for the event, Justin Dunnicliff).

To view the final program guide for the conference, please see:

Program, page 1; Program, p. 2-3

The following was the final conference schedule:

Spanning Time and Place: 2^nd Annual Interdisciplinary Student Research Conference on Near Eastern Studies
Thursday, May 13, 2010, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. | Smith Room, 3^rd Floor of Suzzallo Library, University of Washington
Hosted by the Near Eastern Languages and Cultures Student Association

Conference Schedule

9.00 – 9.20
Welcome reception with introductory remarks by Deena Faruki, Anna Robinson and Ruben Shimonov (snacks and refreshments provided)

9.20 – 9.50
Keynote speech: Professor Walter Andrews

10.00 – 11.00
PANEL 1: Literature and Textual Analysis
Discussant: Professor Jonathan Brown

-Joel Bombardier, Reading Mem u Zin: An Examination of Kurdish Literature and the Development of Kurdish Nationalism
-Matthew Gillman, Situating “the Best” among the Rest: Losing and Finding Metanarrative in Surrat Yusuf
-Amine Tais, Modernist Islamic Reform between Conservatism and Liberalism: The Cases of Tariq Ramadan and Fazlur Rahman
-Sima Daad, Vocations of Tradition in Modern Persian Scholarship: Mohammad Qazvini, Textual Criticism and the Discourse of Modernity in Early 20^th-century Iran

11.00 – 11.10
Break (snacks and refreshments provided)

11.10 – 12.10
PANEL 2: Gender Studies
Discussant: Professor Selim Kuru

-Heather Katinka Hughes, The CPS: A Gendered Symbol of Modernity
-Rebecca Siegel, Reproductive Rights for Women between Muslim Societies
-Sevim Kebeli, Writing in Reverse: Re-writing Muslim Women’s History
-Sheida Aalami, Iranian Family Planning and Fertility Decline

12.10 – 12.25
Break (snacks and refreshments provided)

12.30 – 1.30
Lunch break (conference resumes in one hour)

1.30 – 2.30
PANEL 3: Historical Analyses
Discussants: Professor Hussein Elkhafaifi and Professor Scott Noegel

-Jason Shattuck, Minting a New State: The Coinage of the Bar Kokhba Revolt
-Farah Abdul, Egyptian and American Belly Dance: A Cross-Cultural Examination of Historical Differences and Social Roles
-Nathaniel Greenberg, The Photography of Kāmil al-Chādrjī: An Aesthetic of Democracy in Iraq, circa 1920
-Anna Robinson, Alex Robins, Jessica Tarabay, Khadija Qader, Sara Hefny and Evan Wyse, The Svoboda Diary Project: A Journey through the Ottoman Empire and Europe

2.30 – 2.40
Break (snacks and refreshments provided)

2.40 – 3:40
PANEL 4: Foreign Relations and Transnational Dynamics
Discussants: Professor Daniel Chirot and Professor Frederick Lorenz

-Muhammed Idris, Islamic Finance, an Emerging Alternative: An Analysis of the Islamic Finance Industry in the Context of the Changing Global Financial Industry
-Julia Hon, Looking Westward? Attitudes in the South Caucasus toward the US, NATO and Europe
-Ruben Shimonov, From Friends to Foes: The Deterioration of Soviet-Israeli Relations in the Mid-20^th Century
-Jeanene Mitchell, Turkish Foreign Policy towards Central Asia: A New Era in Sight under the AK Parti?

3.40 – 3.50
Break (snacks and refreshments provided)

3.50 – 4.50
PANEL 5: Internal Socio-Political Dynamics
Discussants: Professor Shaun Lopez and Professor Khodadad Kaviani

-Natalia Martinez-Paz, Ethnic Self-Identification and Education in Bosnia-Hercegovina
-Rachel Peterson, The Rise of Sectarian Violence in North Yemen
-Laura Reader, Stratification in Israel
-Natalia Wobst, Kyrgyz Secondary Educational System since the Disintegration of the Soviet Union

4.50 – 5.00
Closing Remarks

2nd Annual Interdisciplinary Student Research Conference on Near Eastern Studies

Spanning Time and Place: 2^nd Annual Interdisciplinary Student Research Conference on Near Eastern Studies

Date: Thursday, May 13, 2010
Time: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Location: Smith Room, Suzzallo Library, University of Washington

The Near Eastern Languages and Cultures Student Association is proud to host the 2^nd Annual Interdisciplinary Student Research Conference on Near Eastern Studies. The conference will feature presentations by graduate and undergraduate students from an array of disciplines at the University of Washington, allowing them to formally share their research with their peers, professors, and the broader UW community. The twenty presentations cover a broad range of time periods, geographic regions, and topics. Refreshments will be provided, and admission is free and open to the public.

Program highlights include a keynote speech from Dr. Walter Andrews (9:20-9:50), and presentations categorized into the following five panels:

- Literature and Textual Analysis (10:00-11:00)
- Gender Studies (11:10-12:10)
- Historical Analyses (1:30-2:30)
- Foreign Relations and Transnational Dynamics (2:40-3:40)
- Internal Socio-Political Dynamics (3:50-4:50)

For a more detailed conference schedule, please click here.

For other downloadable conference material, see the following links: Conference description, Conference Poster.

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Sponsored by the Ethnic Cultural Center, Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity, Services and Activities Fee Committee, Interdisciplinary Ph.D. Program in Near & Middle Eastern Studies, and Middle East Center of the Jackson School of International Studies, with additional support from the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilization.

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The University of Washington is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation in its services, programs, activities, education and employment for individuals with disabilities. To request disability accommodation contact the Disability Services Office at least ten days in advance at: 206.543.6450/V, 206.543.6452/TTY, 206.685.7264 (FAX), or e-mail at dso@u.washington.edu.

The sponsorship of this event by the Ethnic Cultural Center, Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity, Services and Activities Fee Committee, and Middle East Center does not imply their endorsement of the event’s content.

Rewind: First Annual Interdisciplinary Student Research Conference on Near and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Washington, May 2009

As NELC-SA’s Second Annual Interdisciplinary Student Research Conference on Near Eastern Studies is occurring next Thursday, May 13, we thought it would be nice to reflect on last year’s groundbreaking conference that started it all. Last spring, “Spanning Time and Place” became the first student-run research conference on Near Eastern studies at the University of Washington. The conference brought together both undergraduate and graduate students from an array of disciplines, allowing them to formally share their research with colleagues, professors, and the broader UW community. Broad in scope, the presentations were able to show the wide range of research that is possible within Near Eastern studies. From the informative research presentations to the high attendance rate by students and faculty members from a variety of departments, the conference was a great success. We are confident that this year’s conference will build upon the objectives and accomplishments of last year’s symposium.

Call for abstracts for conference

Poster for Conference

Conference schedule

1st Annual Interdisciplinary Research Conference on Near Eastern Studies

Videos From Our Performing Arts Event Are Up!

We have finally been able to upload the videos of all of the wonderful performances from our performing arts evening last quarter. Oh, what great memories they bring back! Although nothing can replicate seeing these incredible performers in living color, we hope that the videos can give a taste of the remarkable and diverse talent  that was present at the event. So, turn up your speakers, gather a few friends, and enjoy!

NELC Performing Arts 1 from NELC-SA on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 2 from NELC-SA on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 3 from Anna R on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 4 from Anna R on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 5 from Anna R on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 6 from Anna R on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 7 from NELC-SA on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 8 from Anna R on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 9 from Anna R on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 10 from NELC-SA on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 11 from Anna R on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 12 from NELC-SA on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 13 from NELC-SA on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 14 from NELC-SA on Vimeo.

NELC Performing Arts 15 from Anna R on Vimeo.

First meeting of the quarter!

Date: Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Time: 5:30pm – 6:30pm
Location: Ethnic Cultural Center 3931 Brooklyn Ave. Seattle, WA 98105

Welcome back!
Hope everyone had a great break. We’re going to be having our first meeting of the quarter this coming Tuesday. We will be diving headfirst into our big spring event, the interdisciplinary student research conference on Near Eastern studies. Hope you can all make it!
P.S. Since this is the last quarter at UW for many of us, please try to bring someone who might be interested in joining this incredible team! We have to start thinking about “passing on the torch”, so I would really encourage everyone to start advertising the group to your friends, classmates, etc.

Photos From The Performing Arts Event Are Up!

It is amazing to think that a month has already passed since our performing arts festival took place. Thanks to three incredible student photographers (Nadine Aurora Tabing, Justin Dunnicliff, and Rachel Gray), we were able to document and eternalize the momentous event. We hope you enjoy the beautiful photos. For those that attended or performed at the event, we are sure that these photos will bring back great memories. For those that could not come, we hope that the photos give you a little taste of what you were missing!

Performing Arts Event, part 1 (photos by Justin Dunnicliff)

Performing Arts Event, part 2 (photos by Nadine Aurora Tabing)

Performing Arts Event, part 3 (photos by Rachel Gray)

Call for Abstracts: Interdisciplinary Student Conference on Near Eastern Studies

Date of Conference: Thursday, May 13, University of Washington, Seattle Campus

The Near Eastern Languages and Cultures Student Association is requesting abstract submissions for an interdisciplinary student research conference on Near Eastern studies. We invite graduate and upper-division undergraduate students from all UW departments within the social sciences and humanities to submit their abstracts.  Topics from any time period are welcome, so long as they are related to the Near East (North Africa, the Middle East, the Caucasus, and Central Asia).

Please send abstracts (250-300 words) with full name, academic program/year, and paper title by attachment to <nelcsa@u.washington.edu> no later than April 23, 2010.

Last Meeting of the Quarter

Hey guys,
Hope everyone’s weekend is going well. Everyone excited (or insanely stressed?) for the quarter to be over? I know I am a little bit of both

Anyway, we are going to have our last meeting before the quarter is over this week (to reflect on the awesome event we put on, to sign the thank you cards, to talk about the spring research conference, etc.).

We are going to meet this Tuesday, March 9, 6 PM, at the Ethnic Cultural Center (3931 Brooklyn Avenue Northeast, Seattle, WA). I know that everyone is super busy, but it would be great to see you all before the craziness of finals week and then spring break. The meeting won’t be long anyway, so you’ll be back to your studying in no time

The Performing Arts Event Was A Great Success!

NELC-SA’s Near Eastern performing arts festival at the University of Washington was a HUGE success! Thank you so much to all of the wonderful performers, helpers and audience members at our event! It was an absolutely incredible show! Stay tuned for videos and photos from the event! For now, here are a few documents to help you remember the incredible evening.

* Several of the performers from the show have their own websites. If you would like to get more information about these groups and their work, please visit the following:

- Delshodeh Dance Ensemble   http://www.delshodeh.org/

- Karavans Dance Troupe   http://www.karavansdancetroupe.com/

- Anadolu Folk Dancers   http://sites.google.com/site/anadolufolkdancers/

- Sasson Musical Ensemble   http://www.sassonband.com/

To view downloadable documents about the event, please click on the following links:

Front side of program brochure

Back of program brochure

The Reed, the Zil, and the Tambour: Performing Arts of the Near East

The Near Eastern Languages and Cultures Student Association (NELC-SA) invites you to celebrate a special evening that will highlight instrumental, vocal and dance performances inspired by various regions of the Near East, including North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia. Through this unique event, which will feature performances by UW students and local artists, NELC-SA hopes to bring together and engage people in an inclusive environment where they can experience the richness and diversity of Near Eastern cultures.

Date: Sunday, February 28, 2010
Time: 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm (doors open at 6:30 pm)
Location: Ethnic Cultural Theatre
Address: 3940 Brooklyn Ave NE, Seattle, WA 98105

Performing Arts Event Flier