Aceh, the northernmost province of Sumatra (known as Serambi Mekah ‘The Verandah of Mecca’) has a wealth of Muslim musical genres and body movement or dance forms. It was one of the first provinces... Show moreAceh, the northernmost province of Sumatra (known as Serambi Mekah ‘The Verandah of Mecca’) has a wealth of Muslim musical genres and body movement or dance forms. It was one of the first provinces of the Malayo-Indonesian archipelago to develop musical art forms associated with Islam. Unlike in many other Muslim societies, the Acehnese have a martial art tradition which is integrated into performances and includes female as well as male heroism. Show less
On Tuesday, 20 October 1998, the International Institute for the Study of Islam in the Modern World (ISIM) celebrated its official opening day. Well over 300 people attended the gathering in the... Show moreOn Tuesday, 20 October 1998, the International Institute for the Study of Islam in the Modern World (ISIM) celebrated its official opening day. Well over 300 people attended the gathering in the renovated Concert Hall of Leiden. It was to become a memorable day, attracting extensive media coverage following protests by Iranian asylum seekers. The morning programme consisted in the more official aspects of the day, featuring an opening speech by State Secretary of Justice and - what sparked off an angry response of the demonstrators - an address by Faezeh Hashemi, member of Parliament of Iran and editor-owner of the oppositional Zanperio dical. The address did not take place. After a short musical intermezzo, the afternoon programme had a more academic tone: a lecture by anthropologist Professor Dale Eickelman and a forum discussion on the format and plans of the ISIM. Show less
Romanian principalities, once known as the 'gates of the Levant', have a history of religious and ethnic diversity. In Romania today, the Muslim population traditionally lives together with the... Show moreRomanian principalities, once known as the 'gates of the Levant', have a history of religious and ethnic diversity. In Romania today, the Muslim population traditionally lives together with the Romanian majority (Christian-Orthodox) in an area called Dobrudja, a territory bordered to the east by the Black Sea, to the west and north by the Danube River and to the south by the Romanian-Bulgarian frontier. Show less
This past July, Istanbul’s Topkapi Palace welcomed the second plenary gathering of the international research programme, Individual and Society in the Mediterranean Muslim World (ISMM), a European... Show moreThis past July, Istanbul’s Topkapi Palace welcomed the second plenary gathering of the international research programme, Individual and Society in the Mediterranean Muslim World (ISMM), a European Science Foundation (ESF) programme headquartered in Strasbourg. Initiated and chaired by Robert Ilbert, professor at the University of Provence and founder/director of the MMSH (Maison M.diterran.enne des Sciences de l’Homme) in Aix-en-Provence (France), ISMM represents a four-year (1996-99) research programme whose major objective is to study pre-defined aspects of the individual within the Mediterranean Muslim context. Show less
Transformation Processes and Islam in Africa was the theme of a conference held on 15 October 1999 at the African Studies Centre (ASC) in Leiden, the Netherlands. The conference was co-sponsored ISIM.
Among the diverse practitioners of Islam in Gujarat, the Sidi stand out for their unique combination of a Sufi saint cult with the veneration of their African ancestry. Members of the small African... Show moreAmong the diverse practitioners of Islam in Gujarat, the Sidi stand out for their unique combination of a Sufi saint cult with the veneration of their African ancestry. Members of the small African Diaspora numbering ca. 6-7000 in Gujarat, trace their origins to slaves from the hinterlands of the East African coast captured and sold to India by Gujarati, Arab and Persian traders till the late 19t h century. Today their descendants, the Sidi, live in ramshackle houses in urban slums or villages at the fringes of Gujarat society. Show less
The important role of women in the recent global rise of religious politics is evident. Some are baffled as to why women are attracted to movements that are often conservative and non-egalitarian... Show moreThe important role of women in the recent global rise of religious politics is evident. Some are baffled as to why women are attracted to movements that are often conservative and non-egalitarian in their gender attitudes. Scholars, however, often give only scant attention to the important role of women and of gender attitudes in religio-political movements - questions concerning veiling or abortion are discussed, but in analysing these movements, attention shifts from women to more male-related questions of political control, terrorism, and the like. The first 1999 issue of the Journal of Women's History is a special issue on women in religious politics worldwide. The articles analyse both comparative questions and culture-specific ones. Show less
Most recent scholarly publications on and interests in political Islam in Lebanon cover primarily Hizbullah, the leading fundamentalist movement in Lebanon. A number of smaller movements, in... Show moreMost recent scholarly publications on and interests in political Islam in Lebanon cover primarily Hizbullah, the leading fundamentalist movement in Lebanon. A number of smaller movements, in particular within the Sunni community, have attracted less attention. Like their Shi'ite counterparts, most of these groups surfaced during the war years, in particular after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982. Show less
Near the coast of equatorial Africa, separated from the continent by a canal some 50 kilometres long, is the island of Zanzibar (Unguja). It is the largest of the coral islands of the eastern coast... Show moreNear the coast of equatorial Africa, separated from the continent by a canal some 50 kilometres long, is the island of Zanzibar (Unguja). It is the largest of the coral islands of the eastern coast of Africa and forms part of a coral reef that extends from the near island of Pemba (al-khudra, the green, or emerald island), to the north, as far as the island of Mafia to the south. It constitutes a type of extraneous coastline to the continent. The city of Zanzibar is situated to the west of the island and its port, one of the best of Africa, allows deep anchorage for the docking of the ships. Zanzibar has always been strategically important due to two fundamentally important points: its proximity to the continent and the monsoons. The regular recurrence of these latter allows continuous contacts with India, the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf; while the closeness of Zanzibar to the coast places it in an ideal position for commerce between the interior of the African continent and the Indian Ocean. Show less
While it may seem surprising that the far-off countries of the North have developed research interest in the Islamic world, a region they have had no colonial or similar relations with, such... Show moreWhile it may seem surprising that the far-off countries of the North have developed research interest in the Islamic world, a region they have had no colonial or similar relations with, such studies have in fact a long tradition in the Nordic countries. While we need not go back to the medieval Viking contact with the inner Mediterranean and the Arab world, both Denmark and Sweden had relations with various Middle Eastern powers from the seventeenth century onwards. Denmark, a maritime power, traded in Moroccan and other ports in North Africa, while Swedish forces in Central Europe came into direct military confrontation with the Ottoman Empire, to which they were allied for a period. Thus, there is little reason to wonder that the universities in the region developed a Middle Eastern interest. Show less
Review of: Ann E lizabeth Mayer Islam and Human Rights: Tradition and Politics 3rd edition. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press, 1998. xix + 260 pp. ISBN (paperback) 0-8133-3504-3
Calls for, and practical attempts of introduction of the sharia laws are the core issue of the contemporary process of Islamic resurgence in the North Caucasus. In 1997 the Chechen Republic... Show moreCalls for, and practical attempts of introduction of the sharia laws are the core issue of the contemporary process of Islamic resurgence in the North Caucasus. In 1997 the Chechen Republic officially proclaimed itself an Islamic State living by the s h a r i a. Despite some shortcomings of the Chechen experience in this respect, the idea of the s h a r i a's enactment is nevertheless getting more public attention and proponents in other north-Caucasian republics, Dagestan in particular. Show less
The Turkic people known as Uyghur will most likely be in the same situation at the beginning of the next millenium as they have been for most of this one: an internally colonized people, subject to... Show moreThe Turkic people known as Uyghur will most likely be in the same situation at the beginning of the next millenium as they have been for most of this one: an internally colonized people, subject to the Chinese nation-state. How this came to be and how it might cease to be so is the subject of this article. I argue that it is through the model of internal colonialism that we might begin to understand how it is the Uyghur, and other indigenous peoples such as Tibetans, now labelled as 'minority nationalities,' have been turned into 'internal colonial subjects' despite being indigenous peoples in lands they once called their own. Through initial occupation, gradual integration through immigration, and finally 'minoritization' as a result of nationality policy, the Uyghur (and perhaps many others like them) have been internally colonized by the Chinese state. Show less
The black veil is still by and large in place, but is the woman behind it in the stereotyped position of subjugation and dominance that much of the world associates with her, especially in the... Show moreThe black veil is still by and large in place, but is the woman behind it in the stereotyped position of subjugation and dominance that much of the world associates with her, especially in the workplace? This article examines the position of Muslim women in the workplace in one of the richest Gulf countries, the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Show less
Scholars from various disciplines have examined many aspects of Muslim migrants' lives but it has only been since the end of the 1980s, that the articulation of Islam has been investigated more... Show moreScholars from various disciplines have examined many aspects of Muslim migrants' lives but it has only been since the end of the 1980s, that the articulation of Islam has been investigated more seriously, leading to the publication of many academic studies. My PhD thesis, 'Around the Mosque - The Religious Lives of Moroccan Immigrants in a Dutch Provincial Town', written in Dutch, constitutes part of this growing academic interest in the religious beliefs and practices of Muslim migrants and their families in the Netherlands. Show less
In recent years, the number of Islamic butchers has been growing at an increasing rate. This brings a few problems with it. Not only are there Dutch regulations for butchers, Muslims also have... Show moreIn recent years, the number of Islamic butchers has been growing at an increasing rate. This brings a few problems with it. Not only are there Dutch regulations for butchers, Muslims also have their own requirements for the meat that they buy. Show less
The relationship between religion and politics, between church and state, has been a well rehearsed issue in Muslim thought and practice, because Islam emerged fully into history as a dual... Show moreThe relationship between religion and politics, between church and state, has been a well rehearsed issue in Muslim thought and practice, because Islam emerged fully into history as a dual tradition of church and state, and because as such Muslims have been less sanguine than Europeans about making a rigid separation between the secular and the sacred, or between the public and private domain. By virtue of such history and by reason of the subsequent Western secular expansion in the Muslim world, there is widespread reaction to the legitimacy of national secular governments among contemporary Muslims. Some of that reaction goes back to the effects of colonial rule. Show less
It is a mass-produced plastic model of the octagonal Dome of the Rock shrine in Jerusalem. Two circular strips of paper glued round it depict the ceramic-faced outer walls. There is a slot for... Show moreIt is a mass-produced plastic model of the octagonal Dome of the Rock shrine in Jerusalem. Two circular strips of paper glued round it depict the ceramic-faced outer walls. There is a slot for coins to be inserted in the roof, and the dome slides off so that coins can be taken out. Mudar, the organiser of the Islamic Zakat Supporting Committee for the Palestinian People, gave me this collecting mosque in Amman, Jordan. I was there conducting a research project to study Islamic philanthropy and obligatory alms (z a k a t). Well, souvenir models of Christian churches are two a penny all over the world, and it would be incredible if some with slots for coins had not been made somewhere; but I do not remember seeing one. Could it be that my gift from Mudar has something to say about a difference between the two religions? Show less