From the Chair:

ELC has a new look - a logowhich we are delighted to featurehere on the first page of this newslet­ter. The logo was designed bygraphic artist and calligrapherMamoun Sakkal, who is an affiliatemember of the NELC faculty.

Also new in NELC is a positionin Biblical Hebrew and HebrewBible. Beginning in 1998-99, NELCand the Jewish Studies Program inthe Jackson School of InternationalStudies expect to share a jointappointment in this field, madepossible by the Samuel and AltheaStroum Endowment. This welcome

Professor Scott Noegel

development wi II strengthen theprograms in both departments.NELC lost a position in HebrewBible and Ancient Semi tics in 1983;reestablishing this very important

area of study is cause for real opti­mism. While the details of thepermanent appointment are beingworked out, NELC will have a one­year visiting position, to be filled byScott Noegel. Dr. oegel taughtcourses for ELC when he was aCole Fellow in the Jewish StudiesProgram in 1995-96. We are verypleased to have him back and lookforward to his course offerings onHebrew, biblical topics, Themes inAncient Near Eastern Literature, andEgyptian Hieroglyphs.

There is considerable otherpersonnel news to report this year aswell. Terri De Young has beenpromoted to Associate Professorwith Tenure. Assistant ProfessorKemal Sitay. much to our disap­pointment, has taken a position atIndiana University. This is a greatloss for our Turkish program, but weunderstand that he received an offertoo good to tum down. We also bidfarewell this year to CharlotteAlbright, Adjunct Instructor inNELC, who has moved to GreatBritain with her family. AffiliateAssistant Professor Don Slito, too.has left for the Continent; he hastaken a position in Goettingen,Germany, conducting research onVafsi, a language spoken in Iran.We wish all of these colleagues ofours good luck in their new endeav­ors.

Next year we will welcomeback Dr. Hillel Gamoran, who forseveral years has taught Introductionto the Talmud. In the coming yearwe will also be fortunate to host Dr.Alma Kunanbaeva to teach CentralAsian Oral Traditions in a ChangingWorld. Dr. Deborah Wheeler will

teach Introduction to Islamic Civili­zation, plus several other coursesrelated to the Near East sponsored byother units on campus. Dr. MonicaDevens will contribute to the instruc­tion of modern Hebrew. We arepleased that Professor EmeritusPierre MacKay was available tooffer courses for NELC this year,and that he will continue to teach inthe coming year.

We thank Dr. Nader Nazemifor teaching Introduction to IslamicCivilization in NELC in the pastacademic year, and we thank Dr.Michael Shalev for teaching FromZionism to Liberalism: Labor,Capital and The State in Israel.Please note, too, that many of ourgraduate students have taughtcourses for ELC this year. (See" ews from our Students" fordetails.) Thanks to all of them for theimportant role they have played inour instructional program.

Finally, the leadership of theDepartment will also be changing. Iwill be taking on the position ofChair of the Jewish Studies Programstarting in summer 1997. ProfessorMichael Williams has been ap­pointed Acting Chair of NELC for1997-98. On behalf of the entirefaculty, I welcome him and lookforward to working with him in thecommg year.

As I wind up my responsibilitiesas Chair of NELC, I extend specialthanks to the NELC office staff,Jane Lund and MarianSchwarzenbach for all the goodwork they have done to sustain thedepartment.

Naomi Sokoloff

Prof Farhat Ziadeh recei ved theSpirit of Liberty Award presented bythe Ethnic Heritage Council on July 4,1997 at the swearing-in ceremony fornaturalized citizens at the Flag Pavil­ion at the Seattle Center. The award,which was presented by Representa­tiveJim McDermott, is given to a natu­ralized American citizen who has con­tributed lhe most to American publiclife and also to his or her own heritage.

Detail ofa wall tile. Near EastCollection, Seattle Art Museum

NearEast Reports...News from the Faculty 3

From our Students 8

Departmental Events 9

Student Organizations 9

Students at Model Arab League

Conference 10

Nicholas Poppe Symposium 11

Public Lectures 12

~ The Near East Reports

Chairpersonaomi B. SokololT

ProfessorsCirtautas, lise D.. Ph.D.. 1958, Hamburg; Turkic languages and literatures.Heer, Nicholas L., (Emeritus); Ph.D., 1955. Princeton; Arabic language andliterature, Islamic theology and philosophy.MacKay, Pierre A., (Computer Science), (Classics, Comparative Literature);Ph.D., 1964, California (Berkeley); Topography of the Near East, Ottoman Turkishand Classical Arabic literatures.Ziadeh, Farhat J., (Emeritus); LL.B., 1940, London; Arabic language and litera­ture. Islamic law, Islamic institutions.

Associate ProfessorsDeYoung, Terri L.. Ph.D., 1988, California (Berkeley); Arabic language andliterature.Karimi·Hakkak, Ahmad, Ph.D., 1979, Rutgers; Persian language and literature.SokololT, Naomi B.. Ph.D., 1980, Princeton; Hebrew language and literature.

AssislOlIl ProfessorsSilay, Kemal, Ph.D., 1993, Indiana; Turkish language and literature.Wheeler, Brannon, Ph.D., 1993, University of Chicago; ear Eastern Languagesand Civilization, History of Religions.

Adjunct ProfessorsBacharach, Jere L., (History, International Studies); Ph.D., 1967, Michigan;History of the Near East.JalTee, Martin S.. (International Studies); Ph.D., 1980. Brown University; Historyof Judaism and late antiquiry, methods in study of religion.Williams, Michael A., (International Studies); Ph.D., 1977. Harvard; Early Chris·tianity and religions of antiquity.

Affiliate ProfessorAndrews, Walter G.. Ph.D., 1970, Michigan; Turkish language and literature,Ottoman Turkish.

Affiliate Assistant ProfessorsMacKay, Theodora, Ph.D., 1968, Bryn Mawr; Publications, ancient Anatolia.Pyne, Nannelle, Ph.D.. 1982, Washington; Medieval Near Eastern history,geography and archaeology.

Affiliate InstructorSakkal, Mamoun, M. Arch, 1982, Washington; History of Islamic art and archi­lecture.

Teaching Assistants 1996-97Arabic: Mostafa Elostaz,

Suha Kudsieh,Dustin Langan,Amara Simons,Ahmed Souaiaia

Hebrew: Andrea Arai,Ricky Rivlin

Persian: Hadi Sultan-QurraieTurkish: Nilufer Pallerson,

Ozlem SensoyUzbek: Hamit ZakirIntroduction to Hebrew Bible: Karen Winslow

NEWS FROM THEFACULTY

Professor Walter Andrews hascompleted a new book of translations,01101/1(1/1 Lyric Poetry, prepared with

ajaat Black and Mehmet Kalpakli(University of Texas Press). InOctober Professor Andrews gave apaper at Bol\azi9i University inIstanbul for a conference on Transla­tion Theory ("Staning Over Again:Some Suggestions for RethinkingOttoman Divan Poetry in the Contextof Translation and Transmission").In March he gave a paper at theUniversity of Chicago called "OtherSelves, Other Poets, and the OtherLiterary History", and in May hepresented "Professional Companions:The Backstage Bawdy History ofPoets' Lives in thc 16th CenturyOttoman Coun" at a Turkish StudiesAssociation conference in Knoxville.The Turkish translation of his book,Poetry's Voice, Society's Song, willbe published in Turkey in the fall ofthis year. In addition, ProfessorAndrews made presentations to theTurkish Circle and conducted a videointerview with Turkish author, OrhanPamuk, who visited the University ofWashington in March.

Professor Jere L. Bacharachcontinues to serve as Director of TheJackson School of InternationalStudies while also wearing a numberof other administrative hats on andoff campus. One of his most timeconsuming but interesting activitieswas chairing the U.W.'s Provost'sCommittee on Accountability.Accountability is a national issue andthe U.W. is one of the leaders increating measures which moreaccurately renect the multiple.interrelated roles faculty have aseducators, researchers, publishingscholars, and contributors to societythrough outreach and public serviceactivities. Professor Bacharach'sprofessional service included servingon the Board of Directors, MiddleEast Studies Association, and co­Chairing the Local ArrangementsCommittee for the American Histori­cal Association's January 1998

meeting, which will be held inSeattle. Travel. as always, is pan ofhis life, and one of the trips foundhim in Israel, Jordan and Kuwait,where he was negotiating withrepresentatives of a number ofuniversities for U.W. student andfaculty exchanges.

Squeezing in time for researchin addition to his administrativework and teaching responsibilitieshas been hard, but ProfessorBacharach plans to share some of theresults of his continuing work onIslamic numismatics at an interna­tional conference in Budapest inearly July. It is rumored that theopponunity to visit Hungary playeda pan in motivating him. During thelast academic year the volume he hasco-edited of the papers of MartinHinds was published by DarwinPress of Princeton. His current workalso involves contributing to avolume on Islamic archaeology inEgypt which he is editing.

In Summer 1996 Professor liseCirtautas directed the Department'sEighth Summer Program in CentralAsian Languages and Culture. SInce1989 the summer programs haveallracted students from other univer­sities. Many of them subsequentlyentered the Depanment's GraduateProgram. As in previous summersthe languages offered were Kazakh.Kirghiz. Tajik and Uzbek. A richextracurricular program of lectures,discussions and films immersed thestudents in the culture and history ofCentral Asia. The Summer SchoolPerformance Pany, August II, wasagain the highlight of the program.Students performed sketches, recitedpoetry and told stories in the lan­guages they had studied. For severalyears now videotapes of the perfor­mances have been shown onTashkent TV, Professor Cinautasagain received several letters ofappreciation, including a personalletter from Islom Karimov, Presidentof Uzbekistan. A generous grantfrom the State Department (Title

VllI), administered through theSocial Science Research Council,provided fellowships for most of thestudents.

In September 1996 ProfessorCinautas concluded her project on"Kazakh, Kirghiz and Uzbek Ad­vanced Teaching Materials for Self­Study." For each of the three lan­guages she developed A Reader inCurrent Affairs, and ListeningMaterials, based on TV and Radioprograms from Tashkent, Almaty andBishkek. The project had receivedsubstantial funding from the U.S.Government through the LanguageLearning Center.

At the stan of the academic year,in Autumn 1996. Professor Cinautashosted the following scholars fromKirghizstan: Dr. AygulMusakojoeva, funded throughACCELS and Dr. Akinay Satarova,Fulbright scholar. She also was hostto Dr. Diinara Isamiddinova, IREXscholar from Uzbekistan. In ovem­ber 1996 Professor Cirtautas hostedHis Excellency Sodik Sofoev,Ambassador of Uzbekistan to theUnited States and the United Nations.She gave a reception in his honor forstudents and faculty and arrangedmeetings for him with UW adminis­trators.

From March 8 though 14Professor Cirtautas visitedUzbekistan as a guest of the Govern­ment of Uzbekistan. She was theofficial representative of the Univer­sity of Washington in a delegation ofSeattle's business and communityleaders. In Tashkent she had meet­ings with high-level officials, includ­ing the Minister of Higher Educationand the Minister of Culture. She alsomet with the new president ofTashkent State University anddiscussed with him revisions of theexchange agreement between theUniversity of Washington andTashkent State University. signed inJanuary 1997.

She is currently finishing a bookmanuscript, Historical Dictionary ofKirghi;:stan, to be published byScarecrow Press, Boston, for theseries, Asian Historical Dictionaries.

Probably the most imponantchange for Professor TerriDeYoung this year in the academicfield was the official notification onApril 25 of her promotion to Associ-

Volume 10, Summer, 1997~

NEWS FROM THE FACULTY

ate Professor with tenure in theNELC Department. She wishes totake this opportunity to thank all hercolleagues whose support andencouragement over the past fewyears has been warmly appreciated.

[n Autumn Quarter she had achance to teach for the University'sHonors Program, in are-vampedversion of a non-Western civilizationcourse sequence that also includednew offerings by Professor Karimi(in Winter Quarter) and ProfessorSi[ay (in Spring Quarter). In WinterQuarter she was able to offer a newcourse, for Arabic majors in theDepartment, on Arab-Americanwriters, focusing on the Mahjarmovement of the [890's to the[930's. The course looked at anumber of influential Americanwriters who emigrated from the Arabworld, including Kah[i[ Gibran(author of The Prophet) and Mikha'i[Nu'ayama(a 1916 graduate of theUniversity of Washington LawSchool). Because of the enthusiasmand interest this course generated,Professor DeYoung hopes to be ableto offer a version of it in translationfor non-majors in the near future.

In Spring Quarter, ProfessorDeYoung was appointed a TeachingFellow in the University ofWashington's Center for the Hu­manities where she taught a graduateseminar in the subject of her currentresearch: "Others or Brothers:Episodes in the History of theIslamic Encounter with Europe."This course (and the book which willemerge from it) has been exploring,through the lens of varied versionsand extensions of the frame-story ofThe Thousand and One Nights-inboth Western and Arabic litera­tures-how perceptions of theWesternlEastern "other" have beenshaped by the dynamic and oftentense encounters between bothcultures.

In other areas of ProfessorDeYoung's research agenda, sherecently completed her share of theediting for Tradition and Modernityin Arabic Literature, a collection ofessays by major figures in the fieldof Arab literature. Her own book,

~ The Near East Reports

Placing the Poet: Badr Shakir al­Sayyab and Postcolonial Iraq, is dueout at the beginning of 1998. Inaddition, she plans to submit arevised version of her Ph.D. disserta­tion, on the role of myth in modernArabic poetry, for publicationsometime this summer. The publica­tion of this work will allow her tohonor one of the last requests madeto her by Professor Mounah Khouribefore his untimely death lastDecember. Finally, ProfessorDeYoung is in final stages of prepar­ing two major articles slated forpublication in the near future. Thefirst, "Death, Love, and the Ghost ofal-Khansa: the Female Poetic Voicein Fadwa Tuqan'sa's Elegies for HerBrother Ibrahim," is due to appear ina volume of essays tentatively titled,Literary Creativity and SocialChange: Essays in Modem ArabicLiterature, edited by Wael Hallaq ofMcGill University. The secondarticle, tentatively titled, "'Say! [nthe Name of Your Lord': Dialogueand the Generic Code of theQur'an," should be ready for publi­cation in the autumn.

Professor Martin Jaffee'sspeaking engagements this past yeartook him to Berlin, where he ad­dressed the Berlin-BrandenburgischeAkademie der Wissenschaften on"The Oral-Cultural Matrix of theTalmud Yerushalmi." The talk waspart of a larger meeting of scholarsfrom Israel, Europe and the US on"Text & Context: The TalmudYerushalmi in its Graeco-RomanSetting." Professor Jaffee alsodelivered lectures at the AnnualMeeting of the American Academyof Religion and the Graduate Centerof the City University of New York.In his role as Chair of the Associa­tion of Jewish Studies section on"Talmud, Midrash and Rabbinics,"he organized a special session on"Orality and the Shaping of RabbinicLiterature."

In 96-97 a number of ProfessorJaffee's long-term writing projectsreached publication. In addition toarticles in Prooftexts, Journal of theAmerican Academy ofReligion, and

Theory and Method in the SllIdy ofReligions, Professor Jaffee publishedtwo books: Jews, Christians,Muslims: A Comparative Introduc­tion to Monotheistic Religions(Prentice Hall; co-authored with J.Corrigan, F. Denny, and C. Eire) andReader in Monotheistic Religions(Prentice Hall; co-edited withCorrigan, Denny, and Eire). Thesebooks are designed to serve introduc­tory university instruction in thecomparative study of religion.

During the academic year,Professor Jaffee continued his workas Chair of the Comparative ReligionProgram, served on numerousJackson School and College Com­mittees, and spoke on various topicsto such local groups as UW Hille[and Washington Physicians forSocial Responsibility.

Professor Ahmad Karimi­Hakkak taught a full slate ofcourses last year, published Remem­bering the Flight (Ayandeh Publica­tions, Vancouver, B.C. 1997), histranslations of Forugh Farrokhzad'sPersian poems, and continued towork on two edited works of literaryscholarship. Two of his essays, oneon Persian literature in 1996 and theother a biography of the medievalPersian poet Ibn Yamin, werepublished, the former in The Ency­clopedia Britannica Yearbook for1996, the latter in TheEncyclopaedia Iranica (VolumeVllI, fascicle I). [n addition, hepublished several Persian articlesand book reviews in Iran Nameh andMehregan.

Last year Professor Karimipresented papers at three scholarlygatherings. In November he partici­pated in the annual conference ofThe Middle East Studies Association(MESA). [n March and April he wasinvited to the University of Virginiaand the University of California atBerkeley. In both universities hepresented lectures on aspects of thePersian ghazal of India. At Berke­ley, he also addressed the Iraniancommunity in Northern Californiaon his approach to modernity inPersian poetry. Beginning in Janu-

ary 1997, Professor Karimi has beenasked to share his views on variousaspects of Persian literature with thelisteners of KRSI, the Iranianexpatriate radio in Los Angeles. Aspart of his service to general audi­ences for Persian literature andIranian culture, he participates in thisprogram on an honorary basis everyWednesday evening by introducing aliterary topic and taking calls fromthe listeners.

In May The Society for IranianStudies and The American Instituteof Iranian Studies jointly askedProfessor Karimi to accept to be theconvenor of the Second BiennialConference on Iranian Studies, to beheld in Washington, DC in May1998. The Conference will bringtogether scores of scholars from

orth America and Europe, as wellas from Iran and other Persian­speaking countries.

Dr. Scott B. Noegel received aBA in Hebrew Studies and Historyfrom the University of Wisconsin­Milwaukee in 1989 and his M.A. andPh.D. degrees in Semitic Languagesand Literature from Cornell Univer­sity in 1993 and 1994, respectively.He then served as a consultant on

ancient Egyptian language andhistory for the Discovery Channel'sCD-ROM project Nile "Passage toEgypt." From 1995-96 Dr. negelpursued a post-doctorate position asthe Hazel Cole Fellow in JewishStudies in the Jewish StudiesProgram here at UW. In 1996-97 hewas Visiting Assistant Professor atRice University in Houston, TX.His publications include nearlythirty articles on diverse topicsconcerning biblical and ancient earEastern languages and literatures,two dozen book reviews, and amonograph on wordplay in theHebrew Bible and other ancientNear Eastern texts ["Janus Parallel­ism in Job" (JSOT Sup 223;Sheffield: Sheffield AcademicPress, 1996)]. Scott is now in theprocess of completing two addi­tional monographs; the first on thelinguistic evidence for the northerndialect of the biblical Song of Songs(co-authored with Gary A.Rendsburg of Cornell University)and the second on the ambiguouslanguage of dream interpretation inthe ancient Near East.

Mamoun Sakkal, NELC'sAffiliate Instructor and renownedexpert in Arabic calligraphy, hasappeared in a featured guest inter­view on the television programOffLine. OffLine, a nationallydistributed cable arts program basedin upstate ew York, receives local,regional, and national exposure andairs in more than forty cities nation­wide. The interview focuses on Mr.Sakkal's artistic and personalhistory, his artistic approaches andphilosophy, his reinterpretation ofhis Arab and Islamic heritage inmodern works of art, and on his mostrecent accomplishments in 3-Dcomputer design.

Mr. Sakkal's interview placeshim among other well-knownOffLine interviewees, includingcomposer Philip Glass, Kitchen co­founder Steina Vasulka, San Fran­cisco filmmaker Craig Baldwin, NewYork kinetic sculptor and inventor,George Rhoads, Seattle's avante popgroup Tall, and Thelma

Schoonmaker, Martin Scorcese'sfilm editor. In Seattle, OffLine airson the first and third Monday nightsof every month after midnight at12:30 am on TCI, Channel 29. Formore information see: http://www.lightlink.com/offl ine.

In March of 1997 Mr. Sakkallaunched an Internet web site aboutArabic calligraphy, with articles.calligraphic prints, Arabic calligra­phy clip art, and instruction oncalligraphic design. The site isvisited by more than a thousandviewers every month, and hasallowed Mr. Sakkal to do calli­graphic and web design work forclients in Japan, the Netherlands, andSaudi Arabia. For more informationsee: http://www.sakkal.com.

His calligraphic an was in­cluded in the" Art by Architects"exhibition at Seattle AlA, and wasprominently featured in the Autumn1996 issue of Arts and the IslamicWorld, the premier magazine aboutIslamic art published in London. Thearticle reviewed the exhibition"Inscription as Art in the World ofIslam," in which Mr. Sakkal dis­played his calligraphic work, gave aworkshop demonstration, anddelivered a paper about "ArabicCalligraphy in the Digital Age."

In addition to designing the newlogotype for NELC, he designedlogotypes, posters, and coversincorporating Arabic calligraphy forIslamic Media Foundation, AI-JadidMagazine, Arabic Yellow Pages, andIslamic Society of orth America.

Assistant Professor KemalSilay continued to teach Turkish andTurkish Literature in Translation to asizable number of students in the1996-97 academic year. In theSpring Quarter, he also offeredCultural History of the OttomanEmpire and Modern Turkey to 35students as pan of the HonorsProgram's "History of WorldCivilization" sequence.

After the publication of hisbook, An Anthology of TurkishLiterature, which was welcomedwith great enthusiasm by specialistsof Medieval and Modern Near

Volume 10, Summer, 1997~

NEWS FROM THE FACULTY

MIT Bllllelill edited b)' Professor Kemal Sila}'

After teaching advanced Arabicand a seminar on "Knowledge andAuthority" during the Fall quarter,Professor Brannon Wheeler traveledto Kuwait to spend nine months as aVisiting Professor at the College ofShariah and Islamic Studies, KuwaitUniversity. While in Kuwait, Brannonhas been giving public and university

Summer 1997) and "Sleuths andSages: Detective Fiction by AmericanJewish Women" (accepted for publi­cation in Midstream). She is guest­editing an issue of Shofar on the topicof Israel and America as perceived inone another's literature.

Over the past year ProfessorSokoloff has presented aspects of herwork at a number of conferences andpublic lectures: "Israel-DiasporaRelations: Unraveling the Mystery ofthe Other" (at The Council of JewishFederations General Assembly.Seattle. Nov. 1996); "InvestigatingIsraeli Society: The Detective Fictionof Faye Kellerman and Batya Gur" (atthe ELC Colloquium, ov. 1996);"Jews in American Popular Literature:The Detective Fiction of RochelleMajer Krich" (at the AJS convention,Boston. Dec. 1996); "Popular Fictionby American Jewish Women" (at theWestern Jewish Studies Association,Tucson, April 1997); "InvestigatingJewish Identity: Detective Fiction inIsrael and America" (at "ManyVoices, Many Choices," a symposiumorganized by Hadassah , UW, April1997). Professor Sokoloff has helpedorganize a panel on 'The American­ization of Israel" for the MESA annualconference in San Francisco (Nov.1997), and will present a paper thereon "Detecting Cultural Difference:Crime Fiction in ContemporaryIsrael." This interdisciplinary sessionis sponsored by the Association forIsrael Studies. In addition, she willparticipate in a panel called "Translat­ing Israel: On the Reception ofHebrew Literature in America" at theAJS convention in Dec. 1997.

Professor Sokoloff continues toserve on the board of Directors of theAssociation for Jewish Studies, andshe is a member of the Board ofDirectors of Hillel, Foundation forJewish Campus Life.

_ ..._---_... " $ ...... -

Professor Naomi Sokoloff hasbeen appointed Director of TheJewish Studies Program at theUniversity of Washington for athree-year term, beginning in 1997­98. In her research she has beenpursuing work in two sometimesoverlapping areas: the first ispopular fiction by Jewish writers,and the second is literary representa­tions of Israelis by American Jewsand of American Jews by Israelis.Her recent publications dealing withthese issues include "Jewish Myster­ies: Detective Fiction by FayeKellerman and Batya Gur" (Shofar

Ottoman Court Poetry and thePolitics of Postmodernism," at theAmerican Comparative LiteratureAssociation Meeting in PuertoVallarta, Mexico (April 10-13,1997); and "The 'Destruction ofOttoman Literature' in ModernTurkey: A Postmodernist Myth," atPrinceton University (April 23.1997), Professor Silay also gave apresentation on the "Usage andProduction of Multimedia in Teach­ing Language and Literature" at the"Central Asian Language PedagogyWorkshop" organized by the SocialScience Research Council (June 6-7,1997) in WaShington, D.C.

Eastern Literatures, he continuedworking on his many other ongo­ing publication projects. Hefinished editing TlIrkish Folkloreand Oral Literatllre: SelectedEssays of IIhan Basgo~, which iscurrently in print and scheduled toappear by the end of 1997 fromIndiana University Press. Alsoscheduled to appear very soon ishis article entitled, "Singing HisWords: Medieval OttomanWomen Poets and the Power ofPatriarchy," in Women in theOuoman Empire (edited byMadeline Zilfi (Leiden: EJ. Brill.1997). In addition, he has finisheda review of Orhan Pamuk's 'TheNew Life." which will appear inWorld Literatllre Today. TheClIl/llres of Islam project, which isunder contract with the Universityof Washington Press, continues toadvance. This book, edited bySilay and Nanette Pyne, is expectedto be published in 1998.

Professor Silay's most recentproject is TlIrkish Poellyon CD­ROM, for which he received anInstitute of Turkish Studies grant.He will be traveling this summer toTurkey to collect video and audiodata which he will digitize and editupon his return. He also expects torecord interviews with severalcontemporary poets of Turkey anddigitize them as video clips for theCD-ROM.

Among his numerous academicpresentations this year were: "Be­hind the Veil of Rhyme: OttomanWomen Poets," del ivered at theUniversity of Wisconsin-Madison.sponsored by the Middle East Centerand the Department of ComparativeLiterature (October 3, 1996); "TheStudy of Ottoman Poetry: Prospectsfor the Twenty-First Century." at the30th Annual Meeting of the MiddleEastern Studies Association inProvidence, Rhode Island (Novem­ber 22-24. 1996); ."All Poets AreLiars': egotiating Challenges inthe Divan-i Mihri," at the 30thAnnual Meeting of the MiddleEastern Studies Association as partof the panel entitled, "ComparativePoetics in Middle Eastern Poetries";"Waking the Dead: (Re)Creations of

The Near East Reports

lectures, auditing courses, speakingto faculty at the College of Shariah,and pursuing research on Islam incontemporary Kuwaiti society. Inpan, this research includes a study ofIslamic road signs, mosques, andlslamist movements in Kuwait. Hehas also been continuing his researchon the growth of the Quranic sci­ences and their relation to thedevelopment of Islamic law.

While abroad, ProfessorWheeler has been invited to deliver anumber of lectures in the MiddleEast and orth Africa. In Februaryhe delivered a lecture entitled "al­'Aql ft ikhtilafal-fuqaha 'ala takhrijahkam al-shariah mi1l usuli-ha" atthe Ashab al-Qalam in Hawally,Kuwait. In April he gave a series oflectures in Arabic at the Universityof Sidi Muhammad b. Abdallah(Fes). Ibn Zuhr University (Aqadir)and at USIS (Rabat), all in Morocco.In May he is giving a series oflectures at the University of Sana'ain Yemen. He has also been invitedto present a paper on the Quran andTorah at the Institute for Graeco­Oriental and African Studies inNeopoli of Laconia at the Universityof Ionnina in Greece, and his paperon "Heavy Eyeballs and Regurgitat­ing Fish" was accepted for presenta­tion at the 12th World Congress ofJewish Studies in Jerusalem.Brannon was also fortunate to visitDubai, Cairo, Bahrain, and AbuDhabi to further some of this re­search.

Professor Wheeler's first book,Applying the Canon in Islam: TheAlithori~ation and Maintenance ofInterpretive Reasoning in HanaftScholarship, was published bySUNY after he joined the faculty atthe UW. His article entitled, "Mosesor Alexander?" was accepted forpublication in the Joumal ofNearEastem Studies, and another article,"The Jewish Origins of Quran 18:60­65?" was finished and accepted forpublication in the Joumal of theAmerican Oriemal Society. Brannoncontinues his work as editor for theIslam section of Religious StudiesReview and his editing of a contrib­uted volume on Teaching Islam as aReligion.

Deborah L. Wheeler wasawarded a Council on the ForeignExchange of Scholars SeniorFulbright Research Grant to Kuwaitfor 1996-97. Dr. Wheeler is study­ing "New Communications Tech­nologies and the Security of IslamicValues," a topic upon which she iscurrently writing a book. In Kuwait,she has had a position as a VisitingProfessor in the Department ofPolitical Science. She has givenseveral lectures at the University andhas served as a consultant andadvisor on Information Technologyand Society issues at several govern­ment organizations and pri vatesector corporations. Moreover, theKuwait Institute for ScientificResearch has invited her to return toKuwait to be a keynote speaker at aconference they are organizing forspring of 1998 on Kuwait's Informa­tion Future. Deborah has been askedby one of Kuwait's leading thinkers,Dr. Muhammad al-Rumaihi, and theMinistry of Information to applyjointly for a research grant from theKuwait Foundation for the Advance­ment of Science to focus upon theimpact of satellite TV and theInternet on Kuwait's nationalconsciousness and global economicfuture.

In the course of the year, Dr.Wheeler has been the guest of theAmerican Cultural Center in Dam­ascus, Syria, where she deliveredtwo lectures. The first was entitled,"al-SllQbakah wa al-bahth al- 'asri"and the second, "The EconomicImpact of the Information Age onthe Middle East." Over 70 peopleattended each lecture and learnedabout a technology which is stillofficially illegal in Syria. TheMoroccan-American Commissioninvited her to lecture at the Univer­sity of Fez. the University of Agadir,and the U.S. Embassy in Rabat.

In addition to work on theinformation revolution in the MiddleEast, Dr. Wheeler is preparing forpublication a book for the Universityof Texas Press, entitled, "TheDiplomacy of Popular Culture in thePalestinian-Israeli Conflict." Theexpected publication date is 1998.

This year Dr. Wheeler experimentedwith publishing an article in a newelectronic journal called "Monitors, AJoumal of HI/man Riglus and Tech­nology" (http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/-monitors) which has given her theopportunity to reach a global audi­ence. The article published withMonitors is called "In Praise of theVirtual Life?" It looks at the develop­ment, spread and impact of newcommunications technologies in thelslamic world, focusing upon theeconomic, political and cultural effectsof the Internet and satellite TV. In thefuture she plans to publish anotherarticle electronically in which videoimages drawn from her research in theVanderbilt University TelevisionNews Archive can be included asvisual and audio texts.

Dr. Wheeler looks forward toreturning to the UW to teach two newcourses: one on Islam and Technol­ogy, which will focus on responses inthe Islamic world to the Age ofInformation, and another on theGlobal Information Infrastructureproject, which will consider theimpact of the Virtual Age on pro­cesses of international relations.

Professor Emeritus Farhat J.Ziadeh continued his research inIslamic law and institutions. Hisarticle entitled, "CompellingDefendant's Appearance at Court inIslamic Law", which comparedIslamic law and Roman law on thesubject, appeared in Islamic Law andSociety. He completed a chapter onIslamic law and jurisprudence to beincluded in the proposed volumeedited by colleagues Nanette Pyne andKemal Silay on Islamic civilization.He conducted a seminar session at TheJackson School, taught one readingcourse. served on a Ph.D. committee.and is presently assisting two graduatestudents in reading courses. He wasthe main speaker at a function honor­ing the late Professor Nouri Alkhaledyat Portland State University, andlectured to various schools and civicgroups in the Seattle area. As aservice to the profession, he reviewedthe work of colleagues at otherinstitutions for purposes of publicationor promotion.

Volume 10, Summer, 1997 ..,

FROM OUR STUDENTS ~~

Student Fellowships

Erdag Giiknar has received a William Chester FritzScholarship for 1997-98 from the College of Arts and Sciences.to pursue his studies in the field of Turkish.

The following M.A. and Ph.D. students have receivedMaurice and Lois Schwartz Fellowships to funher international..education: Tasia Asakawa, Elmira KiichiimkulkJz"i, OzlemSensoy, Suha Kudsieh, and Ben Smith. In addition, (hlemSensoy has received a W.W. Stout Fellowship from The Gradu­ate School to supplement the Schwartz award in suppol1 of herstudy and research in Turkey. ELC gratefully acknowledgesthe suppon of The Graduate School.

Incoming M.A. student. Deirdre MacDonald, has beenawarded a NELC Fellowship.

Incoming M.A. student. Scott Prada, has been awardedsuppol1 from the Nicholas Poppe Fund.

Sally Farhat has been awarded a Batteh Scholarship for1997-98.

Ken Petersen has been appointed a GSA with the Lan­guage Learning Center.

The following students have been appointed as TA' s inNELC in 1997-98:

Arabic: Alex Elinson. Suha KudsiehHebrew: Ricky RivlinPersian: Fevziya BarlasTurkish: Erdag Goknar (Fall and Spring)

Chiem Sensoy (Winter)

Maureen Jackson, a student ofProfessor Kemal Silay, was awardedthe James W. Redhouse prize forbest progress in the Turkish languagefor 1995-96 by the American Asso­ciation of Teachers of Turkic Lan­guages and the Turkish StudiesAssociation.

Zamyat Kirby received a grantto study Arabic in Tangier, Moroccothis summer in a program adminis­tered by Georgetown and the Ameri­can Institute for Maghribi Studies.

Elmira KiichiimkuJkJzl is agraduate exchange student in NELC.Her area of concentration is the oralliterature of the Central Asian Turkicpeoples. Upon receiving her M.A. inJune, 1998, Elmira is planning to goback to her home country,IGrghizstan, and teach at the Univer­sity of Humanities in Bishkek. OnMay 23 and May 26, 1997 Elmiraperformed IGrghiz songs accompa­nied by the kOlllllZ (three-stringedfretless lute) and recited episodesfrom the epic Mal/as at the North­west Folklife Festival in Seattle.

Amara Simons has completedher second year of studies in theDepartment. It has been a busy yearfor Amara, as she has assisted withthe Elementary Arabic course, bothin the Summer with Nancy Dietrich,and in the Fall and Winter Quarterswith Ahmed Souaiaia. In addition toher teaching responsibilities, Amarahas served as a Staff Associate in theLanguage Learning Center, whereshe helped to organize and maintain

ELC audio and video resources, aswell as to explore the latest advancesin pedagogical technology.

Amara has been awarded aForeign Language Area StudiesFellowship for the Summer, 1997and for the 1997-98 academic year.This summer, Amara will travel toMorocco to study Colloquial Moroc­can Arabic and Modem StandardArabic at the Arabic LanguageInstitute in Fes. She will return inthe Fall to complete the requirementsfor the Master's degree. Amaraplans to graduate from the Depart­ment in June of 1998 with a majorconcentration in Arabic, a minorconcentration in Hebrew, and a

~ The Near East Reports

specialization in the translation ofmedieval literary texts.

Hadi Sultan-Qurraie com­pleted his Ph.D. in ComparativeLiterature in Spring 1997. Hisdissertation, "Modernity al/d/del/tit)' iI/ A:eri Literatllre: MO}lI:ofShabllstar al/d the lralliall COllsti­tlltiol/a/ Era, " focuses on an IranianAzeri poet who has virtually re­mained unknown in his homeland,let alone anywhere outside it. MirzaAli Mo'juz of Shabustar (1874­1934) was an Iranian Azeri poet whochose to write his poetry not inPersian, the dominant language inmodern Iran, but in Azeri Turkishwhich had been historically sup­pressed as a means of literary

communication. Besides introducingMo'juz to the non-Azeri audience,Hadi's dissertation tries to define alocus for the poet in the literature ofthe Iranian Constitutional Era.

As a full-time Teaching Associ­ate Dr. Sultan-Qurraie is teachingPersian in the NELC Department.Hadi has been active in ELClecturing on the topics relevant to hisarea of research. His paper on "TheProblems of Identity and the AzeriAuthors of Post-Constitutional Iran"presented in the I996 meeting ofMESA was applauded by manylisteners, and he had interviews withShabake-ye Aftab (A Persian TVChannel) as well as Voice ofAmerica's Azeri program. Hadi

taught in Portland State Universitylast summer and he will teach inBerkeley in the Summer of 1997.

During the 96-97 year Ph.D.student Karen Winslow taughtIntroduction to the Hebrew Bible atthe University of Washington andSeattle Pacific University andWomen in the Christian Tradition atSeattle Pacific University. In Marchshe delivered a lecture to the SeattlePacific University community on"Eve: Temptress or Mother? Tradi­tions of Interpretation." This springshe is scheduled to present a paper atthe Regional AARlSBL entitled:"Qumran's Authoritative Texts:Scriptures or Canon?"

Patricia J, Woods completedher qualifying and general examsand became a doctoral candidate inFebruary 1997. at which time shecompleted her tenure as GraduateStudent-Faculty Liaison for theMiddle East Center. She helped tofound the Graduate Student Organi­zation of the Association for IsraelStudies, of which she is interimpresident. She published a bookreview of Harvey Goldberg, ed.,Sephardim alld Middle EasternJell'ries: History alld Culture ill theModem Era (Bloomington. 1996) inNell' Perspectives 011 ModemTurkey. April 1997. She alsocompleted a second book review,Gad Bar;;ilai, Wars, IllIemal COIl­flicts alld Political Order: A JewishDemocracy ill the Middle East(SUNY 1996), forthcoming in TheMiddle East Journal, Summer 1997.Patricia received a Social ScienceResearch Council Predissertationfellowship to travel to Israel andresearch the conflict between theSupreme Court, the RabbinicalCourt, and Israeli society over theplace of religious personal status(family) law in the civil laws of thestate of Israel.

Congratulations to the followingstudents for completing B.A.'s in

ear Eastern Languages and Civili-zation in the past year:

Victor AngelLisa BeckElmira Kiichiimkulk'izlGregory Sund

DEPARTMENTALEVENTSSTUDENT ORGANIZATIONS

Turkic & Turkish Student Organizations:As has been the tradition for several years at the UW three student

organizations concerned with informing themselves and others on newdevelopments in Centralflnner Asia met weekly during the 1996-97 aca­demic year. The Student Association for Inner Asian Studies, whichbecame part of the Tiirk Studi.es Group, met regularly on Wednesdays.The organization's president, Ozlem Sensoy, a graduate student in theDepartment of Near Eastern Languages & Civilization, put together anambitious program of traditional music from Central Asia and Turkey.Elmira Kiichiimkulklii gave a concert of traditional Kirghiz songs (April16), and a local group of Turkish musicians, Yeni Sez, played traditionalAnatolian music.

The Kazakh & Kirghiz Studies Group, founded in 1991. met regu­larly on Thursdays. The program focused in Autumn 1996 on recent devel­opments in Kazakhstan and Kirghizstan. Dr. Aygul Musakojoeva,ACCELS-scholar and economist from Bishkek, discussed "Aspects ofKirghilstan's Economy" and Dr. Akinay Satarova, Fulbright scholar fromKirghilstan, presented a lecture on "Kirghizstan's State and Private Institu­tions of Higher Learning." The two visiting scholars also participated in apanel discussion on a "View on Kirghizstan: Current Situation and Pros­pects" (Oct. 10).

Two meetings were assigned to the discussion of new publications inKazakh and Kirghiz, introduced by graduate students and Professor liseCirtautas. Later in the year several lectures focused on healthcare inCentral Asia. On January 30, Dr. Lloyd P. Johnson of Seattle discussed"Health Care Reform in Kirghizstan" and on February 6, Nancy ervsveeo,a Registered Nurse from the Swedish Hospital in Seattle, talked about herpersonal experiences in bringing medical relief to Kazakhstan. The topic ofhealthcare in Central Asia was also taken up by Dr. Murad Yunusov, ofTashkent. who talked about his experiences as a physician in Uzbekistan atan Uzbek Circle meeting, May 16.

Other presentations of the Kazakh & Kirghiz Studies Group included ajoint meeting with the Uzbek Circle and the Turk Studies Group on "CurrentResources for Research on Central Asia," presented by Mary SI. Germain,University of Washington Libraries (February 14), and a meeting, jointlyorganized with the Uzbek Circle, offering a discussion on the "The EthnicConflict in ash 1990," led by Professor lise Cirtautas.

The Kazakh & Kirghiz Studies Group is also publishing the Ka~akh &Kirghi~ Studies Bulletill. Its forthcoming issue is devoted to the Kirghizauthor Chingiz Aitmatov and includes articles by our graduate studentsErdag Giikoar. Tasia Asakawa and Elmira Kiichiimkulk·iii.

During 1996-97 the Uzbek Circle met weekly to hear lectures on anddiscuss Uzbek politics, culture, and society. Some of the more memorablemeetings were 'The ew Uzbek Alphabet," "Architectural History ofTashkent," and "Current Resources for Research on Central Asia." extyear the Uzbek Circle and the Kazakh fKirghiz Studies Group will becomesubgroups of the Central Asian Studies Group.

The Persian Circle had a number of distinguished visitors during thepast academic year. In the fall, Mr. Mohammad Nouri, the renownedIranian vocalist and folk singer, brought to us a medley of the songs he has

Volume 10, Summer, 1997~

collected and sung over the last fortyyears or more. His concert, held onNovember 9, 1996, was attended byover 200 people, both from withinthe campus community and fromoutside.

Winter quarter's events wereheaded on January 4, 1997 by anevening of reading by SiminBehbahani, Iran's foremost femalepoet. The other notable event of theWinter quarter was an evening oflectures, recitals and musical perfor­mances commemorating the thirtiethanniversary of the death of Iranianpoet Forugh Farrokhzad. Held onFebruary 22, 1997, the eveningfeatured noted literary critic HouraYavari, musicians Bahman andSusan Azadi, and veteran radio andtelevision personality, Iraj Gorgin.

On March 2, 1997 The PersianCircle, aided by contributions fromthe community, sponsored a speciallecture by the controversial Iranianthinker Abdolkarim Sorush, whoseviews on state and religion havestirred up one of the most livelydebates of the last two decades inIran. Dubbed "the Martin Luther ofIran" by The New York Times, Dr.Sorush spoke to an audience of about200 interested individuals on thetopic of "Freedom, Pluralism, andIslamic Thought."

The Persian Circle also heldweekly meetings during the aca­demic year. In these gatherings, avariety of topics ranging from recentpolitical developments in Afghani­stan and Tajikistan, to music inIranian films, to cloning werediscussed among the members andother people interested in speakingand hearing the Persian language.

STUDENTS GARNER ACCOLADESAT THIS YEAR'S MODEL ARAB LEAGUE CONFERENCE

The 10th annual Pacific Northwest Model of the League ofArab States washeld at St. Martin's College in Lacey, Washington this year. Our delegation,composed ofSuha Kudsieh (Ph. D. Student, Near and Middle Eastern Studies),Aaron Hudson (MA student, Middle East Studies, Jackson School ofInterna­tional Studies), Josie Hendrickson (Senior, Comparative Religion, JacksonSchool), and Brenda Pierce (Senior, Middle East Studies, Jackson School) wasrecognized for its expertise on Jordan, its exemplary oratory proficiency, and itstenacious, nose-to-the-grindstone efforts. This team received the Certificate of

Recognition as an Outstanding Delegation to the Model Arab League. Individu­ally, Aaron Hudson, Brenda Pierce and Josie Hendrickson won OutstandingDelegate awards. Congratulations to all.

The model is one of fifteen held across the United States annually. It issimilar to the Model United Nations, and each participating school representedone of the Arab League member states. This year, the delegation from the UWrepresented Jordan.

Approximately nine universities and colleges from Washington, Idaho,and Oregon participated in the three-day event. Numerous interests of the ArabLeague were discussed at this year's conference. These included political issues(connict resolution over the islands in the Red Sea and Persian Gulf), economicissues (creating an Arab Free Trade Zone), social issues (education reform),security issues (democracy and stability), and Palestinian affairs. The keynotespeaker was Professor John Damis of Portland State University, who spoke tothe delegates about the Arab-Israeli peace process.

Next year's Model Arab League is tentatively scheduled to be held atShoreline Community College. If anyone has any questions regarding theModel Arab League, feel free to contact Brenda Pierce atHanan@u.washington.edu.

GraphicslDesign: Mamoun Sakkal

NearEast Reports...Editor:

Production:

Naomi B. Sokoloff

Marian Schwarzenbach

~ The Near East Reports

lLlL.J"\..110NUNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON

NEAR EASlERN LANGUAGES AND '-'~

NINTH NICHOLAS POPPESYMPOSIUM ON INNERASIAN/CENTRAL ASIANSTUDIES

The University of Washington'sicholas Poppe Symposium on Innerl

Central Asian Studies drew scholarsand students from universities aroundthe country, including Harvard andNew York University. Established inhonor of the famed Central Asianscholar, Nicholas Poppe, the sympo­sium marked its ninth consecutive yearon May 3rd. It was organized by theUW Central Asian Studies Groups,(the Kazakh & Kirghiz Studies Group,the Uzbek Circle. the Turk StudiesGroup and the Persian Circle) and wassponsored by the Department of earEastern Languages & Civilization, TheRussian, East European and CentralAsian Studies Center, The Middle EastCenter, and The Jackson School ofInternational Studies. Papers werepresented on topics varying from tra­ditional healing among the Kazakhs tothe political organization of steppeculture, the novels of ChingtizAitmatov, and current issues affectingwomen in Central Asia. Themes in­cluded identity, culture, myth, poli­tics, and gender. Kagan Arik (Uni­versity ofWashington) presented "As­pects of Healing Among the Kazakhsof Xingjiang;" Gerald Filitti ( ewYork University) presented"Perestroika, Independence and Re­vival ofTslam in Uzbekistan;" HelenFaller (University of Michigan) pre­sented "Cultural Spaceand Family ar­rative: Kazakhs Negotiate Identity."The question-and-answer sessionswere lively, and at times took the formof debates. Of the ten presenters, onewas Kazakh, one Kirghiz, one Tajik,and two were Turkish. The organizersare already planning for next year'ssymposium, which they hope to makeinto a two-day event.

Many of the important research and academic activities reported in thisnewslener were made possible by the NELC's support funds. Please helpus continue these vital efforts by giving generously whenever possIble.You may send a check made out to the University of Washington with oneof the funds designated on the memo line of your check. Please send thecheck along with this form to the Department of Near East Languages andCivilization, Box 353120,229 Denny Hall, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195. .Girts are tax deductible in accordance WIth the law. If you are assocIatedwith a company which will match your gift. please include the appropriateform. Pursuant to RCW 10.09, the University of Washington is registeredas a charitable organization with the Secretary of State, State of Wa~hing­ton. For information call the Office of the Secretary of State. 1-800-332­4483.

Please check off the fund you wish to contribute to and complete yourname and address below.

o DEPARTMENTAL FELLOWSHIP FUND- for support ofoutstanding graduate students.

o DEPARTMENTAL DISCRETIONARY FUND - covers the costof onooing cultural programs and activities, some general servicesto the"department and other special events which require supportfunds from outside the University.

o FARHATZIADEH FUND-supports publications in Arabic andIslamic Studies.

o NICHOLAS POPPE MEMORIAL FUND - supports graduatestudents in the field of Central Asian (Altaic) Studies.

o KENNETH R. BOYLE FUND - provides support in the field ofArabic and Islamic Studies.

EXCHANGE PROGRAM FUND - supports the Department'sexchanoes with institutions in the Near East and Central Asia.

"Amount you wish to contribute: _Name:Address: _

Telephone: --:----:-::---;--::-----:-;c--;;---------May we thank you publicly for your gift? _(No amount will be ~pecified.)

Thank you to the following for their generous contributions to NELC: liseCirtautas. aomi Sokoloff and Doug Berry. The GeorgIa-PaCIfic Corpora­tion, James McNelis, Jacalyn M. Carroll and Habitat for Humanity.

The Department thanks Pierre MacKay for his generous donation ofArabic books to the NELC Library.

Volume 10, Summer. 1997 :IiID>

64-1187

II111 [III 11111111 mil 1111 mllillmllll

Department of Near EasternLanguages and Civilization

229 Denny Hall,University of WashingtonBox 353120Seattle, WA 98195-3120

Nonprofit Org.

U.S. POSTAGE

P A I DSEATTLE, WA

PERMIT NO. 62

Professor Richord Frye (ollefl).

PUBLIC LECTURES:In 1996-97 the department co-sponsored a number of public lectures. These included:

Professor Richard Frye (Harvard University): "Aspects of Central Asian History"Professor Vii Schamiloglu (Indiana University): "The Rise and Fall of Islamic Turkic Civilizations in Medieval

Eurasia" and "'The ew Orientalism: The Study of Islam in Central Asia"Professor Sumru OlSOY (Bogazici University, Istanbul):

"Subutay: An Emerging Turkish-Uzbek Pidgin?'"Peter Cole: "Ask the Dead and They'll Tell You:

Readings From the Selected Poems of ShmuelHa-Nagid"

Dr. Deborah Wheeler: "In Praise of Virtual Life: ewCommunications Technology and The Information Revolution in the Islamic World."

NELC thanks our co-sponsors for these events,including The Jewish Studies Program, UW Hillel, Cre­ative Writing, Romance Languages, The Middle EastCenter, and the Center for Russian, East European andCentral Asian Studies.

Also in 1996-97, in its fifth year as a forum for facultyand advanced students to present their research, The NELCColloquium presented Professor Naomi Sokoloff, speaking on "Investigating Israel Society: The Detective Fictionof Faye Kellerman and Batya Gur," and Hadi-Sultan-Qurraie, speaking on "The Problems of Identity andAzerbaijani Authors of Post-Constitutional Iran."

~ The Near East Reports