Centre for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World

Islamic Civilisation Series 2013

The Alwaleed Centre is pleased to announce our programme for this year's Islamic Civilisation Public Lecture series:

Islamic Civ Brochure

*Tickets will be available to reserve for free from the 1st of September 2013*

The Programme:

Garden and Landscape Design in Safavid Iran and Mughal India

Friday 4 October 2013, 6pm - 7.30pm

Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh, 20a Inverleith Row, EH3 5LR

Delivered by Professor Attilio Petruccioli (University of Qatar) this lecture will examine some landscapes of gardens in Iran, such as Isfahan and Kashan, Herat in Afghanistan and Agra, Mandu and the basin of Srinagar in India emphasizing the role of the Safavid dynasty, Timurid and Mogul in garden design and landscaping, the mutual influences and permanence or variation of compositional schemes. Hosted in the wonderful surroundings of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh. Followed by a reception.

Find Venue

A Musical Journey Through the World of Islam

Tuesday 29 October 2013, 7pm - 8.30pm

St Cecelia's Hall Museum of Instruments, Edinburgh

Join us for a unique evening of music from Turkey, Iran, the Arab World and Andalucia. With special performances from Edinburgh-based acts Dunya Ensemble and Duo Hyperdorea and featuring short presentations by experts from the University of Edinburgh's Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies Department.

Find Venue

False Attribution or Creative Imitation? The Tradition of Women's Poetry in Early Qajar Iran

Thursday 14 November 2013, 6.30pm - 8pm

Scottish Poetry Library, Edinburgh

A special lecture by Dr Dominic Brookshaw (University of Oxford) hosted in the atmospheric surroundings of the Scottish Poetry Library. More details on this lecture to follow.

Find Venue

“The sense of the original”. Translating the Qur’an in the West

Wednesday 4 December 2013, 6pm - 7.30pm

The Playfair Library, Old College, University of Edinburgh

In the preface to his English version of the Qur’an published in 1734 George Sale wrote that the translations aimed to represent “the sense of the original”. The means of doing this, as well as the decision as to what the “sense” really was, however, differed greatly through the ages. The translators depended on the sources available – the Muslim interpretations or tafsir, and personal informants, Muslim or otherwise – but they were also conditioned by current attitudes to Islam, current tastes, and what they thought their readers would want to read. The lecture will survey European translations of the Qur’an from the Middle Ages to the nineteenth century with particular emphasis on developments and changes in Germany (as well as in the rest of Europe) between 1600 and 1850. These developments would affect all modern versions of the Qur’an. Delivered by Professor Alastair Hamilton (the Warburg Institute, London) in the spectacular surroundings of the University of Edinburgh's Playfair Library. Followed by a reception.

Find Venue