Known in the Middle East simply as Bilād Shinqīṭ, the Islamic Republic of Mauritania is often portrayed today as a major center of classical Islamic learning. This seminar presents Zekeria's current book project investigating how Mauritania has become in less than two centuries a label of excellence in Islamic knowledge and religious authority with an astonishing global reach. Set in the longue durée (19th-21st century), the research presented here examines the outsized influence of Mauritanian Islamic scholars (‘ulama), religious texts and institutions of learning (Maḥāẓīr, sing. Maḥẓārā) to document the ways in which the so-called peripheries of the Muslim world assert their intellectual and spiritual relevance in the current phase of globalization.

Speakers
Zekeria Ahmed Salem, Senior Humanities Research Fellow, NYUAD

Moderated by
Bilal Orfali, Visiting Professor of Middle East and Arab Studies, NYUAD

In Person (NYUAD Campus) and on Zoom

The seminar is open to the NYUAD community and by invitation. Registration has closed.