Arabistiek en Islamkunde / Arabic and Islamic Studies UGent

26/08/2026

EN:
We're delighted to share the programme for the second National Network Day of the emerging Belgian Association for the Study of Islam, Culture and Society (BASICS).

📅 25 September 2026
📍 Ghent University

This year's keynote speaker is Prof. Sherene Seikaly (UC Santa Barbara), who will present: Middle East Studies in the Age of Catastrophe.

The day offers an opportunity for colleagues in Belgium working on Islam and Muslim, Middle Eastern, and Asian histories, cultures, and societies to reconnect, exchange ideas, and continue shaping the future of BASICS.

Registration is open until 20 September 2026 via the QR code on the poster.



NL:
We delen graag het programma van de tweede nationale netwerkdag van de groeiende Belgian Association for the Study of Islam, Culture and Society (BASICS).

📅 25 september 2026
📍 Universiteit Gent

Dit jaar verwelkomen we Prof. Sherene Seikaly (UC Santa Barbara) als keynote speaker. Haar lezing draagt de titel: Middle East Studies in the Age of Catastrophe.

Deze dag biedt collega's in België die werken rond islam en moslim-, Midden-Oosterse en Aziatische geschiedenissen, culturen en samenlevingen de kans om elkaar opnieuw te ontmoeten, ideeën uit te wisselen en mee vorm te geven aan de toekomst van BASICS.

Inschrijven kan tot 20 september 2026 via de QR-code op de affiche.

FR:
Nous avons le plaisir de partager le programme de la deuxième Journée nationale du réseau de la Belgian Association for the Study of Islam, Culture and Society (BASICS) en cours de développement.

📅 25 septembre 2026
📍 Université de Gand

Cette année, nous aurons l'honneur d'accueillir Prof. Sherene Seikaly (UC Santa Barbara) pour une conférence inaugurale intitulée : Middle East Studies in the Age of Catastrophe.

Cette journée offrira aux collègues en Belgique travaillant sur l'islam ainsi que sur les histoires, cultures et sociétés musulmanes, du Moyen-Orient et d'Asie l'occasion de se retrouver, d'échanger des idées et de contribuer à façonner l'avenir de BASICS.

Les inscriptions sont ouvertes jusqu'au 20 septembre 2026 via le QR code figurant sur l'affiche.

22/06/2026

Uitvoeren van kwalitatief onderzoek over de ervaringen van moslims op de arbeidsmarkt en op het werk. Samenwerken in een interdisciplinair team met UGent partn

22/06/2026

We have three open research positions at CAIMES within the ERC-funded project HAIR: Hair, Identity, Beauty, and the Self in Muslim Contexts: Emotional Landscapes and Changing Femininities Beyond the Veil.

We invite applications for:
1 PhD position
100% for 4 years
Subproject: Egypt

1 PhD position
100% for 4 years
Subproject: Lebanon

1 Postdoctoral position
100% for 3 years
Subproject: United Arab Emirates

Application deadline: 31 July 2026

Further details and application links:
Egypt PhD: [https://www.ugent.be/en/work/scientific/doctoral-fellow-119]
Lebanon PhD: [https://www.ugent.be/en/work/scientific/doctoral-fellow-120]
UAE Postdoc: [https://jobs.ugent.be/job/Ghent-Postdoctoral-Researcher-9000/1364355957/?fbclid=IwY2xjawSl0KlleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEegapY5caq8Z4rl9xXTex5QpDoBlZJo6XtdlVMb-NOHb7YFFLIIuHq6b4ZMfg_aem_Ur3o8w4FhMsi6gIYxlsHqQ]

Please share widely with interested candidates and networks.

03/06/2026

Last month, we had the honour of hosting Ilan Pappé and Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian as part of our UGent Palestine Talks – Spring 2026 lecture series. We wanted to share some images from these gatherings and warmly thank both speakers, as well as everyone who joined us.

In her lecture, Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian addressed the concept of “overkill” as a settler-colonial formation, examining how systematic violence operates not as excess, but as a structuring condition of life and death. In his lecture, Ilan Pappé reflected on the power of language and vocabulary in shaping the struggle for freedom in Palestine, particularly in the context of media narratives and political responses to the genocide in Gaza.

During his visit, Ilan Pappé also spent time at the Refaat encampment, led by courageous students who continue to push for UGent to cut institutional ties with Israeli institutions involved in violations of international law, a struggle they have sustained with determination over a long period, and continue to carry forward.

Just this morning, more than 4,700 staff members, students, and honourary doctors signed an open letter calling on all Belgian rectors to end institutional collaborations with Israeli institutions involved in violations of international law. With over 1,100 professors among the signatories, it marks one of the largest academic mobilisations in recent Belgian higher education history. Read the open letter here: https://shorturl.at/QGpqW

02/06/2026

We are delighted to officially announce the start of Prof. Lisa Franke's ERC Starting Grant project HAIR: Hair, Identity, Beauty, and the Self in Muslim Contexts: Emotional Landscapes and Changing Femininities Beyond the Veil at Ghent University.

This project explores the complex social, emotional, and cultural meanings of gendered body politics in Muslim majority contexts, with a particular focus on identity formation, beauty practices, and gendered experiences.

As Prof Franke begins this exciting new research journey, we will soon be advertising two PhD positions and one postdoctoral position to join the project team.

If you are interested in working on topics related to gender, embodiment, literature, religion, and the Middle East, please stay tuned for upcoming calls.

19/05/2026

Er is een nieuwe vacature voor een doctoraatsstudent in het FWO-project "Het claimen van een plaats voor religie op het werk" over islamitische rituelen op de werkplaats in Vlaanderen, onder begeleiding van An Van Raemdonck en Aymon Kreil. De deadline voor sollicitaties is 5 juli! Deel dit alstublieft met wie zou kunnen geïnteresseerd zijn!

Doctoraatsbursaal Doctoraatsbursaal Uiterste inschrijvingsdatum Aug 31, 2025 00:00 Vakgroep/directie/dienst GE35 - Vakgroep Inwendige ziekten en Pediatrie Type contract Contract van bepaalde duur Diploma Relevante masterdiploma’s zijn: een Master in Geneeskunde, Biomedische Wetenschappen, Ergother...

18/05/2026

Join us in early June for the ERC KNOW International Workshop:
Polymathy and Problem-Solving in the History of Islamic Knowledge

This workshop brings together scholars working on the history of Islamic knowledge, with a particular focus on how scholars engaged with concrete intellectual problems across disciplinary boundaries. Rather than approaching disciplines as fixed and isolated domains, the workshop explores the dynamic ways in which scholarly practices, methods, and concepts travelled across different fields of knowledge.

Through a series of pre-circulated papers and discussion-based sessions, participants will reflect on polymathy, problem-solving, and the practical organisation of knowledge in Islamic intellectual history.

🔗Program and registeration: https://erc-know.ugent.be/en/problem-areas

14/05/2026

Heb je interesse in de journalistieke branche en in het Midden-Oosten, Noord-Afrika en de islam en ben je op zoek naar een flexibele en inspirerende stage? Dan is ZemZem op zoek naar jou.

Tijdens de stage maak je kennis met de verschillende redactietaken en werk je mee aan de ZemZem die uitkomt in december 2026.

Lees de volledige vacature op de website: https://www.zemzemtijdschrift.nl/2026/05/vacature-redactiestagiair/

28/04/2026

We are proud to announce that our colleague Menna M. El Mahy has published an article on the expansion of the Qalāwūnid sultanate into the Syro-Anatolian frontier of present-day southeastern Türkiye. Centering on the Citadel of Kakhtā, the study traces its acquisition in 1283 under al-Manṣūr Qalāwūn and its subsequent reinforcement under al-Ashraf Khalīl and al-Nāṣir Muḥammad. Drawing on architectural, epigraphic, historical, and administrative evidence, the article sheds light on an overlooked phase of frontier governance and underscores the strategic importance of Kakhtā as a northern stronghold within the Syro-Egyptian sultanate (1250–1517).

https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/ZCMKITMG5BXZPEWPEVUW/full?target=10.1080/09503110.2026.2655595

28/04/2026

As part of the Master’s programme in Middle East Studies at Ghent University, our students complete an internship to gain hands-on experience. One of our students, Maui Clarys, chose to do her internship with the department and the CAIMES research group. Curious about her experience? Read all about it here 👇

Interested in the Master’s in Middle East Studies? Find all the details on our website: https://www.middleeast.ugent.be/en/study-programme/, we hope to welcome you next year!