April 2022 Newsletter
There's always something happening at NMC, missed out?
Here is a snapshot of what went on this month and what's to come.
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NMC PhD Candidate Dina Fergani has been selected as a Chancellor Jackman Graduate Fellow in the Humanities for the 2022-2023 academic year.
Her research project reconfigures the study of the tradition of anticolonial resistance in Egypt by retelling the story of the Kamshish village rebellion (1952-1971) through the lens of labour. In this context, anticolonialism shifted the ontology of Egyptians from peasant to workers through labouring. Dina’s microhistory is based in oral history interviews, archival documents from women-centered archives, and published personal memoirs and asks: How does centering Labour help us understand the political project of anticolonialism as a personal and social experience?
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Generating Jebel Barkal: Metadata Organization from the Field Diaries of Dr. George A. Reisner at Jebel Barkal
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Rare stories about the Crusades
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Professor Amir Harrak published an edition and a translation of The Chronicle of Michael the Great (The Edessa-Aleppo Syriac Codex): Books XV–XXI. From the Year 1050 to 1195 AD in 2019, and his book was opportunely the subject of three YouTube episodes on the Crusaders. Lieven Verbrugge, a Belgian psychologist, composed three episodes based on the Chronicle of Michael the Great. In one of the episodes, he interviewed a British scholar, Carole Hillenbrand, professor of Islamic History at the University of Edinburgh, who published a 600-page book on the Crusaders based on Islamic sources, and she had much to say and the Islamic perspectives about the Crusaders. Professor Hillenbrand consulted the book by Professor Harrak and admitted that the views of Michael the Great about the Crusaders are paradoxical.
Interestingly, the four YouTube episodes, including the first one about NASA Scientists and Michael the Great, were viewed by more than 40,000 people. More than 100 commentators talked about the episodes, and none of them was negative. Two other episodes can be viewed on On the Relationship between Crusaders, Arabs and Turks and The Crusaders and Saladin. Rare stories about the Crusades. |
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In Memory of Marion Jane Wilmot Boulby
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It is with much sadness that we report the passing of NMC alumna Marion Jane Wilmot Boulby on April 13, 2022. Marion was born in Leeds, England and immigrated with her family, first to the United States, and then to Canada. Marion was an Associate Professor of History at Trent University in Peterborough. As an academic, Marion loved teaching as much as research.
Her obituary can be found on the Star obituaries page. |
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NMC Culture Exchange and Support Initiative (NMC-CESI) hosted its field trip with newcomer youth at the Aquarium on March 19 and 20, 2022. NMC-CESI remains thankful to NMC-CESI volunteers and workshop coordinators who organized this field trip successfully, and also grateful to the generous sponsors, the Department of Near & Middle Eastern Civilizations and the Lo family for making this event possible. Photos of this field trip can be found on the NMC CESI Facebook page. |
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The Essence of Reality: A Defense of Philosophical Sufism, edited and translated by NMC alumnus Mohammed Rustom, was recently published, and this publication was dedicated to the memory of the late Professor Richard Blackburn. (NYU Press, 2022)
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Who was Khalil al-Sakakini? Diaries to Palestine
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Associate Professor Jens Hanssen has recently written a public intervention on Palestine in German media discourse on Jadaliyya, an independent ezine produced by the Arab Studies Institute. The full article can be found on the Jadaliyya website. |
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Jewish - Christian Relations & Christian anti-Jewish Polemics in Late Antiquity & the Middle Ages
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- Date: 10 AM - 3:30 PM (ET), Monday, May 2, 2022
- Location: In-Person & Online
- Speaker: Laura S. Lieber,
Christine (Tina) Shepardson,
Naomi Koltun-Fromm,
Barbara Roggema,
Deeana Copeland Klepper
- Respondent:
Judith H. Newman
- Organizer and Moderator:
Michail Kitsos
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The Anne Tanenbaum Centre for Jewish Studies presents a hybrid conference on the topic of Jewish - Christian Relations and Christian anti-Jewish Polemics in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages.
This event, co-sponsored by the Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations and the Toronto School of Theology, will be held at JHB318 or virtually via Zoom Webinar. For more information, visit the NMC website. |
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- Date: May 3 - 6, 2022
- Location: Online
OISE Wellness & the Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development (APHD) are offering free events, including face yoga and holistic nutrition workshops, an expert keynote and a bake-along for Mental Health Week. These are open to U of T faculty, staff, students, and alumni. For more information, visit the OISE website. |
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English Language Learning (ELL) Popular Reading eWriting Intensive
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- Date: May 2 - 6, 2022
- Location: Online
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English Language Learning (ELL) supports all U of T undergraduates enrolled in the Faculty of Arts & Science whose first language is not English (multilingual students), as well as native speakers seeking to improve their English language skills.
ELL will hold the Popular Reading eWriting Intensive from May 2 – 6, 2022, for Summer 2022 Mini-Courses. In this free five-day intensive online course, you will work on reading and writing using popular articles. You will receive valuable feedback on your work and learn how to improve your reading and writing skills. Many courses assign popular articles for reading and analysis, so your learning will benefit your academic performance.
For more information or to register, visit the ELL website. |
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Information for Student: Landlord and Rental Scam Awareness
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The Community Safety Office at the University of Toronto reminds students who are looking for a place to live off-campus for the coming school year - especially those who are not going to be in Toronto over the summer for in-person viewings - that landlord/rental housing scams are real and on the rise in the GTA and can happen to an unsuspecting renter.
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The Toronto rental market is extremely competitive, especially for rentals beginning September 1, and here are the best tips to help you avoid getting scammed:
- Conduct basic research. Be suspicious of any rent or unit that has a price that is listed is far below market value or sounds too good to be true.
- When looking for a rental, never rent sight-unseen and always meet the landlord in person. Consider renting from verified property management companies if you are renting from outside of the GTA and are unable to schedule an in-person viewing.
- Landlords can only legally ask for first and last month’s rent and a refundable key deposit, which should be paid at the time of signing the lease. No other fees are legal.
- Never pay a rental deposit with cash, wire transfer, Moneygram, Bitcoin, or MoneyPak, as these forms of payment are impossible to track.
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Upcoming Events
There's always something happening at NMC, keep up to date with our upcoming events at NMC's Events page.
Contact us if you would like to have your event featured.
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