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| International Congress of Asian and North African Studies | |
|---|---|
| Name | International Congress of Asian and North African Studies |
| Formation | 20th century |
| Type | International scholarly association |
| Headquarters | Cairo |
| Region served | Asia and North Africa |
| Leader title | President |
International Congress of Asian and North African Studies is an international scholarly association convening researchers focused on historical, cultural, linguistic, and political topics across Asia and North Africa. Rooted in transregional exchange, the Congress has served as a forum connecting specialists from institutions such as Université Cairo, University of Tokyo, University of Oxford, Harvard University, and Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. The Congress intersects scholarly networks tied to events like the United Nations General Assembly, collaborations among the League of Arab States, and comparative projects referencing regions such as South Asia, Central Asia, East Asia, and the Maghreb.
The Congress emerged in the mid-20th century amid postwar intellectual realignments involving figures associated with Orientalism debates, contacts among scholars from India, Iran, Turkey, Egypt, Japan, and diplomatic initiatives linking the Non-Aligned Movement and a range of academic bodies including the British Academy and the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres. Early convocation drew contributors with affiliations to Al-Azhar University, Aligarh Muslim University, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Peking University, University of Delhi, and research centers like the Institut Français d'Archéologie Orientale. Founders often negotiated tensions evident in encounters among proponents influenced by work on Edward Said, scholarship referencing Ibn Khaldun, comparative analysis of Confucius and Avicenna, and methodological debates shaped by institutions such as the Max Planck Society and the Smithsonian Institution.
The Congress states objectives to facilitate comparative research across areas including premodern and modern history—engaging specialists in Tang dynasty studies, Mamluk Sultanate research, analyses of Safavid Iran, and inquiries into Ottoman Empire institutions—as well as contemporary studies of Arab Spring aftermath, Partition of India, Korean War, and Suez Crisis. It prioritizes philology involving manuscripts from collections like the Bibliothèque nationale de France, archaeological collaboration with teams from the British Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and interdisciplinary dialogues connecting scholars from Columbia University, SOAS University of London, Princeton University, and the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Governance follows a council model with elected officers drawn from universities and research institutions such as University of Tehran, University of Cairo, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, University of Melbourne, and National University of Singapore. Advisory committees include representatives from foundations like the Ford Foundation, Carnegie Corporation, and regional academies including the Egyptian Academy of the Arabic Language and the Academy of Sciences of the USSR (historically). The Congress collaborates with publishers such as Cambridge University Press, Brill Publishers, Oxford University Press, and journals connected to Journal of Asian Studies and International Journal of Middle East Studies.
Periodic plenary congresses have convened in cities including Cairo, Istanbul, Beijing, Tehran, New Delhi, Tokyo, Rabat, Moscow, Paris, and Rome. Special symposia have addressed topics like manuscript traditions with partners from the Vatican Library, archaeological surveys coordinated with teams from Danish Institute at Athens affiliations, and contemporary security studies linking panels with researchers from Stockholm International Peace Research Institute and the Clingendael Institute. Notable keynote contributors have included scholars associated with Edward Said’s circle, historians working on the Ming dynasty and the Yuan dynasty, and specialists in Berber studies tied to the Institut Royal de la Culture Amazighe.
Congress proceedings have produced scholarship on comparative chronology between Tang dynasty and Umayyad Caliphate periods, philological editions of texts related to Sanskrit and Classical Arabic, reassessments of the Silk Road networks, and studies of migratory patterns connecting Persianate world and Mongol Empire legacies. Contributions have intersected with work on legal history referencing Corpus Juris Civilis contexts in colonial encounters, anthropological fieldwork influenced by methods from Franz Boas–aligned traditions, and economic history engaging archives like the British Library India Office Records and Ottoman registers housed in the Topkapı Palace Museum collections.
Membership spans academics from the University of Karachi, American University of Beirut, University of Cape Town, Seoul National University, Fudan University, and independent researchers affiliated with institutes such as the Max Weber Foundation, American Council of Learned Societies, and the European Research Council. Participation includes panels by doctoral candidates linked to programs at School of Oriental and African Studies, postdoctoral fellows from the Institute for Advanced Study, and museum curators from the Ashmolean Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum. Funding for participation has come from sources including the National Endowment for the Humanities, national research councils like the Indian Council of Historical Research, and bilateral cultural agreements between states such as Japan and Egypt.
The Congress has influenced curricula at institutions like Columbia University and University of Chicago, supported digitization projects with partners such as the World Digital Library, and fostered cross-regional citation networks evident in journals from Cambridge University Press and Brill. Criticism has addressed alleged biases traced to legacies of Orientalism scholars like Edward Said debated with counterpositions invoking indigenous historiographies promoted by scholars connected to Subaltern Studies and postcolonial theorists linked to Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak. Additional critiques focus on uneven representation of scholars from peripheral institutions in the Maghreb and Central Asia, funding asymmetries involving agencies such as the World Bank and debates over decolonizing curricula championed by advocates from Routledge-published forums.
Category:Academic conferences Category:Asian studies Category:Middle Eastern studies