Newsletter of the Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies U.S. NAVAL ACADEMY Spring 2012
Volume 3, Issue 2
Kylan Jones-Huffman Memorial Lectures
CMEIS in Siem Reap, Cambodia Brannon Wheeler talked about the overlapping conceptual foundations of civilization in Buddhism and Islam.
In January, Profs. Brannon and Deborah Wheeler, and Prof. Tom Sanders presented on-going research at the World History Association annual conference in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Deborah Wheeler presented her research on food security issues relating to Kuwait and Cambodia in the larger context of Middle East agricultural investment in Asia.
Tom Sanders, as a member of the WHA committee, presided over events and presented his work on migration and labor.
Deborah Wheeler discussed her research at the Royal Agricultural University to a crowd of some 300 Cambodian students and faculty. Brannon Wheeler spoke about the role of religion in the formation of civilization and politics at the Phnom Penh International University.
Siem Reap is adjacent to the sprawling ancient temple complex of Angor Wat and the associated religious and political sites of the Khmer empire. The trip included a visit to the capital of Phnom Penh where the US Embassy arranged lectures at local universities.
Guest speakers included Dr. Michael Oren the Israeli Am-
bassador to the U.S., Scott Peterson the Istanbul bureau chief for the Christian Science Monitor and author of a recent best-selling book on Iran, Gregory Johnson a Princeton scholar with extensive time spent living in and studying Yemen and Egypt, Bruce Feiler an author of multiple New York Times non-
TIMUR KURAN— PROFESSOR OF ECONOMICS AT DUKE UNIVERSITY
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AMBASSADOR MICHAEL OREN– ISRAELI AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED STATES
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BRUCE FEILER– NEW YORK TIMES BEST-SELLING AUTHOR
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GREGORY JOHNSEN– SPECIALIST ON YEMEN
Inside this issue: CAMBODIA
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LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR
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PUBLICATIONS
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TIMUR KURAN
Letter from the Director During the 2011-2012 academic year the Center sponsored more than a dozen lectures allowing midshipmen to consider and apply fresh perspectives on the Middle East and the cultures historically linked to the region.
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fiction bestsellers, and Sebastian Junger co-director of Restrepo and author of War drawn from his experiences in Afghanistan. More than 300 midshipmen, faculty, and others attended a one-day seminar hosted by the Center on select issues
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ARABIC PROVERBS
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IRANIAN STUDIES
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THOMAS LIPPMAN
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UZBEKISTAN
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CHINA
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AMBASSADOR MICHAEL OREN
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BRUCE FEILER
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GREGORY JOHNSEN
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ISLAM IN KOREA AND INDIA
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AMERICAN SHEIKHS
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CLASS OF 1955 CHAIR
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AFFILIATED FACULTY
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(Continued on page 12) CONTACT INFORMATION
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Newsletter of the Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies Ernie Tucker: The Middle East in Modern World History Professor Ernie Tucker published a new textbook on Middle East history during his year long sabbatical: The Middle East in Modern World History. Designed for students in Prof. Tucker’s popular Middle East history courses, the text focuses on the history of the region over the past 200 years. It examines how global trends during this period shaped the Middle East and how these trends affected the region’s development. Prof. Tucker’s publication offers
students a more holistic view of the Middle East by using a broad geographic definition of the region ranging from the Indian Ocean to present day Turkey.
within the Islamic world ۞Major historical and political events in the Middle East ۞The development of the region's natural resources, especially oil
Several aspects of the region and trends in it over the past ۞The impact of a rapidly two centuries are highlighted: globalizing world economy on the Middle East ۞The region as a strategic conduit between East and West ۞Foundational Knowledge of Islamic history and the development of legal institutions
Ermin Sinanovic: Malayia and Indonesia Professor Ermin Sinanovic recently completed intensive research in Malaysia and Indonesia leading to the development of two new courses for midshipmen: ۞Politics of Southeast Asia ۞Islam and Politics
Both courses focus on Islamic political parties and their influence on politics in Muslimmajority nations with particular emphasis upon evolving trends in Southeast Asia as compared with the Middle East. During Prof. Sinanovic’s research trip he interviewed several members of Malaysia’s Parliament from the Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS) including Dr. Dzulkefly Ahmed the head of the party’s research department, and Dr. Mujahid Yusof Rawa,
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another member of Parliament. Prof. Sinanovic also interviewed members of the Indonesian Parliament from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), a leading Islamist political party in Indonesia, as well as the Democratic Action Party (DAP). Prof. Sinanovic had access to party archives, conducted interviews, and was able to make significant progress toward his next publication. This Summer, Prof. Sinanovic is scheduled to travel to Bosnia in order to research the growing influence of Turkey and Israel in the region. He is interested in examining how the Islamist-leaning AKP government seeks to reestablish past influence in the former territories of the Ottoman Empire.
Prof. Sinanovic also plans to investigate Israel’s recent cultivation of ties with the Bosnian Serb community. Prof. Sinanovic’s continued research promised to lead to innovations in teaching and enhanced research opportunities for faculty colleagues.
Volume 3, Issue 2 Fall KJH Lecture: Timur Kuran In November, Dr. Timur Kuran of Duke University visited the United States Naval Academy to deliver the final Kylan Jones-Huffman Memorial lecture of the fall semester. Basing his lecture upon his recent publication, The Long Divergence: How Islamic Law Held Back the Middle East, Dr. Kuran argued that elements within inheritance law and the waqf system stymied developing Ottoman reforms that were attempting to create parity with western economic development- most notably
financial systems created as a result of the Industrial Revolution. Dr. Kuran's work attempts to unpack an ongoing fifty-year debate among scholars regarding Islam's struggle with questions of modernity. Dr. Kuran offered attendees a stimulating discussion that tied together diverse elements such as historical precedence, Islamic Law, and economic analysis.
which produced a fascinating dialogue for all attending. Dr. Kuran continues to advise governmental organizations and entities, such as the World Bank, while still teaching at Duke University.
Dr. Kuran engaged the midshipmen in an extended question and answer session
Hezi Brosh: Arabic Proverbs in Classroom Language and Cultures Professor of Arabic, Hezi Brosh, attended the 2011 ACTFL conference in Denver, Colorado. As part of his ongoing faculty development project, Prof. Brosh presented work on the use of Arabic proverbs as a teaching device. Prof. Brosh’s main argument is that due to changing world dynamics language competency has become the “main channel for social interaction between people of different cultures, [and] it is steeped in the socio-cultural context in which those people interact.” Proverbs provide an appropriate vehicle by which to expose language students to different aspects of culture and a framework in which to compare and contrasts various permutations of cultural expression in Arabic.
Prof. Brosh argues that “Arab culture is an ancient culture, deeply rooted in a harsh desert environment. Proverbs of the desert dwelling Arabs are created out of necessity and need, and are used to convey wisdom that pertained strictly to survival in the challenging conditions of the desert.”
opportunities and innovations in curriculum development to offer midshipmen fresh perspectives and the first-hand experiences of faculty research.
“First improve yourself, and then judge others...”
In the classroom Prof. Brosh regularly asks his students to provide a short ten-minute presentation on some aspect of Arab culture with the beginning of the presentation starting with an Arab proverb that embodies the aspect discussed.
Arab-Hebrew Proverb
Prof. Brosh’s research is funded by a Center affiliated faculty professional development grant. Such grants supplement other Academy-sponsored travel
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Newsletter of the Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies Ambassador John Limbert and Midshipmen Travel to Iranian Film Festival Ambassador John Limbert and two midshipmen attended the “Cinema in Iran” conference in Berlin, Germany this past December. This annual conference is hosted by the Institute for Cultural Inquiry and boasts an international group that attracts those involved in the Iranian film industry and other scholars and analysts interested in Iran. The opportunity to travel with Ambassador Limbert to the
conference gave midshipmen a chance to learn more about Iranian Diaspora communities, and to interact with Iranian policy makers, academics, directors, and professors. Midshipmen were able to see that Iranian diaspora communities offer valuable insight into emerging trends taking placed in societies often closed to western observers. Germany itself boasts a large Iranian community making it an ideal middle ground
for Iran observers to interact with colleagues. One midshipman commented that the experience “gave him a new lens to examine the nature of Iranian cinema as an indicator of current social and political trends in Iran.” Ambassador Limbert, with his decades of experience, has opened to midshipmen new avenues of analysis for their future naval careers.
Iran Lecture Series During this past year, affiliated faculty member Steve Ward provided midshipmen unparalleled access to world class specialists on Iran.
۞David Crist, JCS History Staff and author of Gulf of Conflict: A History of USIranian Confrontation at Sea. “The 1987-88 Tanker War”
Lectures featured a wide breadth of subject matter regarding Iranian history, political dynamics, and technical capabilities. The lecture series included the following:
۞Bill Samii, State Department, Intelligence and Research Bureau. “Iranian Nuclear Decision Making”
۞John Sotos. “Historical Sources and Patterns of Iranian Behavior” ۞Kenneth Pollack, Brookings Institute and author of The Persian Puzzle. “History of US-Iran Relations and Implications for the Future”
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۞Mike Rabasco. “Iran’s Divided Government” ۞Mike Eisenstadt, Washington Institute for Near East Policy. “Iran's Strategic Culture” ۞CDR (ret.) Rich Mobley. “1987-88 Iran-US Tanker War”
۞Dan Byman, Georgetown University and Brookings Institute. “Iranian Support to Terrorism”
Through Prof. Ward’s lecture series midshipmen have been able to benefit from a broad array of views on Iran from across government agencies, academic institutions, and select private industry professionals.
Volume 3, Issue 2 Middle East Institute’s Thomas Lippman “Saudi Arabia on the Edge: the Uncertain future of an American Ally” In April the Center and the Department of Political Science co-sponsored a visit by Thomas W. Lippman of the Middle East Institute. Mr. Lippman lectured in Middle East Politics courses and delivered a lunchtime lecture to faculty members and midshipmen. Mr. Lippman’s lecture attempted to dispel many popularly-held myths and stereotypes about the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He argued that changing economic dynamics in the Kingdom are the main engines for social change, even affecting changes in the roles of women in Saudi society. Mr. Lippman noted that many Saudi families are investing in education for women in order to achieve a greater second salary for the household. As a result Saudi women are becoming more empowered to be part of the decision making
process both at home and within the larger society. Mr. Lippman is an awardwinning author and journalist who has written about Middle Eastern affairs and American foreign policy for more than three decades, specializing in Saudi Arabian affairs, U.S.- Saudi relations, and relations between the West and Islam. He is the former Middle East bureau chief of the Washington Post, and has also served as that newspaper's oil and energy reporter. Throughout the 1990s, Mr. Lippman covered foreign policy and national security, traveling frequently to Saudi Arabia and other countries in the Middle East.
Prior to his work in the Middle East, he covered the Vietnam war as the bureau chief for the Washington Post in Saigon. Lippman is the author of numerous magazine articles, book reviews and op-ed columns about Mideast affairs, and of six books including his most recent Saudi Arabia on the Edge: The Uncertain Future of an American Ally published just last year.
In 2003 Mr. Lippman was the principal writer on the war in Iraq for Washingtonpost.com.
LREC Travel to Uzbekistan During spring break, Center Deputy Director Mark Reese and Ambassador John Limbert travelled with a group of midshipmen to Uzbekistan. Central Asia and Uzbekistan in particular remain geographically central to the cultures of the ancient Silk Road boasting an array of conquerors from Alexander the Great to Genghis Khan, an august lineage of philosophers from Ibn Sina to Bukhari, and an enormous expanse of history ranging from an ancient Turco-Persian culture
to the recent but now defunct Soviet empire. Midshipmen were exposed to a broad range of experiences including a tour of Tsarist and Soviet era Tashkent, ancient monuments in Samarqand and Bukhara, and gained gleaning insight into current trends in Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan remains an integral piece of US strategic goals in Central and South Asia. The Northern Distribution Network that runs through Soviet Central Asia into Af-
ghanistan and Pakistan represents the pipeline of transportation infrastructure that supplies Overseas Contingency Operations. With a burgeoning youth population and a quickly diminishing Soviet ideology, Uzbekistan offers to midshipmen an opportunity to understand emerging cultural identities in the region that could have far reaching effects on US foreign policy.
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Newsletter of the Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies CMEIS Faculty in China In September, Brannon Wheeler traveled to Shanghai to attend the third annual Asia-Middle East conference hosted by the Shanghai International Studies University. The Center was listed as a co-host of the conference along with the Asia Division of the Library of Congress and the U.S.-Asia Cultural Institute. The conference featured a number of speakers from China and around the world including Japan, Singapore,
Egypt, Turkey, Morocco, Bahrain, Yemen, and Palestine. Most of the Chinese speakers were serving or former foreign service officials, including ambassadors, serving in countries throughout the Middle East.
He called some of these early, legendary accounts into question, stressing the historical ties that were initiated in the 14th century with the voyages of the Chinese Admiral Zheng He and the Muslim traveler Ibn Battutah.
Prof. Wheeler presented a key-note lecture on "Cultural Ties between China and the Middle East" in which he discussed the long-held notion that Islam and China had close contacts beginning during the time of the prophet Muhammad in the seventh century.
Before arriving in Shanghai, Prof. Wheeler had the opportunity to visit Beijing where a number of USNA midshipmen are spending a semester abroad studying Chinese. Prof. Wheeler visited one of the oldest mosques in China.
World History Association: Siem Reap In January the World History Association held the latest in an ongoing series of symposia on world history at the Pannasastra University in Siem Reap, Cambodia. The subject of the symposium was Southeast Asia in World History. Panel sessions were devoted to a range of topics, including warfare, migration, regional history, historiography, empire, religion, maritime connections and cultural encounter, and mass violence. The sole plenary session centered on teaching Southeast Asia in world history courses and offered a range of creative approaches, from CIA counter-revolutionary plots to cuisine. The symposium was organized by the President of the WHA, Marc Gilbert of Hawai’i Pacific University, and the Director of the WHA, Winston Welch. The symposium series Page 6
is designed to target specific topics in world history, to host events outside the United States–the demographic center of gravity of world history teaching–and to expand the international membership base of the World History Association. Selected essays from this symposium will be published in a special issue of World History Connected. Center affiliated faculty member Prof. Tom Sanders will continue to create future opportunities for Academy faculty members through continued engagement with the WHA.
Volume 3, Issue 2 KJH Lecture: AMB Michael Oren In January the Israeli Ambassador to the United States Dr. Michael Oren delivered a KJH Lecture to midshipmen, faculty and the larger Annapolis community. Concluding a day of events in the Annapolis area, Ambassador Oren visited the Levy Center, ate with midshipmen in King Hall, and gave a well received lecture on US-Israeli relations. A well-regarded academic in
his own right, Ambassador Oren has published a number of well received histories of the Middle East including Six Days of War and Power, Faith and Fantasy: America in the Middle East 1976 to the Present.
Ambassador Oren fielded questions about IsraelPalestinian relations, Syria, Iran, and the future economic development of the region.
Ambassador Oren focused on the influence of the Hebrew language upon early American culture, the role of Jews in Naval History, and the long history of American and Israeli relations.
KJH Lecture: Author Bruce Feiler In February, the national bestselling author Bruce Feiler visited the Academy to deliver a KJH Lecture and to interview members of the Leadership, Ethics and Law Department on their leadership training program.
Prophet, and one of only a handful of writers to have four consecutive New York Times nonfiction bestsellers in the last decade. He is also the writer/presenter of the PBS miniseries Walking the Bible.
One of America’s most popular voices on faith, family, and finding meaning in everyday life, Mr. Feiler is the bestselling author of nine books, including Walking the Bible, Abraham, and America's
In his latest book, The Council of Dads, Mr. Feiler tells the uplifting story of how friendship and community can help one survive life’s greatest challenges.
Mr. Feiler’s recent work has made him one of the country’s most respected authorities on religion, politics, and the emotional issues of our time. Walking the Bible describes his perilous, 10,000-mile journey retracing the journey of Moses through the desert.
In Memoriam: LT Kylan Jones-Huffman, USNR, died 21 Aug., 2003, in Al Hillah, Iraq while on voluntary TAD from US Naval Forces Central Command in Bahrain to brief the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force. He was 31 years old. LT Jones-Huffman was born 20 April, 1972 in Santa Cruz, CA, the son of James and Dagmar Huffman. In 1990 he graduated from the York School in Monterey, CA, and entered the Naval Academy. He was 26th Co. and graduated in 1994, having already begun work on his MA in History at the University of Maryland. He was an honors graduate in History from USNA, and one of his undergraduate papers won the Phi Alpha Theta prize for the regional and an Honorable Mention in national competition. After LT Jones-Huffman’s graduation from USNA he returned to California to marry his high school sweetheart, Heidi Jones. After completing his MA at Maryland, he reported to the USS Ingham out of Everett, WA. In 1997, he joined the pre-commissioning crew of the USS Raven inspired some his best Haiku. He returned to USNA in 1999 for two years as an instructor in the History Dept. He taught a course on the Persian Wars, and worked on preparing his prize winning Phi Alpha Theta paper and his Haiku for publication. His poetry reached print in two prominent Haiku journals and a number of on-line collections. It has since inspired a suite by a Romanian composer. LT Jones-Huffman was broadly interested in cultures around the world and had a spectacular ability to learn languages. He spoke fluent German, Persian, and Arabic, along with some Turkish and Japanese. He had been admitted to George Washington University’s Ph.D. program in Near Eastern Studies, where he planned to study Turkish history, shortly before his death.
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Newsletter of the Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies KJH Lecture: Gregory Johnsen In March, Gregory Johnsen delivered a noon-time Kylan Jones-Huffman Memorial lecture in the Chesapeake Room to midshipmen who are currently attending courses in Middle East studies and Arabic. Currently a Ph.D. candidate in Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University, Mr. Johnsen was a Fulbright Fellow in Yemen and a Fulbright-Hays Fellow in Egypt. He has held multiple fellowships from the American Institute for Yemeni Studies and was awarded the David R. Schweisberg Memo-
rial Scholarship from the Overseas Press Club in 2006. Mr. Johnsen’s research focuses on the Yemeni civil war from 1962–1970, the subject of his dissertation at Princeton. Along with his scholarly work, Mr. Johnsen has written in a number of more popular venues on contemporary Yemeni politics including the New York Times, for the Council on Foreign Relations, Foreign Policy, and a number of others. In 2009, he was a member of USAID’s conflict assessment team on Yemen.
Mr. Johnsen advises and consults for a variety of different governmental and nongovernmental organizations on issues relating to Yemen. He has appeared on CNN, the Charlie Rose show, PBS’ Newshour, NPR, al-Jazeera English, al-Hurra, the BBC and numerous other television and radio programs. He is often cited in news reports on Yemen, and has testified before the US Senate as an expert on the country.
Fall Semester KJH Lecture: Kamrooz Aram In the coming Fall semester the Center plans to host Iranian visual artist Kamrooz Aram at the for a Kylan Jones Huffman Memorial lecture. Born in Shiraz, Iran in 1978, Mr. Aram is a contemporary artist who art critic Lauren Firstenberg describes as an artist “whose work explores themes relating to systems of belief, including nationalist, religious, and artistic ideologies. Aram’s work uses iconography as well as abstraction to present the viewer with imagery that challenges reductive and binaristic ways of seeing some of the social, cultural, and political issues of today.” Midshipmen will be introduced to the various cultural elements in Mr. Aram’s work including ironic expressions of the Muslim world, modernity, and traditional Persian motifs Page 8
shown throughout his work. Mr. Aram is a well-established author and artist who received his MFA from Columbia University in 2003. He has had solo and group exhibitions at a number of well-known museums and art galleries. His work has appeared internationally and featured widely in publications devoted to art criticism including Art in America, the Asian Art Newspaper, BBC Persian and Tamasha. Mr. Aram lives and works in Brooklyn.
Volume 3, Issue 2 Islam in Korea En route to a conference in Southeast Asia, Profs. Brannon and Deborah Wheeler visited Seoul, Korea, where they had the opportunity to meet with representatives of the Korea Muslim Federation and visit the historic Seoul Central Mosque.
Korea has a number of mosques including the Pusan al-Fatih Mosque, the Kwang Ju Mosque, Jeon Ju Abu Bakr al-Sidiq Mosque, Anyang Rabita Mosque and the Ansan Mosque. Islam came to Korea during the Korean War and its spread is generally attributed to Abdul-Gaur Karaismailoglu the Imam of the Turkish brigade in 1955.
The Central Mosque was the first in Korea, the site of its building donated by the Korea government in 1969. The Mosque and its Islamic Center were opened in May of 1976.
On average there are a total of 35,000 Muslims in South Korea which has grown steadily since the Korean War. The mosque pictured was built by the Malaysian Islamic Mission in 1976 and is the largest mosque in the country– located in Seoul.
Brian VanDeMark Publishes American Sheikhs Brian VanDeMark, an associate professor of American diplomatic history at the Academy offers an enlightening history centered on the American University of Beirut and its influence in the Middle East. In 1855, missionaries Daniel Bliss and his wife, Abby, left Boston for a new life in the Middle East. Seven years after their arrival in Beirut, wealthy New York businessman William E. Dodge teamed with Bliss to raise funds for the creation of a Syrian Protestant College, later renamed the American University of Beirut. Over four gen-
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erations and 131 years, the Bliss and Dodge families led the university, making AUB into the preeminent symbol of American culture and values in the region, and an integral part of life in Lebanon, a country whose diversity of cultures made it a Middle Eastern melting pot. By the 1950s, graduates were assuming leadership positions globally, but the school was vulnerable during the bloody 1970s civil war, when “Beirut became a writhing viper’s nest of rival militias....” Setting
the university against the backdrop of such conflicts and political power struggles, VanDeMark’s closing chapters skillfully document post-9/11 antiAmericanism in the Middle East. Yet “AUB still promotes moderation and understanding” as antidotes to extremism.
LREC Travel to India
A number of LREC cultural immersion trips were led by faculty affiliated with the Center during Spring break including a trip to India focusing on the religious and historical contexts of contemporary India, the period of the Rajputs, and the Mughal period. Brannon Wheeler led seven midshipmen to Delhi, Jaipur, Ajmer, Fathpur Sikri, and Agra. Among the immersions experienced by the students were visiting the audience hall in which the great Mughal em-
peror Akbar conducted debates with the representatives of all the religions of the world, touching a charmed cobra, doing pilgrimage to the largest Sufi shrine in South Asia the Durgah Sharif of the founder of the Chisti Sufi order, eating South Indian food, visiting a Sikh temple and a Jain temple, seeing the largest mosque in India, sneaking photographs of the cult object in the Kali temple under the Amber Fort outside of Agra,
riding Tuk-Tuks, visiting the tomb of Humayun the father of Akbar and son of the founder of the Mughal dynasty, meeting numerous people at the Taj Mahal, eating Mughal (Pakistani) food outside the gates of the Jami Masjid in Delhi, and visiting the white marble garden tomb of one of the best known Persian poets in Indian history. Page 9
Newsletter of the Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies Class of 1955 Chair of Middle East Studies- Ambassador John Limbert Class of 1955 Chair of Middle East Studies Ambassador John Limbert continues to provide midshipmen with outstanding opportunities to delve into Iranian studies across multiple disciplines. Ambassador Limbert travelled throughout the year with midshipmen to Berlin and Uzbekistan.
Additionally, AMB Limbert over the late fall and spring semester brought to the yard two outstanding experts on Iran: ۞Barbara Slavin, Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council's South Asia Center and Washington correspondent for Al-Monitor.com, a new website devoted to news from and about the Middle East
۞Trita Parsi, author of A Single Roll of the Dice. Dr. Parsi uncovers the previously unknown story of American and Iranian negotiations during Obama's early years as president, the calculations behind the two nations' dealings, and the real reasons for the current stalemate
Summer 2012 Travel:
Afghan Studies Group During the past Academic year, the Afghan Studies Group held a number of study sessions and hosted guest lectures by leading Afghan hands who provided midshipmen on-the-ground perspectives of their experiences in Afghanistan. Topics covered during group lec-
CMEIS 2012 travel plans will boast a number of faculty engaged in continuing research projects so that they can further bolster the timeliness of their current course options as well as create new opportunities for curriculum development.
۞Sanaa Sadek will travel to Egypt to research changes since the Arab Spring. She will conduct field interviews with authors to attempt to characterize for the west the seismic changes occurring in that country
۞ Mark Reese will lead a group of midshipmen on a faculty-led LREC immersion to the Republic of Georgia. The group will study Chechan, Georgian, and Russian
۞Clarissa Burt will travel to Oman and Australia in order to research pre– Islamic Arabic poetry
tures dealt with the differences between the Pashtunwali system and Shariah, ethnic composition of Afghanistan, as well as crossborder and regional issues. Guest lecturers included the following:
۞COL (ret) Jeff Nelson of JSOU University. “Working with Central and South Asian Militaries” ۞Kent Bolin. “Embedded with the Pashtun of Afghanistan” ۞COL (ret) Kevin McDonnell. “CARE Coalition– Taking Care of Our Own”
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۞Ermin Sinanovic will travel to Bosnia, Turkey and Malaysia in order to research Turkish and Israeli investment in Bosnia and continue his ongoing research on Malay political parties
The Afghan Studies Group is a midshipmen-run organization that wishes to pursue Afghan studies outside their normal curriculum.
Volume 3, Issue 2 Faculty Affiliated with CMEIS Affiliated Faculty ۞Dr. Hayden Bellenoit, History
South Asia
۞Dr. Hezi Brosh, Language Studies
Arabic and Hebrew Language
۞Dr. Thomas Burgess, History
Africa
۞Dr. Clarissa Burt, Language Studies
Arabic Language and Literature
۞Dr. Salwa Elgebaly, Language Studies
Arabic Language
۞CAPT Mark Hagerott, History
South Asia
۞Dr. Wayne Hsieh, History
Military History
۞Dr. Gabriel N. Karpouzian, Aerospace Eng
Contemporary Middle East
۞Dr. Elizabeth Knutson, Language Studies
Franco-Arab Studies
۞AMB John Limbert, Class of 1955 Chair
Iran and Middle East
۞CAPT Jeff Macris, USN, History
Gulf and Middle East
۞LTJG Ayman, Mottaleb, Language Studies
Arabic Language
۞Ms. Jocelyn Owens, Language Studies
Arabic Language
۞Dr. Helen Purkitt, Political Science
Africa Studies
۞Mr. Mark Reese, DepDir, CMEIS
Central Asia
۞CDR Thomas Robertson, History
COIN, Irregular Warfare
۞Dr. Sanaa Sadek, Language Studies
Arabic Language
۞Dr. Thomas Sanders, History
Russia and Central Asia
۞Dr. Ermin Sinanovic, Political Science
Southeast Asia and Islam
۞Dr. Joseph Thomas, Leadership
Military Ethics
۞Dr. Ernest Tucker, History
Islamic Civilization and History
۞Dr. Brian VanDeMark
US Diplomatic and Political History
۞Mr. Steve Ward, Leadership
Contemporary Middle East
۞Dr. Brannon Wheeler, Director, CMEIS
Islam and History of Religions
۞Dr. Deborah Wheeler, Political Science
Contemporary Middle East
Recent Faculty Curriculum Development ۞Mark Reese– Currently developing course material on the Caucuses in Georgia and Uzbekistan ۞Ernie Tucker– Middle East History textbook ۞Brian VanDeMark– Recent publication of American Sheikhs ۞Deborah Wheeler– Continues research on Food Security issues in Qatar, UAE, and Cambodia ۞Ermin Sinanovic– Turkish and Israeli investment in Bosnia, and Islamist politics in Malaysia ۞Sanaa Sadek- Upcoming research on the Arab Spring in Egypt ۞Clarissa Burt– Research on pre-Islamic Arabic in Oman ۞Brannon Wheeler– Buddhism in Russia and History of Judaism course in Korea, Cambodia and China
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Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies U.S. NAVAL ACADEMY 106 Maryland Avenue Annapolis, MD 21402 Phone 410-293-2993 Fax 410-293-2994 Email: cmeis@usna.edu
In its seventh year the Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies continues to enhance the educa‐ tional opportunities of midshipmen through supporting international and regional study, curricular innovation, fleet activities, and as a center for resources on all aspects of the Middle East and the cultures historically related to the region. Since its inception, the Center has hosted close to 150 lec‐ tures reaching an estimated 25,000 midshipmen. Faculty affiliated with the Center has grown to more than 24, from six academic departments, who have developed more than 50 new courses and traveled to dozens of countries in the region and around the world in support of their teaching.
Letter from the Director, continued from first page related to the subject of “Shariah” or Islamic law. Seven internationally-recognized scholars of Islamic law gave presentations and engaged in extended discussion with midshipmen relating to religious freedom, human rights, Islam in America, and the Shiah and Islamic law. Speakers included David Powers (Cornell), Muhammed Fadel (Toronto), Intisar Rabb (Boston), and Robert Gleave (Exeter). The Center continues to support innovation in teaching and research enhancing the in-the-classroom engagement between faculty and midshipmen. Several new faculty members specializing in Arabic, intelligence studies, Russian history, and literary history were added to the Center’s growing list of affiliated faculty. Continuing initiatives include the Critical Cultures Seminar on Central Asia and Afghanistan, research projects on Gulf history, Hebrew and Arabic languages, food security, archaeology of the Middle East and Asia, and contemporary Iran. Affiliated faculty contributed to public discourse through CSPAN, bloggingheads.com, CNN, and a variety of international, regional and local newspapers. Working closely with the International Programs Office, the Center supported development grants for faculty travel, research and faculty-led cultural immersion trips to the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. Faculty research included trips to Indonesia, Israel, Morocco, Tunisia, Oman, Armenia, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Korea, and China. Immersion trips sponsored and led by Center-affiliated CENTER FOR MIDDLE faculty took midshipmen to Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, India, United Arab Emirates, Israel, and Oman.
EAST AND ISLAMIC STUDIES Director Brannon Wheeler 410-293-6307 bwheeler@usna.edu Deputy Director Mark Reese 410-293-2990 reese@usna.edu Administrative Manager Christopher Simpson 410-293-2993 csimpson@usna.edu
www.usna.edu/MiddleEast
During the Fall, the Center co-sponsored the third international conference on Asia and the Middle East. This international conference bringing together scholars from China, Singapore, Israel, Egypt, Palestine, United Arab Emirates, Iran, Korea, and Japan was held at the Shanghai International Studies Institute in Shanghai, China. The proceedings from the second international conference held at the Naval Academy two years ago, consisting of roughly two dozen research papers on topics ranging from Islam and Chinese Buddhism to the sharing of nuclear technology between Saudi Arabia and China, is currently in press. We look forward to a number of exciting opportunities in the next academic year including faculty trips to Siberia and China, faculty-led cultural immersion trips to Georgia and Myanmar, a presentation by an Iranian artist, a visiting Israeli professor, and a number of new courses.