The Muslim Middle East: On the Road to Peak IQ

Everyday Life in the Muslim Middle East, now in its second edition, is a collection of songs, articles, poems, and letters, as well as manuscripts, related to life in the Muslim Middle East. The authors, a mix of wellknown (and less well-known) scholars and writers from the Middle East and the West, seek to give readers an intimate look at the everyday life of the region's Muslim inhabitants in the hopes of addressing and dispelling some common stereotypes. Everyday Life is divided into five sections, each of which contains var­ious essays, stories, and so on. Section One focuses on family life, birth, adolescence, marriage, and death. The first piece is Erika Friedl's collec­tion of traditional songs from southwestern Iran about such events as childbirth and marriage. Susan Schaefer Davis examines how childrearing has changed in north-central Morocco from the 1970s to the present. In the next story, "Explosion," Lebanese journalist Emily Nasrallah depicts the tragedy of a young girl who parts from her mother at a supermarket and dies in an explosion. Next is an essay by Margaret A. Mills about an arranged marriage in Afghanistan. Jenny B. White ("Two Weddings") compares and contrasts traditional and modem Turkish weddings. In "Editing al-Fajr: A Palestinian Newspaper in Jerusalem," Bishara Bahbah talks about the experiences and challenges he faced as the editor-in-chief of the Jerusalem-based al-Fajr. Next is an excerpt from popular Moroccan novelist Driss Chraibi's "The Son's Return," in which he discusses the generation gap when a Moroccan immigrant to the West returns to visit his grandfather ...

Children in the Muslim Middle East. Elizabeth Warnock Fernea. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1995.477 pp.

This article charts Ireland's relationship with the countries of the Muslim Middle East since the 1950s. It begins by examining the bilateral diplomatic, political and economic relationship that emerged following Ireland's entry into the United Nations in 1955. It examines the impact on this nascent association with the Muslim Middle East of Ireland's gradual involvement in the region under the auspices of UN peacekeeping and diplomacy. Its main focus, however, is on the intensification of diplomatic and economic connections between Ireland and this group of states after Ireland's entry into the European Economic Community in 1973. It assesses the diplomatic and trade dimensions of this increasingly important relationship with particular reference to Ireland's approach to crucial regional political issues. It argues that trade considerations were by no means the sole factor influencing Ireland's foreign policy approach to the Muslim Middle East during this period, but that such considerations, nonetheless, had a determining role to play in Ireland's foreign policy in the region.

Turkey faces East: New orientations toward the Middle East and the old Soviet Union: By Graham E. Fuller. Santa Monica, Calif.: RAND, 1992. 70 pp. $7.50 (paper).

This chapter explores the origin of political Islam and its various interpretations as result of exogenous and indigenous developments. Islam as political ideology emerged in response to the expansion of Europe and the decline of the Islamic empires in the nineteenth century. The consequence of a fragmented society was an amalgamation of social and political powers within the embrace of political elites. The chapter discusses various manifestations of modern Islamic political ideology. The global resurgence of a fundamentalist variant of political Islam is a response to unsuccessful attempts by secular-authoritarian regimes of Muslim countries to modernize politics and society, spur socio-economic development, and create democracy. The chapter analyzes the question of 'Islam', authoritarian persistence and the lack of democracy in the Middle East. The key to understanding democratic transition lies in the nature of state/society-relations rather than the nature of society's norms, values or religions, as argued by cultural essentialists. Keywords: authoritarian persistence; democratic transition; Islamic political ideology; Muslim Middle East; political elites

The Muslim Middle East: Is There a Democratic Option?


 
 
 Between pleasure and health, why should we have to choose?
 
 
 
 
 Though this combination did not mainly concern the culinary tradition of the Christian Middle Ages, on the other hand, it fits fully into an Arabic tradition of both East and West of the said period.
 In the late Middle Ages under Islamic domination, doctors, agronomists or botanists, offer –through multiple medical treatises on food or agriculture–, culinary recipes good for health. Thus, for Ibn Rush, Ibn Rāzī, Avicenne or Maimonides –as for many others scholars–, foodstuffs play a key role in its benefits for health. In this way, cookbooks occupy pride of place in this alliance between health and cooking. Therefore, the culinary recipes of half a dozen cookbooks of the Muslim Middle East dating back to the 10th-14th centuries, suggest this combination: listen to your body, take pleasure when you eat, do it according to your health and eat in a measured way. Cookbooks of the Iberian Peninsula written in Arabic in the Dar al-Islam testify to the transmission –from the Muslim Middle East– of the medico-culinary tradition based on humoral theory and culinary practices.
 This paper will focus on the place occupied by dietetic in the first known cookbook of the Iberian Peninsula: the Kitāb al-ṭabīẖ [The cookbook]. Its anonymous author quote Galen and Hippocrates that, therefore, inscribes the Kitāb al-ṭabīẖ in the influence of the Greek dietetic tradition. Furthermore, the knowledge of the anonymous author concerning medicine, dietetic, and cuisine is undeniable.
 Through half a thousand recipes, I will first present a reflection on this source commonly named “The Cookbook”, and then underscore the proportion of dishes containing medical recommendations. Then I will offer an approach to frequently used foodstuffs in the recipes where health seems to take precedence over the pleasure of eating the dish. Curing the illness, avoiding it, take pleasure, what is the goal of the culinary recipes? Thus, the aim is to identify both the most common dietetics recommendations and the disease that seem the most important to avoid. Finally, I will provide a glimpse of one of the most characteristic culinary recipes of this alliance health/pleasure that can offer the Andalusian cookbook. A brief reflection can be conducted on the current phenomenon that shows the willingness to return to healthy food which recommendations can be found in the cookbooks dating from the Middle Ages.
 
 

This essentially theoretical article suggests a novel way to conceptualise the middle spaces of people whose link to religion is perceived as partial and fragmentary – the vast majority of the population in the world of the twenty-first century, who belong to a religious tradition but are quite selective in their observances. We first argue that current conceptualisation of the middle spaces suffers from a predisposition we view as ‘Christocentric’. As the key to an alternative and non-Christocentric approach, we suggest the concept of ‘traditionism’, which permits a new theoretical discussion of the meanings of religion for contemporary individuals who belong to a religious tradition but are not fully committed to its current authorities or affiliated with recognised denominations. As a case study to clarify the new, non-Christocentric conceptualisation, we suggest the religious identity of contemporary ‘Arab Jews’ – Jews whose families originated in the Muslim Middle East – to highlight the potential contribution of a certain Jewish perspective to an understanding of modern religion as tradition and of modern practitioners of religion who belong to no denomination as ‘traditionists’.

Some of the more important Soviet research on the Middle East is published, obviously, not as monographs, but as articles. Some of these appear in special collections on a given subject, frequently based on teamwork or on the proceedings of a conference at one or another of the centres of higher learning. Many of these bring together a fair sample of the best in Russian research on the Middle East. Several examples have been mentioned in Middle Eastern Studies, VI (2), May 1970, pp. 212-13, and VI (3), October 1970, pp. 346-49. Many articles of interest for the student of the Middle East are published in Russian-language journals, not confined to Oriental Studies, but specializing in history, politics, economics, ethnography, linguistics or literature. Many of these articles are not easy to spot, unless and until listed in a bibliography. Therefore, the several Russian journals specializing in Oriental studies are of more immediate relevance to the scholar who wants to keep abreast of Soviet research on the Muslim Middle East, both medieval and modem. Four of these are in hand; the first two are periodicals, while the other two are published occasionally, with no obvious pattern of irregularity. Narody Azii i Afriki (The Peoples of Asia and Africa) is the more scholarly of the two periodicals. It is published in Moscow by the Institute of Orientalism and the Institute of Africa, both affiliated to the Soviet Academy of Sciences. It has been appearing since 1960, when it replaced another periodical, Sovetskoye Vostokovedeniye (Soviet Orientalism). This had ceased publication at the end of 1958 and was followed, during 1959 only, by Problemy Vostokovedeniya (Problems of Orientalism). Narody Azii i Afriki, like its two predecessors, appears bimonthly. Each issue comprises between 240 and 260 pages in 80, and costs 1.60 roubles-rather prohibitive for the general public. But then it is hardly meant for the average reader-rather for the Orientalist community in the Soviet Union and abroad. For the benefit of the latter, the editors include English summaries of the major articles, and tables of contents in English and French. Until the end of 1967 there was a table of contents in Chinese too, but this was discontinued, probably because the number of readers in China was not large enough to justify it. The articles are usually divided into the following sections: economics and politics, history, culture and language. These are followed by shorter notes, review articles, book reviews and bibliographical notes. Personalia and scholarly events (i.e. reports of conferences and meetings in the Soviet Union and abroad) are the last sections. Some issues also include letters to the Editor. In this manner, the contents are not only varied, but broad in scope. While they practically always publish the results of research done only in the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc-and, almost without exception, all contributors live there-the book reviews and bibliography include a sizeable share of works published elsewhere. The articles, although following a more or less rigid Marxist approach, cover the whole span of oriental studies, topically and geographically; they are generally long, amply footnoted pieces of research by both reputable scholars and promising doctoral candidates. While many articles deal with India, South-east Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, students of the Middle East and the Maghreb will find much of interest. Recent issues, during 1970, included articles on subjects such as: The new economic

Iran is poised to re-emerge as the powerhouse of the Middle East in the 21st century. Already taking on massive export and energy diversification projects and working to acquire a nuclear weapons arsenal, Iran is likely to attain the stature of regional power in the coming years, thanks in no small measure to the vacuum created by the chaos in Iraq, which for many years served as a counterweight to Iran in the region. Gonzalez illuminates the path toward a new approach to engagement with Iran. Only then can the United States reap the benefits of a new Middle East. But is a nuclear-armed Iran a direct strategic threat to the United States? While post-revolutionary politics have harnessed anti-Americanism as a matter of policy, Gonzalez argues that this is only a sign of a larger enterprise of democratization; a trajectory of independence, as the author calls it. This trajectory has led Iran to release itself from the shackles of foreign power intervention and has put it closer to home-grown democracy than any other nation in the Muslim Middle East. This promise of democracy, set in the wider scope of Iranian Shi'i jurisprudence and practice, is set to elevate the largest segment of Iranian society-its educated and pro-American youth-to the forefront of Iranian politics. The Middle East is in crisis, and within every crisis lies opportunity. America must not repeat the myopic mistakes of the past. A far-sighted and grand-strategic approach to engagement with Iran promises to open doors to regional stability and political development. Only then can America, as the global superpower, reap the benefits of a new Middle East, with the Islamic Republic of Iran at the helm.

This chapter is an exploration of the concept and practice of humanism in the Muslim Middle East, from the seventh-century Prophetic dispensation to the present times. Humanism has often been described as the peculiar fruit of the European Renaissance. The chapter challenges this claim by investigating the incidence of humanism in the Middle East around a three-tiered axis. First, humanism as a focus on this-worldly rather than other-worldly matters is not only compatible with the “worldliness” of an Islamic ethos but was historically encouraged by it. Second, modernist reformers portray humanism as an earlier “modern” age in the history of the Middle East that they now seek to renew. Finally, inasmuch as humanism is a form of anthropocentrism, theological ideas like al-insān al-kāmil, the perfect man, allow for such humanism to be embedded within a broader Islamic theocentrism. The chapter concludes with possible humanistic futures in the Middle East.

Iran is poised to re-emerge as the powerhouse of the Middle East in the 21st century. Already taking on massive export and energy diversification projects and working to acquire a nuclear weapons arsenal, Iran is likely to attain the stature of regional power in the coming years, thanks in no small measure to the vacuum created by the chaos in Iraq, which for many years served as a counterweight to Iran in the region. Gonzalez illuminates the path toward a new approach to engagement with Iran. Only then can the United States reap the benefits of a new Middle East. But is a nuclear-armed Iran a direct strategic threat to the United States? While post-revolutionary politics have harnessed anti-Americanism as a matter of policy, Gonzalez argues that this is only a sign of a larger enterprise of democratization; a trajectory of independence, as the author calls it. This trajectory has led Iran to release itself from the shackles of foreign power intervention and has put it closer to home-grown democracy than any other nation in the Muslim Middle East. This promise of democracy, set in the wider scope of Iranian Shi'i jurisprudence and practice, is set to elevate the largest segment of Iranian society—its educated and pro-American youth—to the forefront of Iranian politics. The Middle East is in crisis, and within every crisis lies opportunity. America must not repeat the myopic mistakes of the past. A far-sighted and grand-strategic approach to engagement with Iran promises to open doors to regional stability and political development. Only then can America, as the global superpower, reap the benefits of a new Middle East, with the Islamic Republic of Iran at the helm.

Nigeria has the largest Muslim population and economy in terms of gross domestic product in Sub-Saharan Africa. It is a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation among other political, economic, or cultural groupings. Thus, especially in good economic times, Nigeria has a great deal of influence not only on the continent of Africa, but also beyond that geographical region as a middle power. Domestically, Muslims constitute a slight majority in Nigeria’s population with almost all the remainder being Christian. Although Nigeria’s constitution prohibits an official religion, twelve of the country’s thirty-six states (located in the north) follow sharia, or Islamic law. Before Britain’s colonization in the nineteenth century, the northern regions of Nigeria constituted parts of two Sunni Muslim political entities, the Sokoto Caliphate and the Bornu Empire. Although Nigeria’s military and civilian presidents have sometimes acted on their own whims with regard to foreign policy toward the Middle East, in most cases Nigeria’s economic development and internal security have been their overriding concerns. This article addresses Nigeria’s relations with Muslim countries in the Middle East, among them Turkey, Iran, and Saudi Arabia, which are also middle powers. Nigeria, through a balanced approach, has been able to avoid getting involved in Middle Eastern regional squabbles and disputes, while at the same time benefiting from economic investment from countries in that region. Nevertheless, corruption and inefficiency have precluded any real benefit for the vast majority of Nigeria’s population from the revenues derived from the export of hydrocarbons. All the while the country has been affected adversely by the actions of both Sunni and Shi‘i indigenous jihadist groups, which have been inspired at least in part by developments in the Middle East.

During 1999, a group of young Jordanians formed the Campaign to Eliminate So-called Crimes of Honor as a grass-roots signature-collecting effort intent on repealing the law that grants reduced penalties for crimes. Their efforts were ultimately defeated by a Parliament vote and quiet co-optation by the government. The Campaign's experience shows both the possibilities for civil society in the Arab world and the difficulties in raising an autonomous voice for democratic protest under conditions of limited political liberalization. The academic interest in civil society and its relationship to democratic governance springs from the wave of democratic change in Latin America and Eastern Europe. The trend slowly reached the study of Middle East politics, the delay largely reflecting the stability of authoritarian governments and practices in much of the region. For some, the Arab Middle East appears to be the glaring exception to the democratizing trend.1 The explanations for this exceptionalism vary from the structural to the cultural. Either the tradition of Oriental despotism represses Arab people, who are only too happy to applaud their oppressors,2 or the structure of Islam and its puritan enthusiasm prevent a Reformation like that of Europe.3 For others, Islamist movements, the strongest groups in civil society in the Arab world, challenge their governments in a distinctly un-civil manner, thus inviting repression from insecure security states. The 1999 Freedom House survey of Freedom in the World, although an imperfect measure of the complex concept freedom, sums it up neatly: while the year saw some evidence of modest democratic reforms in several Arab states, there remain no electoral democracies in the Arab world.4 Challenging these views, the lone voice of optimism in this discussion belongs to those touting the possibilities for the emergence of civil society in the Arab Middle East.5 Although few see immediate potential in the Arab world for the massive changes that have occurred elsewhere, these voices claim that an emerging, vibrant civil society much greater ground for optimism about democratic prospects in the Arab world.6 Citizens are becoming more active and are pressing their governments to be more responsive. Although associational life has always been rich in the Middle East, political liberalization, though limited in scope and to only a few countries, may provide these associations just enough range for action to open more space for political freedom. This article seeks to add another optimistic voice to this discussion, although one of guarded optimism. During the course of 1999, a unique civil society phenomenon emerged in the Arab, Muslim Middle East, specifically in Jordan: The Campaign to Eliminate Socalled Crimes of Honor. A group of young Jordanians formed this Campaign with the purpose, as the name suggests, of combating honor crimes in which women who are suspected of sexual deviance are killed by a male family member to protect the family's honor. The activists of the Campaign gathered the signatures of Jordanian citizens in an attempt to repeal the law that grants reduced penalties to men convicted of committing honor crimes: Article 340 of the Jordanian Penal Code. They argued that Article 340 provides legal cover for the murder of innocent women and has no place in civilized society. As of November 1999, they had collected over 15,000 signatures and created a storm of debate about a previously taboo subject. The state's response to the Campaign, however, shows that powerful obstacles remain to the emergence of an autonomous civil society in Jordan. The Campaign's activities have currently been slowed down by intervention from the palace, exposing the general limits of political liberalization from above and its specific limits in the case of Jordan. The actions and statements of the palace and the government reveal the manner in which the regime confronts societal challenges and ultimately co-opts independent action to preserve its status as ultimate arbiter of Jordanian politics. …

Today nearly half of all people in the Middle East are under the age of fifteen. Yet little is known about the new generation of boys and girls who are growing up in a world vastly different from that of their parents, a generation who will be the leaders of tomorrow. This groundbreaking anthology is an attempt to look at the current situation of children by presenting materials by both Middle Eastern and Western scholars. Many of the works have been translated from Arabic, Persian, and French.The forty-one pieces are organized into sections on the history of childhood, growing up, health, work, education, politics and war, and play and the arts. They are presented in many forms: essays in history and social science, poems, proverbs, lullabies, games, and short stories. Countries represented are Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia, Israel/West Bank, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Lebanon, Turkey, Yemen, and Afghanistan. This book complements Elizabeth Fernea's earlier works, Women and the Family in the Middle East and Middle Eastern Muslim Women Speak (coedited with Basima Bezirgan). Like them, it will be important reading for everyone interested in the Middle East and in women's and children's issues.