Islam and the Spice Trade: Towards a New History of Global Commerce In brief Date - 28 February 2023 Venue - Screening Room G.04, 50 George Square Speaker - Professor Joel Belcher Organisers - The School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures; the Edinburgh Centre for Global History; the Alwaleed Centre for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World About the event In the Western imagination, the spice trade is often portrayed as the spark for the European “Age of Discovery,” as explorers from Venice, Genoa, Lisbon, and Amsterdam set sail in search of a new passage to the East, ushering in an era of globalisation that began at the turn of the 16th century. But what if we instead told the story of the spice trade within the frame of the long 15th century? And what if, in doing so, we centered the intellectual dilemmas and social practices of the Muslim merchant-scholars who transformed religious and commercial life in ports across the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, and even opened up new markets across the Indian Ocean? And what might a new understanding of this maritime corridor have to teach us about the relationship between Islam and the history of global commerce more broadly? Professor Joel Blecher will take up these questions by exploring a few episodes from this understudied chapter in world history, illuminating how competing Islamic sensibilities of justice and oppression in matters of trade helped bind together an emerging economy that was linked across vast distances, while also being flexible to change as Muslims ventured into new parts of the world. About the speaker Professor Joel Blecher is an Associate Professor of History at The George Washington University. He is the author of 'Said the Prophet of God: Hadith Commentary across a Millennium' (University of California, 2018), which has been translated into Arabic, and the co-translator of 'Ibn Hajar's Merits of the Plague' (Penguin Classics, 2023). His work has been supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the American Council of Learned Societies, the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, and the Kluge Center at the Library of Congress. He is currently on leave this year as a fellow at the Wissenschaftskolleg in Berlin and as the Bayard Dodge Distinguished Visiting Professor at the American University in Cairo. How to attend This event is free to attend and open to all. No registration is required. Are you interested in studying with us? We are the only university in Scotland to offer courses in the Muslim world's three main languages, placing Arabic, Persian and Turkish in the context of history, literature, culture, religion and politics, past and present. Choose from a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, including PhD programmes. Find out more about Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies at Edinburgh Feb 28 2024 16.00 - 18.00 Islam and the Spice Trade: Towards a New History of Global Commerce An in-person lecture by Professor Joel Belcher (George Washington University) on lesser-known ports and practices of the 15th century spice trade. This event is in collaboration with the Edinburgh Centre for Global History and the Alwaleed Centre for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World. Screening Room G.04 50 George Square University of Edinburgh EH8 9LH Find the venue
Islam and the Spice Trade: Towards a New History of Global Commerce In brief Date - 28 February 2023 Venue - Screening Room G.04, 50 George Square Speaker - Professor Joel Belcher Organisers - The School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures; the Edinburgh Centre for Global History; the Alwaleed Centre for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World About the event In the Western imagination, the spice trade is often portrayed as the spark for the European “Age of Discovery,” as explorers from Venice, Genoa, Lisbon, and Amsterdam set sail in search of a new passage to the East, ushering in an era of globalisation that began at the turn of the 16th century. But what if we instead told the story of the spice trade within the frame of the long 15th century? And what if, in doing so, we centered the intellectual dilemmas and social practices of the Muslim merchant-scholars who transformed religious and commercial life in ports across the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, and even opened up new markets across the Indian Ocean? And what might a new understanding of this maritime corridor have to teach us about the relationship between Islam and the history of global commerce more broadly? Professor Joel Blecher will take up these questions by exploring a few episodes from this understudied chapter in world history, illuminating how competing Islamic sensibilities of justice and oppression in matters of trade helped bind together an emerging economy that was linked across vast distances, while also being flexible to change as Muslims ventured into new parts of the world. About the speaker Professor Joel Blecher is an Associate Professor of History at The George Washington University. He is the author of 'Said the Prophet of God: Hadith Commentary across a Millennium' (University of California, 2018), which has been translated into Arabic, and the co-translator of 'Ibn Hajar's Merits of the Plague' (Penguin Classics, 2023). His work has been supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the American Council of Learned Societies, the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, and the Kluge Center at the Library of Congress. He is currently on leave this year as a fellow at the Wissenschaftskolleg in Berlin and as the Bayard Dodge Distinguished Visiting Professor at the American University in Cairo. How to attend This event is free to attend and open to all. No registration is required. Are you interested in studying with us? We are the only university in Scotland to offer courses in the Muslim world's three main languages, placing Arabic, Persian and Turkish in the context of history, literature, culture, religion and politics, past and present. Choose from a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, including PhD programmes. Find out more about Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies at Edinburgh Feb 28 2024 16.00 - 18.00 Islam and the Spice Trade: Towards a New History of Global Commerce An in-person lecture by Professor Joel Belcher (George Washington University) on lesser-known ports and practices of the 15th century spice trade. This event is in collaboration with the Edinburgh Centre for Global History and the Alwaleed Centre for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World. Screening Room G.04 50 George Square University of Edinburgh EH8 9LH Find the venue
Feb 28 2024 16.00 - 18.00 Islam and the Spice Trade: Towards a New History of Global Commerce An in-person lecture by Professor Joel Belcher (George Washington University) on lesser-known ports and practices of the 15th century spice trade. This event is in collaboration with the Edinburgh Centre for Global History and the Alwaleed Centre for the Study of Islam in the Contemporary World.
