| CODE | ARB2022 | |||||||||
| TITLE | Arab History and Civilization: The Oral Tradition | |||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 02 - Years 2, 3 in Modular Undergraduate Course | |||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 5 | |||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 4 | |||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Middle Eastern and Asian Languages and Cultures | |||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | The study-unit analyzes the historical, economic and cultural realities characterizing Arabia prior to the emergence of Islam during the early part of the seventh century A.D. Particular attention is reserved to the role played by the poet in the pre-Islamic oral poetic tradition. The importance of this tradition was such that it left its indelible mark on later Arabic literary output. Moreover, the study-unit covers the earliest years of the Islamic movement which overwhelmed Arabia and the Middle East during the time of the so-called Orthodox caliphate, giving rise to a formidable Muslim empire. The study-unit is structured as follows: 1. The Pre-Islamic era: • the Geography of the Middle East; • the Byzantine and Persian Empires; and • the Arabian Peninsula: social, economic, political conditions of the Peninsula; the religious beliefs; Mecca and the Ka'aba; the importance of poetry in Pre-Islam. 2. The Foundations of Islam: • the early Life of the Prophet Muhammad; • the First Revelations and the migration from Mecca to Medina; • the new beginning and the consolidation of power in Medina; • the battles of Badr and Uhud; • the conquest of Mecca; • the expansion of Islam in Arabia and beyond; • the Orthodox Caliphate. Study-unit Aims 1. To acquaint students with the historical, economic and cultural realities characterizing seventh and eighth century Arabia; 2. To familiarize students with aspects of the Arabic oral literary tradition; 3. To expose students to features of Arabic civilization in the wake of the emergence of Islam. Learning Outcomes 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: 1. Appreciate, in translation, selections from the "al-mu'allaqāt" anthology of poems; 2. Understand the socio-cultural background of selected texts; 3. Identify the key features of the form and content of selected texts; 4. Recognize the historical impact which such texts have had upon the emerging literary traditions of early Islam. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: 1. Compare and contrast pagan and Muslim Arabia of the seventh and eighth centuries A.D. from the historical, economic and cultural points of view; 2. Sufficiently appraise the literary legacy of the early Islamic tradition. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings - Brown, Daniel, A New Introduction to Islam, Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell Publishing, 2009. - Cook, Michael, Muhammad, Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1983. - Cook, Michael, The Koran. A very short introduction, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. - Gabriele, F. Muhammad and the Conquests of Islam, London: World Univ. Libr., 1968. - Goldschmidt, A. A Concise History of the Middle East. 6th ed. Westview Press. 1999. (Available at the Department of Oriental Studies). - Hitti, Ph. K. History of the Arabs, 10th ed. London: MacMillan and Co. Ltd., 2002. - Hourani, Albert. A History of the Arabs. Faber & Faber, 1992. - Kennedy, H. The Prophet and the Age of the Caliphs, London: Longman, 2004. - Lewis, Bernard. The Arabs in History, London: Hutchinson University, 2002. - Lewis, Bernard. The Middle East. 2000 years of history from the rise of Christianity to the present day, Phoenix Giant, 1995. - Lyons, M.C., The Arabian Epic: Heoric and Oral Story-Telling (3 vols.), Cambridge University Press, 2005. - Montgomery Watt, W. Muhammad. Prophet and Statesman, London: Oxford University Press, 1961. - Montgomery Watt, W. and Cachia, P. A History of Islamic Spain, Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2007. - Nettleton Fisher, S. and Ochsenwald, W. The Middle East. A History. 5th ed. Vol. 1. McGraw-Hill, 1997. (Available at the Department of Oriental Studies). - Reynolds, D., Heroic Poets, Poetic Heroes. The ethnography of performance in an Arabic oral epic tradition, Cornell University Press, 1995. - Robinson, Neal, Discovering the Quran: A Contemporary Approach to a Veiled Text, (2nd. Ed.), Georgetown University Press, 2004. - Rogerson, Barnaby. The Heirs of the Prophet Muhammad. Abacus, 2006. (Available at the Department of Oriental Studies). - Sells, M.A. Desert Tracings, Six Classic Arabian Odes by ‘Alqama, Shanfara, Labid, ‘Antara, Al-A’sha, and Dhu al-Rumma, Connecticut, Wesleyan University Press, 1989. |
|||||||||
| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | |||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
|
|||||||||
| LECTURER/S | John Attard |
|||||||||
|
The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2024/5. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
||||||||||