Curriculum Vitae updated 3/13   Daniel Martin Varisco   Professor Department of Anthropology 200F Davison Hall Hofstra University Hempstead, NY 11549 (516) 463-5590 [office], (516) 463-6250 [fax] e-mail: Daniel.M.Varisco@hofstra.edu academic website: http://people.hofstra.edu/faculty/daniel_m_varisco/hofdan.html media page: http://www.ahjur.org/media.html op-eds and commentaries: http://www.ahjur.org/oped.html Hofstra Press Room page: http://www.hofstra.edu/home/News/UR/PressRoom/proom_varisco.html

sketch by Prof. Roland Bainton, Yale Divinity School, 1974

Articles Books Education Community and School Lectures Development and Conservation Experience Editor Fellowships, Grants and Honors Languages Professional Organizations Professional Papers and Lectures Reviews Teaching Experience Theses Webmaster

 

EDUCATION

 

Ph. D. University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, 1982 (Anthropology)

M. A. University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, 1975 (Anthropology)

B. A. Wheaton College, Wheaton, Illinois, 1973 (Archaeology ) [with high honors]

 

---

BOOKS

2007 Reading Orientalism: Said and the Unsaid. Seattle: University of Washington Press. http://www.washington.edu/uwpress/search/books/VARREC.html [In-depth critical analysis of Said’s text, examining his rhetoric of persuasion as well as the credibility and accuracy of historical claims he makes in representing Orientalism as a Western discourse. Survey of the debate over Said’s thesis in anthropology, history, literary and post-colonial studies. The first review is by Robert Irwin in the TLS (May 7, 2008) .Also reviewed in: American Literary History, 21(3):633-646, 2009; History and Theory 47(1):148, 2008; Merkur (Deutsches Zeitschrift f. europäisches Denken), 717:151-164, 2009; The Review of Politics, 71(1):146-149, 2009; Journal of Islamic Studies 20(2):304-306, 2009; Common Knowledge 15(3):510, 2009; Al-Jazeera (aljazeera.net) 4/12/2008; IJMES 44(4):822-824, 2012; and, Logos, 8(2), 2009.]

2005 Islam Obscured: The Rhetoric of Anthropological Representation. Society for the Anthropology of Religion Series. New York: Palgrave. http://www.palgrave-usa.com/catalog/product.aspx?isbn=1403967725 [Critical study of the academic rhetoric used in representing Islam in the seminal anthropological texts of Geertz, Gellner, Mernissi, and Ahmed. The epilogue builds on what anthropologists have learned by observing Muslims; this is offered as a prolegomenon to future anthropological study within Islamic contexts and more effective sharing of ethnographic analysis with scholars outside the discipline. Reviewed in the American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 25(2):123-125,2008; Zeitschrift für Religions- und Geistesgeschichte 58(2):133-154, 2006; The Journal of North African Studies 14(2):309-316, 2009; and the Journal of Islamic Studies, 18(2):254-257, 2007. Excerpts reprinted in Jens Kreinath, editor, The Anthropology of Islam Reader (New York: Routledge, 2012), 322-343.]

1998 The Manuscript of al-Malik al-Afdal: al-'Abbâs b. 'Alî Dâwud b. Yûsuf b. 'Umar b. 'Alî Ibn Rasûl (d. 778/1377): A Medieval Arabic Anthology from the Yemen. (Editor, with G. R. Smith). London: Gibb Memorial Trust. [http://www.arisandphillips.com/Smith.html] [Facsimile edition of a 600 page Yemeni manuscript which I photographed in Yemen in 1978. It consists of texts written by, and compiled for, a Yemeni sultan of the 14th century, including excerpts from many texts no longer extant. As such it is a valuable resources for a range of scholars who study the medieval Middle East. I indexed the text and wrote the introduction with Prof. G. Rex Smith (Manchester University). Reviews in British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies 27(2):212-214, 2000; Die Welt des Orients 32(2):222-226, 2002; Journal of Islamic Studies 11(2):232-233, 2000; Journal of Near Eastern Studies 60(3):232-234, 2001; al-’Usur al-Wusta 11(1):25-26, 1999; Yemen Update 44:44-48, 2002.]

 

1997 Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen. Variorum Collected Studies. Hampshire, England: Ashgate Publishing Limited. https://www.ashgate.com/shopping/title.asp?key1=&key2=&orig=results&isbn=0%2086078%20651%20X [Collection of one original and 15 previously published articles. These describe my research on traditional Yemeni agriculture, seasonal almanac lore, medieval Yemeni agricultural, and astronomical texts. Reviews in Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 33:206-207, 1999; and al-’Usur al-Wusta.]

1994 Medieval Agriculture and Islamic Science. The Almanac of a Yemeni Sultan (Arabic edition, English translation, commentary]. Seattle: University of Washington Press. xv, 349 pp. [Arabic edition, English translation, commentary. First major study of the almanac tradition in Yemen. The methodology for the book combines ethnographic study of traditional Yemeni agriculture and dialect with a historical study of a 13th century Yemeni almanac. One of the publisher’s reviewers of the manuscript, A. I. Sabra (Harvard), said “No library concerned with the history of science, economic and agricultural history, medieval technology, and anthropology can afford not to obtain a copy of this book.” Reviews have appeared in Annals of the Association of American Geographers 87(1):186-187, 1997; Asian Folklore Studies 55(1):190, 1996; British Journal of Middle East Studies 22(1-2):202-203, 1995; Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association, Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 59(1):148-150, 1996; Der Islam 74:374-378, 1997; Historische Zeitschrift 262:576-577, 1996; Isis 86(3):476-477, 1995; Journal of the American Oriental Society 116(1):151-152, 1996; Journal for the Economic and Social History of the Orient 41(1):121-123, 1998; Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society 5(3)415-417, 1995; Journal of Semitic Studies 41(1)178-179, 1996; al-Ma'thûrât al-Sha'biyya 38:19-23, 123-125, 1995; Tarih Incelemeleri Dergisi 20(1):167-169, 2005; Zeitschrift für Geschichte der Arabisch-Islamischen Wissenschaften 10:348-351, 1995/96.]

In Preparation

The Significance of Spinning Webs: The Legacy of Bororo Parrots and Nuer Twins in the Anthropological Analysis of Religious Language
[ Historical survey of the ways in which indigenous religious language has been explained in anthropology since the work of Franz Boas, focusing on the infamous Bororo arara parrot trope as instigated by the German explorer Karl von den Steinen and the Nuer twin-is-a-bird trope interpreted by the anthropologist E. E. Evans-Pritchard.]

The Legitimacy of Muhammad: A Genealogical Study
[Examines the Arabic texts on the genealogy of Muhammad in light of anthropological studies of kinship (especially the segmentary lineage concept) in the Middle East.]

Arabia Viridis: A Cultural History of Agriculture in Rasulid Yemen. [Comprehensive survey of Yemeni agriculture in the 13th-15th centuries. Covers land and soil, water resources and irrigation, cultivated crops and crop production, agricultural seasons and calendars, economics and trade, and an extensive lexicon of agricultural terminology. Translation of two Rasulid agricultural texts.]

2002

September 11: Participant Webservation of the "War on Terrorism." American Anthropologist, 104(3):934-938. [Analysis of the coverage of 9/11 on the Internet, including “participant webservation” of online video games involving Osama Bin Laden.]

 

The Archaeologist's Spade and the Apologist's Stacked Deck: The Near East through Conservative Christian Bibliolatry. In Abbas Amanat and Magnus T. Bernhardsson, editors, The United States & the Middle East: Cultural Encounters, 57-116. New Haven: The Yale Center for International and Area Studies. Online at http://www.yale.edu/macmillan/cmes/publications.htm [Critical study of Christian apologetic approaches to biblical archaeology, with an emphasis on the 19th century.]

 

Agriculture in Rasulid Zabid. Journal of Semitic Studies, Supplement 14. Studies on Arabia in Honour of Professor G. Rex Smith, edited by J. F. Healey and V. Porter, 323-351. Oxford: Oxford University Press. [Detailed study of agricultural production in Wadi Zabîd during the Rasulid era, including translation of a mid-14th century text.]

2001
The Web and the War on Terror. Anthropology News 42:9:48-49.

2000
Islamic Folk Astronomy. In The History of Non-Western Astronomy. Astronomy Across Cultures, pp. 615-650. Edited by Helaine Selin. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers. [Survey of folk astronomy for pre-Islamic Arabia and early Islamic texts. Covers the lunar stations as well as folklore on star calendars from ethnography of the region.]

 

Slamming Islam: Participant Webservation with a Web of Meanings to Boot. Working Papers from the MES .

ZAYTÛN. The Encyclopaedia of Islam (second edition), 10:486-487. [Historical survey of the cultivation and use of the olive in the Islamic world. The Encyclopaedia of Islam is the major scholarly reference work on the Middle East and Islam. It is published simultaneoulsy in English and French.]

 

Yemen Geographicalized (review article).Yemen Update 42:63-67. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/ngmapr.html) [Critical review of April 2000 article in National Geographic.]

1998

TAKWIM. 2. Agricultural almanacs. The Encyclopaedia of Islam (second edition), 9:146-148. [Surveys the history of the almanac as a literary and scientific genre in Arabic.]

 

After New York . . . Before Sanaa: A Postmodern Lufthansa Lullaby.Yemen Update 40:24-28 (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/luft.html). [Reflections on consulting trip to Yemen in 1998.]

1997

The Twin Twigs: Coffee and Qat. The World & I 12(7):217-227, July. [Popular article which discusses the historical context of the use of two stimulants – qât and coffee – in Yemen after the 15th century; examines the social context of qât chews and the economic role of both crops in Yemen's recent history.]

Al-Sayl wa-al-ghayl: Al-nawâhî al-bî’iya li-taqâsim al-miyâh fî al-Yaman. In Lucine Taminian, editor, Studies on the Ethnology of Yemen, pp. 189-213. Sanaa: American Institute for Yemeni Studies. [Arabic translation of my 1983 Human Ecology article by Lucine Taminian.]

 

Why a Peach is not a Plum . . . An Author Responds to a Review That's the Pits. Yemen Update 39:42-45. [Response to an uncritical review of my 1994 book.]

1996

Water Sources and Traditional Irrigation in Yemen, New Arabian Studies 3:238-257. [Revision of a chapter from my dissertation on the range of water sources and types of irrigation in Yemen; covers seasonal floods, wells, springs and cisterns, qanats and surface runoff. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

 

An Anthropologist at Play in Medieval Fields. Hofstra Horizons Fall, 7-9. [Discussion of my interdisciplinary combination of anthropology and history in the study of Yemeni agriculture.

 

The Arabic Anthology of al-Malik al-Afdal: A Window on the Literary World of a 14th Century Yemeni Sultan. Yemen Update 38:19-23. [Survey of this important Yemeni manuscript, eventually published in facsimile by myself and G. Rex Smith.]

1995

The Tribal Paradigm and the Genealogy of Muhammad. Anthropological Quarterly 68(3):139- 156. Reprinted in: Mona Siddiqui, editor, Islam, Vol. 1 (Sage, 2011) [Examines the Arabic texts on the genealogy of Muhammad in light of anthropological studies of kinship (especially the segmentary lineage concept) in the Middle East. The paper concludes that the formal genealogy is not credible as recorded but rather a form of textual legitimization of Muhammad as a prophet. This article appears in a special issue called "Anthropological Analysis and Islamic Texts," for which I was guest editor.]

 

Indigenous Plant Protection Methods in Yemen. GeoJournal 37(1):27-38. [Describes indigenous methods of plant protection among Yemeni farmers based on field research conducted for Yemen's Ministry of Agriculture in 1992. In addition to the documentation, the article discusses recommendations for integrated pest management in Yemen. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

 

The Astrological Significance of the Lunar Stations in the 13th Century Rasulid Text of al-Malik al-Ashraf, Quaderni di Studi Arabi 13:19-40. [Analysis of a prognosticative excerpt on the lunar stations from a late 13th century Yemeni manuscript by al-Malik al-Ashraf; includes an annotated translation of the excerpt. This article was solicited by Dr. Anne Regourd (Paris) for a special issue on divination and magic in Yemen]

 

1994-5

The Prophet's Medicine: Part 1.The World & I, 9(12):262-271, December. Part 2 published in 10/1:263-271, January. [This is a general article on the history of the scientific genre known as the "Prophet's Medicine" in Islamic tradition. I describe the kind of medical advice in the texts with several translated examples. It is one of the few accounts in English of this important genre of Arab science. The article was reprinted in The Yemen Times in 1995.]

 

1994

An Anonymous 14th Century Almanac from Rasulid Yemen, Zeitschrift für Geschichte der Arabisch-Islamischen Wissenschaften 9:195-228. [Arabic edition and English translation of a 14th century Yemeni almanac with commentary and annotation. The almanac, which is compiled from several earlier sources, is found in the manuscript of al-Malik al-Afdal. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

 

Yemen Classics #4. A Great Book on al-Yaman al-Kubra. Yemen Update 34:45. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/waysi.html)

 

1993
The Agricultural Marker Stars in Yemeni Folklore. Asian Folklore Studies 52:119-142. [First study in English of a Yemeni star calendar based on the conjunction of the moon and the Pleiades. It includes original research on Yemeni manuscripts, as well as the results of ethnographic study among Yemeni farmers. Solicited in 1991 by Dr. Saad A. Sowayan for a special issue on Arabian folklore. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

 

Texts and Pretexts: The Unity of the Rasulid State in the Reign of al-Malik al-Muzaffar. Revue du Monde Musulman et de la Méditerranée 67(1):13-21.[Historical survey of the Yemeni Rasulid sultan al-Malik al-Muzaffar. Solicited by Dr. Michel Tuchscherer (Aix-en-Provence) for a special issue on Yemeni unity.]

 

The Study of "Medieval" Yemen: Recent Work and Future Prospects. Yemen Update 32:10-13.

A Rasulid Agricultural Almanac for A.H. 808/A.D. 1405-6. New Arabian Studies 1:108-123. [English translation of the Yemeni almanac I edited in Dirâsât Yamaniyya (20:192-222). The manuscript is from the Egyptian National Library. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

1992
A Trip to the Hadramawt. Yemen Update 30/31:16-20. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/hadr.html). [Reflections of a 1992 consultancy for GTZ on Indigegnous plant protection methods in Yemen.]

 

1991
The Future of Terrace Farming in North Yemen: A Development Dilemma. Agriculture and Human Values (Gainesville, FL) 8(1&2):166-172. [Development potential of traditional Yemeni terrace agriculture. Solicited by Dr. Dennis Warren (Iowa State University) for a special issue highlighting indigenous agricultural knowledge. Online copy at: http://www.aiys.org/webdate/terrace.html.]

A Royal Crop Register from Rasulid Yemen. Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient (Leiden) 34:1-22. [Translation of a Rasulid crop and tax register from the 14th century with extensive annotation of the terms. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

The Origin of the Anwa' in Arab Tradition.Studia Islamica (Leiden) 74:5-28. [Presentation of theory on the origin of the lunar station concept in Arab tradition as a mixing of the zodiacal grid from India with indigenous pre-Islamic Arab folk calendars. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

The Origin of the Anwa' in Arab Tradition: On the Distinction between Science and Folklore. J. for the History of Arabic Science (Aleppo) 9(1-2):69-100. [Paper submitted to a conference in Aleppo. I withdrew the paper when I was unable to attend, but it was later published without my knowledge. It is essentially an earlier version of an article published in Studia Islamica, which readers are urged to consult.

Pearls of the Gulf.The World & I 6(5):606-619, May. [Popular article on the traditional economic systems of pearling and trade and the recent impact of oil production on the local society. The article is based on information gained under a 1989 Fulbright grant in Qatar.]

Why Material Culture is not Immaterial. MERA Forum 14:1:1-2. [Short essay on the importance of documenting the material culture of the Arabian Peninsula before it rapidly disappears. MERA Forum is the bulletin of the Middle East Research Group in Anthropology.]

Observations on the Baboons in the Garden of the "Bostan Restaurant." Yemen Update 28/29:11-14. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/bostan.html). [Reflections on a visit to a Sanaa restaurant in 1991.]

1990

Folk Astronomy and the Seasons in the Arabian Gulf. al-Ma'thurat al-Sha'biyya (Doha, Qatar) 19:7-27. [Describes my research on folk astronomy and almanac lore of the Arabian Gulf region. It is based on ethnographic interviews, Arabic manuscripts and a study of the Arab Gulf States Folklore Centre's extensive library collection on Middle East folklore.]

Biological Diversity for North Yemen. A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 27:5,10.

1989

Land Use and Agricultural Development in the Yemen Arab Republic. in Anthropology and Development in North Africa and the Middle East, M. Salem Murdock and M. Horowitz, editors, pp. 292-311. Boulder: Westview Press.[Analysis of land use and tenure for agricultural development projects in Yemen with specific focus on a USAID project.]

 

Medieval Agricultural Texts from Rasulid Yemen. Manuscripts of the Middle East (Leiden) 4:150-154. [First published bibliography of Yemeni agricultural manuscripts. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

 

Rasulid Agriculture and the Almanac Tradition and Medicine and the Herbal in Medieval Yemen. in Yemen. 3000 Years of Art and Civilisation in Arabia Felix, W. Daum, editor, 309-321. Innsbruck: Pinguin. [This volume accompanied an exhibition on Yemen in the Staatliches Museum für Völkerkunde in Munich in 1987. The papers were written in English and translated into German for a separate edition.]

 

From Rhino Horns to Dagger Handles. Animal Kingdom (NY), May/June 92(3):44-49. [Popular article describing research conducted in Yemen and Kenya for the World Wildlife Fund on rhino conservation . The article looks at the marketing and use of rhino horn for making daggers in Yemen and suggests recommendations for curbing the trade.]

 

Al-Hisâb al-zirâ'î fî urjuzat Hasan al-'Affârî. Dirâsat fî al-taqwîm al-zirâ'î al-Yamanî. al- Ma'thûrât al-Sha'biyya 16:7-29. [Annotated Arabic edition and commentary on an 18th century Yemeni poem on the seasons and folk astronomy. It includes eight of my photographs. Reprinted in al-Iklil (Sanaa) 22/1 (1993):83-99 and Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

Beyond Rhino Horn -- Wildlife Conservation for North Yemen. Oryx 23(4):215-219. [Describes my wildlife conservation project on rhino conservation for World Wildlife Fund in 1987. This is the journal of the Fauna and Flora Preservation Society in England.

The Anwâ' Stars According to Abû Ishâq al-Zajjâj. Zeitschrift für Geschichte der Arabisch-Islamischen Wissenschaften 5:145-166. [Annotated translation of one of the earliest Arabic texts describing an important pre-Islamic star calendar known as the anwâ'. This is the first translation into English of the genre. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

The Arab Gulf States Folklore Centre: A Resource for the Study of Folklore and Traditional Culture. Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 23:2:157-167. [Informational article on the Arab Gulf States Folklore Centre for members of MESA. It also includes an index of the center's journal, Ma'thûrât al-Sha'biyya.]

Media Mediocrity in the Coverage of Yemen. A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 25:9. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/danmed.html). [Short critical response to two nespaper articles on Yemen.]

Report from Doha: The Arab Gulf States Folklore Centre. A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 26:8.

1988
The Qât Factor in North Yemen's Agricultural Development. Culture and Agriculture 34:11-14. [Argument that the production and marketing of the stimulant plant qât (Catha edulis) in Yemen has been beneficial to small Yemeni farmers, despite the fears of development officials that it is a drain on the economic system. Culture and Agriculture is the Bulletin of the Culture and Agriculture Group of the AAA.]

Green Arabia. Continuity and Change in North Yemen. The World &I 3(5):514-523, May. [Popular article about Yemeni culture in North Yemen, where I did my ethnographic fieldwork. I discuss the traditional social structure and recent socioeconomic changes.]

 

Folk Tales from South Arabia.The World & I 3(7):503-509, July. [Translation and commentary of three traditional folk tales from South Arabia. One is on a religious theme and two deal with tribal and family honor.]

 

Rhinoceros Horn is also the Animal's Achilles' Heel. The Christian Science Monitor (June 28):19-20. [Newspaper essay about my research for World Wildlife Fund on rhino conservation in Yemen.]

 

Wildlife Conservation for North Yemen. A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 24:1,6. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/condan.html). [Brief report on 1978 Biological diversity Assessment of North Yemen.]

1987

The Rain Periods in Pre-Islamic Arabia. Arabica 34:251-266. [Study of the lunar station concept in Arab tradition, based on research conducted in Cairo in 1983. The focus of the study is on the rain periods indicated in poetry and early prose for pre-Islamic Arabia as compared to recent folklore from the region. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

 

Recent Ethnography in the Yemen Arab Republic. MERA Forum (Berkeley) 10(2):5-8. [Bibliography of recent anthropological studies based on fieldwork in Yemen.]

 

The Segment-Dairy Lineage System of the Yort Nomads. MERA Forum (Berkeley)10(1):12-14. [Satirical essay on the debate over segmentary lineages under the pseudonym of O. Leo Butterworth. The stated aim of the paper is "to separate fat from fantasy." Online copy at: http://www.ahjur.org/yort.html.]

1986

On the Meaning of Chewing: The Significance of Qât (Catha edulis) in the Yemen Arab Republic. Int. Journal of Middle East Studies (Cambridge) 18/1:1-13. [Analysis of the symbolic significance of qât (a stimulant plant) chewing as a cultural identity marker in a rapidly changing socioeconomic context.]

 

The Meaning of Chewing. Harper's (NY) 273:1639:27-28. [Excerpt from my 1986 IJMES qât article published in the "Readings" section.. Cambridge University Press noted that it was the first time a popular magazine had ever requested reprint rights for a scholarly article from the journal.]

1985

The Production of Sorghum (Dhurah) in Highland Yemen. Arabian Studies (Cambridge) 7:53-88. [Survey of the cultivation and use of sorghum in Yemen, based both on my ethnographic research and medieval Yemeni manuscripts. It includes a glossary of variety names and Arabic terminology. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

Al-Tawqî'ât fî taqwîm al-zirâ'a al-majhûl min 'asr mulûk Banî Rasûl. Dirâsât Yamaniyya (Sanaa, YAR) 20:192-222. [Critical edition of an early 15th century Rasulid almanac with introductory commentary. The article was written in order to share the results of my research on Yemeni agriculture with a Yemeni audience. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

1984
The Lunar Stations in Arab Tradition. American Research Center in Egypt Newsletter (NY) 127:20-23. [Brief report describing my preliminary findings on the concept of the lunar stations based on historical research conducted in the manuscript section of the Egyptian National Library.]

Affluence and the Concept of the Tribe in the Central Highlands of the Yemen Arab Republic. In Affluence and Cultural Survival, R. Salisbury and E. Tooker, editors, pp. 134-149. Washington, DC: American Ethnological Society. [This is a joint paper, co-authored with Najwa Adra, and presented at the American Ethnological Society in 1981. Discusses the impact of relative affluence from remittance wealth on a rural agricultural valley in highland Yemen. Concludes that a hierarchical folk model of social structure does not necessarily imply a stratified society and examines the underlying system of signification in the tribal concept.]

1983

Sayl and Ghayl: The Ecology of Water Allocation in Yemen.Human Ecology (NY) 11:365-383. [Summary of the main thesis of my Ph.D. study on the ecology of irrigation in Yemen. The article compares highland spring irrigation with information on coastal flood systems. I argue that tribal political organization is an adaptive response to highland spring flow allocation but undergoes stress in coastal flood systems with the potential for major upstream-downstream conflict. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.]

 

Irrigation in an Arabian Valley: A System of Highland Terraces in the Yemen Arab Republic. Expedition (Philadelphia) 25(2)26-34. [Description of my ethnographic research on irrigation in Yemen with 12 photographs. Expedition is the quarterly publication of the University Museum of Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania.]

 

Arab Classical Writings and Agriculture: The Agricultural Almanac. Proceedings of the Third International Symposium on the History of Arab Science (Kuwait). [Conference proceeding of a paper delivered in Kuwait in 1983. Papers were published and handed out at the conference. I presented the paper in Arabic.]

1982

The Ard in Highland Yemeni Agriculture. Tools and Tillage (Copenhagen) 4(3):158-172. [Survey of plough cultivation in the Yemeni highlands. The article contains 14 of my photographs. Tools and Tillage is the journal of the International Secretariat for Research on the History of Agricultural Implements, based in Denmark. Reprinted in Varisco (1997), Medieval Folk Astronomy and Agriculture in Arabia and the Yemen.

 

Orientalism and Anthropological Discourse. MERA Forum 5(4):8-10. [Short essay about the need to utilize Arabic sources in anthropological research in the Middle East. I argue that we should not throw out the results of Orientalist research because of the political problems with Orientalism as a discourse, in response to the work of Edward Said.]

 

From Saba to al-Ahjur. Arab Perspectives (NY) 3:34-36, April. [Popular article on my ethnographic research on Yemeni agriculture in the monthly magazine of the Arab Information Center in New York.]

 

The Recent Evolution of "Scientific Creationism." In Confronting the Creationists, S. Pastner and W. Haviland, editors, 12-26. Northeastern Anthropological Association Occasional Proceedings, 1. [I examine the fundamentalist rhetoric of Henry Morris and show how "scientific creationism" is not "scientific." Suggestions are given for dealing with creationist students in the classroom. This article was presented at the Northeastern Anthropological Association annual meeting in 1982 as part of a panel on creationism and evolutionary anthropology.]

1976

The Fundamentalist Challenge to Science Education: A Critique. Journal of the Society for Educational Reconstruction, Cutting Edge 7(4):8-14. [This is my first professional article based on research conducted for my M.A. thesis. It looks at creationist rhetoric, including so-called "scientific creationism" and how educators can best deal with such rhetoric.]

---

 

BOOK AND FILM REVIEWS

In press

Wathâ'iq Madînat al-Qasr bi-al-Wâhât al-Dakhla: Masdarân li-Ta'rîkh Misr fî al-‘‘Asr al-‘‘Uthmânî, Peters, 2011, Journal of the American Oriental Society.

L'Arabie marchande: état et commerce sous les sultans rasûlides du Yémen (626-858/1229-145), Vallet, 2010, Journal of the American Oriental Society.

Scientific Expeditions to the Arab World (1761-1881), Klaver, 2009, Review of Middle East Studies.

 

Early Orientalism: Imagined Islam and the Notion of Sublime Power, Kalmar, Review of Middle East Studies.

 

We are all Moors, Majid, 2009, and Islam and America, Majid, 2012, Contemporary Islam, Online First.

2012
Contesting Realities: The Public Sphere and Morality in Southern Yemen, Dahlgren, 2010, Islamic Law and Society 19:320-323.

Islamic Medical and Scientific Tradition, Pormann, 2011, Journal of the American Oriental Society 132(2):333-334.

Questioning the Veil, Lazreg. Contemporary Islam 6(2):215-218.

iMuslims: Rewiring the House of Islam, Bunt, 2009, Contemporary Islam 6(1):99-102.

Consumption, Trade and Innovation: Exploring the Botanical Remains from the Roman and Islamic Ports at Quseir al-Qadim, Egypt, van der Veen, 2011, Journal of Semitic Studies 57(2):439-440.

2011
Science of the Cosmos, Science of the Soul: The Pertinence of Islamic Cosmology in the Modern World, Chittick, 2007, Contemporary Islam 5(1):81-84.

Volkstümliche Astronomie im islamischen Mittelalter, Schmidl, Bibliotheca Orientalis 68:626-627.

The Ocher Land: Images of Yemen 1985-1990, Dufour, Review of Middle East Studies 45(1):99-100.

2010
Muhammad Is Not the Father of Any of Your Men: The Making of the Last Prophet, Powers, 2009, Review of Middle East Studies 44(1): 117-118.

 

Muhammad and the Believers: At the Origins of Islam, Donner, 2010. Journal of the American Oriental Society 129(3):461-463.

The Enlightenment Qur'an: The Politics of Translation and the Construction of Islam, Elmarsafy, 2009. Journal of the American Oriental Society 129(3):464-465.

The World of Murtada al-Zabîdî (1732-1791): Life, Networks and Writings, Reichmuth. 2009. Journal of the American Oriental Society 129(4):709-710.

A Call for Heresy: Why Dissent is Vital to Islam and America, Majid, 2007. Contemporary Islam 4(2):251-253.

Contemporary Muslim Apocalyptic Literature, Cook, 2005. Contemporary Islam 4(3):353.

2009
Peripheral Visions: Publics, Power, and Performance in Yemen, Wedeen, 2008. Middle East Journal 63(1):151-152.

 

Evangelicals and Israel: The Story of American Christian Zionism, Spector, 2009. Middle East Journal 63(2):330-331.

 

Annals of the Caliphs' Kitchens: Ibn Sayyâr al-Warrâq's Tenth-Century Baghdadi Cookbook, Nasrallah, 2007. BMESA

 

Religious Communities on the Internet, Larsson, 2006. Contemporary Islam 3(2):197-199.

 

Islamophobia: Making Muslims the Enemy, Gottschalk and Greenberg, 2008. Contemporary Islam 3(3):301-303.

2008
The Graves of Tarim: Genealogy and Mobility in the Indian Ocean, Ho, 2006, American Ethnologist 35(2):2028-2031.

 

The Moral Resonance of Arab Media: Audiocassette Poetry and Culture in Yemen, Miller, 2007, Comparative Studies in Society & History 50(4):1052-1054.

Shattering Tradition: Custom, Law and the Individual in the Muslim Mediterranean, Dostal and Kraus, 2005. Islamic Law & Society 15( 2):279-281.

Blackwell Companion to Contemporary Islamic Thought, Abu-Rabi', 2006, Contemporary Islam 2(2):147-150.

 

Islam in Transition: Muslim Perspectives, Donahure and Esposito, 2007, Contemporary Islam 2(2):147-150.

2007
Messages to the World: The Statements of Osama Bin Laden, Lawrence, 2005, Contemporary Islam 1(1):105-06. http://www.springerlink.com/content/1872-0226

Sexual Ethics and Islam: Feminist Reflections on Qur'an, Hadith, and Jurisprudence, Ali, 2006, Contemporary Islam 1(1):107-908. http://www.springerlink.com/content/1872-0226

Powers of the Secular Modern: Talal Asad and His Interlocutors, Scott and Hirschkind, 2006, Contemporary Islam 1(2):203-205.

Oil and Water. Two Faiths: One God, Hussain, 2006, Contemporary Islam 1(3):323-325.

A Modern Pilgrim in Mecca and a Siege in Sanaa, Wavell, 2005[1912], American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 24(4):113-115.

2006
A Medieval Administrative and Fiscal Treatise from the Yemen: The Rasulid Mulakhkhas al-Fitan of al-Hasan B. ‘Ali al-Husayni, Smith, 2006, Al-‘Usur al-Wusta 18(2):38.

Tolerance and Coercion in Islam: Interfaith Relations in the Muslim Tradition, Friedman, 2003, Islamic Law and Society 13(2):285-287.

Islam, Memory, and Morality in Yemen: Ruling Families in Transition, vom Bruck, 2005, American Journal of Islamic Social Science 23(4):117-120.

Folklore and Folklife in the United Arab Emirates, Sayyid Hamid Hurreiz, 2002, Asian Folklore Studies LXV(2):362-364.

2005
Measures and Weights in the Islamic World: An English Translation of Walther Hinz’s Handbook Islamische Masse und Gewichte, translated by M.I. Marcinkowski, 2003. Journal of the American Oriental Society 125(2):333-335.

2004
A History of Modern Yemen, Dresch, 2000, British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies 31(1):89-95.

 

2003

Lightning over Yemen: A History of the Ottoman Campaign 1569-71, Smith, 2002, Yemen Update #45. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/ottom.html)

 

The Sultan's Yemen: Nineteenth-Century Challenges to Ottoman Rule, Farah, 2002, Yemen Update #45. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/ottom.html)

 

2002

Refashioning Iran: Orientalism, Occidentalism and Historiography, Tavakoli-Targhi, 2001, Online Review at: H-Gender-MidEast@h-net.msu.edu (September 2002).

 

Le commerce du café avant l'ère des plantations coloniales: espaces, réseaux, sociétés (xve-xixe siècle), Tuchscherer, 2001, Yemen Update 44 :37-41. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/michco.html)

 

2001

Sharecropping in the Yemen, Donaldson, 2000, Journal of the American Oriental Society 121:338-339.

 

Mass Mediations: New Approaches to Popular Culture in the Middle East and Beyond, Armbrust, 2000, Visual Anthropology 14:453-458.

 

Yemen: Jewel of Arabia, Aithee, 2001, Yemen Update #43:33-35. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/aith.html)

 

Veil: Modesty, Privacy and Resistance, El Guindi, 1999, Yemen Update #43:43-47. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/guin.html)

 

Inheritance in Islam: Women's Inheritance in San'a (Republic of Yemen): Law, Religion, and Reality, Glander, 1998, Yemen Update #43:39-42. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/glarev.html)

2000
The ‘Amiriya in Rada‘: The History and Restoration of a Sixteenth-Century Madrasa in the Yemen, Al-Radi, 1997, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 34(1):98-99.

Islam Today: A Short Introduction to the MuslimWorld, Ahmed, 1999, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 34(1):90-81. (http://fp.arizona.edu/mesassoc/Bulletin/34-1/34-1%20RelPhilLaw.htm#Ahmed)

 

Medicine of the Prophet, Johnstone, 1998, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 34:210-211.

 

Dutch-Yemeni Encounters: Activities of the United East India Company (VOC) in South Arabian Waters since 1614, Brouwer, 1998, Yemen Update 42:58-62. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/dutch.html)

 

Jemen: Von Weihrauch zum Erdöl, Brunner, 1999. Yemen Update 42:68-69. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/ueli.html)

 

Tha'labî Storia di Bilqîs regina di Saba, Canova, 2000. Yemen Update 42:69-70. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/canov.html)

 

Zâhira al-Qât fî al-Yaman, Muharram, 2000, Yemen Update 42:57. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/zahir.html)

 

New Arabian Studies, Volume 5, 2000, Yemen Update 42:55-56. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/nas5.html)

1999
Studies in the Medieval History of the Yemen and South Arabia, Smith, 1998, Journal of Semitic Studies 44(2):343-345.

Civil Society in Yemen, Carapico, 1998, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 33:125-126.

 

Indigo in the Arab World, Balfour-Paul, 1997, Journal of Semitic Studies 44(1):161-162.

 

The Nile, Sharing a Scarce Resource, Howell and Allen, 1994, Islamic Law and Society 6:288-291.

 

The Jews of Yemen, Tobi, 1999, Yemen Update 41:53-55. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/tobirev.html)

 

Cultures of the World: Yemen, Hestler, 1999, Yemen Update 41:25-29. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/hestler.html)

 

Eating the Flowers of Paradise, Rushby, 1999; Yemen: Travels in Dictionary Land, Mackintosh-Smith, 1997; Baghdad without a Map, Horwitz, 1992; Motoring with Mohammed, Hansen, 1991, Yemen Update 41:32-50. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/travrev.html)

 

1998

Society and Trade in South Arabia, Serjeant, 1996, Journal of Semitic Studies 43(2):398-399.

 

AL-MUKHA. Profile of a Yemeni Seaport..., Brouwer, 1997, Yemen Update 40:48-51. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/brou.html)

 

Hadhrami Traders, Scholars and Statesmen in the Indian Ocean, 1750s-1960s, Freitag and Clarence-Smith, 1997, Yemen Update 40:59-62. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/frei.html)

 

The Islamic Middle East: An Historical Anthropology, Lindholm, 1996, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 32:58-59.

 

New Arabian Studies, 4, 1997, Yemen Update 40:65-67. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/nas4.html)

 

Sbahtu! a Course in San‘ânî Arabic, Watson, 1996, Yemen Update 40:63-64. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/sbah.html)

 

Tournaments of Value: Sociability and Hierarchy in a Yemeni Town, Meneley, 1996, Yemen Update 40:55-57. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/mene.html)

 

Yemen, Aucherlonie, 1998, Yemen Update 40:45-47. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/auch.html)

 

Yemen: Travels in Dictionary Land, Mackintosh-Smith, 1997, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 32:76-77.

 

1997
Water in the Middle East, Allan and Mallat, 1995, Islamic Law and Society 4(1):247-250.

L'Agriculture Nabatéene, Fahd, 1993-95, Journal of the American Oriental Society 117(2):389-390.

Studies in Arabian Architecture, Costa, 1994, Yemen Update 40:36.

Portraits of Yemen, Crociani, 1996) Yemen Update 40:38-39. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/croci.html)

1996

Domestic Government: Kinship, Community, and Polity in North Yemen, Mundy, 1995, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 30(1):62-63.

 

The Jews of Yemen, Nini, 1991, Journal of Near Eastern Studies 55:202-203.

 

Natâ'ig al-fikar des Sa'bân ibn Salîm al-San'ânî. Eine jemenitische Gesundheitsfibel aus dem frühen 18. Jahrhundert. Text, Übersetzung und Kommentar, Schopen and Kahl, 1993, Journal of the American Oriental Society116(1):177.

 

Kitâb al-Anwâ' wa al-azmina, Ibn 'Asim, Nogués, 1993, Journal of the American Oriental Society 116(2):324-325.

 

Farmers and Fishermen in Arabia: Studies in Customary Law and Practice, Serjeant, 1995,

Journal of Semitic Studies 97:377-378.

 

The Legacy of Muslim Spain, Jayyusi, 1994, Yemen Update 38:29-30.

 

1995

The Calligraphic State: Textual Domination and History in a Muslim Society, Messick, 1993, Yemen Update 36:24-25. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/mess.html)

Südwestarabische Sternenkalender, Gingrich, 1993, Journal of Semitic Studies 96(1):187-189.

 

Tribes, Government, and History in Yemen, Dresch, 1993, American Anthropologist 97(3):623-624.

 

Travels through Arabia and other Countries of the East, Niebuhr reprint, 1994, Yemen Update 37:28-31. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/nieb.html)

 

Imams, notables et bédouins du Yémen au xviiie siècle ou Quintessence de l'or du règne de Cherif Muhammad B. Ahmad: Chronique de 'Abd al-Rahmân b. Hasan al-Bahkalî, Tuchscherer, 1992, Yemen Update 37:32-33. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/tuch.html)

 

Abha Bilâd Asîr al-Saud et al., 1989, Yemen Update 37:36-37. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/abha.html)

 

The Arms and Armour of Arabia in the 18th-19th and 20th Centuries, Elgood, 1994, Yemen Update 37:38-41. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/elgo.html)

A Syntax of San‘ânî Arabic, Watson, 1993, Yemen Update 37:34. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/wats.html)

Light and Shadows: Memories of Yemen, Skobeleff, 1994, Yemen Update 36:26-27. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/mess.html)

Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies, Yemen Update 36:28-29.

1994

Demonizing the Queen of Sheba: Boundaries of Gender and Culture in Postbiblical Judaism and Medieval Islam, Lassner, 1993, Yemen Update 35: 31-32. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/lass.html)

 

The Plants of Pehr Forsskål's Flora Aegyptiaco-Arabica, Hepper and Friis, 1994, Yemen Update 35:36-37. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/forsk.html)

 

New Arabian Studies, Yemen Update 35:38-39. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/nastu.html)

 

Studies in Oriental Culture and History: Festscrift for Walter Dostal, Gingrich et al., 1993, Yemen Update 35:42-43. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/dost.html)

 

Dictionary of Post-classical Yemeni Arabic, Piamenta, 1990-91, Yemen Update 34:34-36, 44. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/piam.html)

 

Island of the Phoenix, Naumkin, 1993, Yemen Update 34:40-41. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/naum.html)

 

A Yemen Reality, Damluji, 1991, Yemen Update 34:37-38. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/daml.html)

 

1993

From Water to World-Making, Pálsson, 1990, Social Anthropology 1(3):333-334.

 

al-Tuyûr al-Yamaniyya, 'Ubâdî, 1989, Yemen Update 33:22. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/ubad.html)

 

The Mammals of Arabia, D. L. Harrison and P. Bates, 1991, Yemen Update 33:28-29. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/harr.html)

 

The Vegetation of the Republic of Yemen (Western Part), Scholte, Yemen Update 33:23. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/vege.html)

 

Film Review: "The Message" as a Teaching Tool about Islam, Yemen Update 32:25.

 

Al-Nabâtât al-tibbiya fî al-Yaman, Bâdhîb, 1991, Yemen Update 32:20.

 

Mu'jam al-nisâ' al-Yamaniya, al-Hibshî, 1988, Yemen Update 32:18.

 

1992

Religion and Custom in a Muslim Society, L. Holy, 1991, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 26:260-261

 

Herb Drugs and Herbalists in Syria and North Yemen, Honda et al. 1990, Journal of the American Oriental Society 112(1):167-168.

 

1991

Bedouin Life in the Egyptian Wilderness, Hobbs, 1989, al-Ma'thûrât al- Sha'biyya (Doha) 22:37-41.

 

Al-Tharwa al-Yamaniya min al-amthâl al- sha'biyya, al-Adîmî, 1989, Yemen Update 28/29:26. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/adimi.html)

 

1990

Sinâ'at al-Sufun al-Shirâ'iyya fî al-Kuwayt, al-Hajjî, 1988, Journal of the American Oriental Society 110(3):533-534.

 

Al-Hiraf wa-al-Sinâ‘at fî al-Hijâz fî 'Asr al-Rasûl, al-'Umar, 1985, Journal of the American Oriental Society 110(1):171.

 

Al-Tibb al-Sha'bî, al-Anqar and al-Khazrajî, ca. 1985, Middle East and South Asia Folklore Newsletter 7:1:6.

 

Dalâla al-alfâz al-Yamaniyya fî ba'd al-Mu'jamât al-'Arabiyya, al-Hilâlî, 1988, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 27:8-9.

Yemen Classics: 3. Word for Word. A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 27:13.

 

1989

Cinq Calendriers Égyptiens, Pellat, 1986, Journal of the American Oriental Society 109(4):696.

 

Herb Drugs and Herbalists in the Middle East, Ahmed et al., 1979; Herb Drugs and Herbalists in Turkey, Baser et al., 1986; Herb Drugs and Herbalists in Pakistan, Ushmanghani et al., 1986, Journal of the American Oriental Society 109(4):697.

 

Egalität und Klassengesellschaft in Südarabien, Dostal, 1983, Journal of the American Oriental Society 109:2:308.

 

Arabian Moons: Passages in Time through Yemen, Marechaux, 1988, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 23(1):55-56.

 

Shi'r Qabîlat Dhubyân fî al-Jâhiliyya, al-Suwaydi, 1987, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 23(2):274-275.

 

Routes of Guidance. Majari al-Hidaya. A Pearl-diver's Guide to the Oyster Beds of the Gulf, al-Bin'ali, 1988, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association 23(2):258-259.

 

Al-Amthaâ al-Sha'biyya fî al-Bi'a al-Qatariyya, al-Murrî, 1985, Middle East and South Asia Folklore Newsletter 6(3):5-6.

 

Mammals of the Southern Gulf, Gross, 1987, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 26:4.

 

Studies in Arabian History and Civilisation, Serjeant, 1981, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 25:14.

 

Nizâm al-Gharîb fî al-Lugha, al-Himyarî, 1980, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 25:15-16. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/himthe.html)

 

al-Qât, 1987, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 25:13. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/madqat.html)

 

Mu'jam al-Mudun wa-al-Qabâ'il al-Yamaniyya, Maqhafî, 1985, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 25:14-15.

 

Bulûgh al-maram fî sharh misk al-khitâm, al-'Arashî, 1939, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 25:12, 26:7. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/ararev.html)

1988

Qât in Yemen. Consumption and Social Change, Weir, 1985, Inernational. Journal of Middle East Studies 20(1):116-117.

 

 

Jemen. 3000 Jahre Kunst und Kultur des glücklichen Arabien, Daum, 1987, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association . 22(1):106-107.

 

Qabîlî fî al-Sîn wa-Buldân Ukhrâ, Mansûr, 1986), A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 24:13. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/hamud.html)

 

Qawl al-Shubûhât hawl al-Qât, al-Fusayl, 1986, and Thalâth rasâ'il fî al-qât, al-Hibshî,1986, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 24:7. (http://www.aiys.org/webdate/fushib.html)

 

1987

The Yemen Arab Republic. The Politics of Development 1962-1986, Burrowes, 1987, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 23:8,18.

 

1986

Social Change in a Yemeni Highlands Town, Stevenson, 1985, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 21:10.

 

Ta'rîkh al-Yaman, al-Wazîr, 1985, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 21:11,15.

 

1985

Über eine Anwâ'-Tradition..., Kunitzsch, 1983, Isis (Philadelphia) 76(4):632.

 

al-Sulûk fî Tabaqât al-'Ulamâ', al- Janadî, 1983, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 18:7.

 

Aqwâl 'Alî ibn Zâyid, al-Baraddûnî, 1985, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 19:12-13.

 

al-Amthâl al-Yamâniyya, al-Akwa', 1984, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 18:7-8.

 

Ta'bîr al-Mawashshayn..., al-Fîrûzâbâdî,1983, A.I.Y.S. Newsletter 18:8.

 

1983

Yemeni Agriculture and Economic Change, Tutwiler and Carapico, 1981, Bulletin of the Middle East Studies Association

 

---

 

THESES

 

1982

The Adaptive Dynamics of Water Allocation in al-Ahjur, Yemen Arab Republic. Ph.D. dissertation, Anthropology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, 658 pp. (available from University Microfilms, Ann Arbor, MI, #8307372.) [Results of ethnographic fieldwork in a central highland Yemeni valley in 1978-1979 on the ecology of irrigation and water resource use. I develop a model of water allocation options following the theoretical framework of adaptive dynamics (John W. Bennett) and apply this to my fieldwork site and comparative data from other parts of Yemen. I also document the local agricultural context and include an extensive glossary of Yemen. Available from University Microfilms, Ann Arbor, MI, #8307372.]

1975
Archaeology as Apologetic: Towards an Understanding of the Fundamentalist Paradigm. M.A. thesis, Anthropology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.[In this thesis I examine the rhetoric of Christian fundamentalists who argue that archaeology proves biblical historicity and compare this to creationist rhetoric and the so-called “lunatic fringe” in archaeology.]

 

---

 

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

 

2011-present Professor Plus, Department of Anthropology
2003-2009 Chair, Department of Anthropology

2004-present Professor, Anthropology, Hofstra University

1998-2004 Associate Professor, Anthropology, Hofstra University

1992-1998 Assistant Professor, Anthropology, Hofstra University

1990-91 Visiting Assistant Professor, Anthropology, SUNY Stony Brook
1991 Lecturer, C.W. Post Campus, Long Island University, Hutton House Lectures

 

Courses Taught:

• The Arab Gulf and Iraq [SUNY Stony Brook]
• The Arab Gulf and Yemen [SUNY Stony Brook]
• Beyond Aladdin: Arabian Nights in History and Literature [Honors College Seminar]
• Cultural Diversity
• Culture & Expression (Honors College Core Course)
• Culture, Tradition and Transformation
• Debating Darwin: A Social History of the Creation vs. Evolution Controversy [Honors College Seminar]
• Development, Conservation and Indigenous Peoples in Applied Anthropology
• The Individual in Society [SUNY Stony Brook]
• Human Evolution in Philosophical Perspective
• Imagining Iraq
• Introduction to Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies
• Islam
• Islam Obscured: The Rhetoric of Anthropological Representation
• Male and Female [SUNY Stony Brook]
• Naked without Shame: The Evolution and Cultural Construction of the Human Body [Honors College Seminar]
• Orientalism [Honors College seminar]
• Peoples and Cultures of the Middle East
• Reading Orientalism: How the West Views the East (Honors College Seminar)
• Ritual and Politics in Islamic Societies [graduate course, SUNY Stony Brook]
• Religion and Society in the Arabian Gulf [C. W. Post]
• Religion in Cross-Cultural Perspective
• Rise of Civilization
• Theory in Anthropology
• Women and Men in Anthropological Perspective

---

DEVELOPMENT AND CONSERVATION EXPERIENCE

EXPERIENCE:

[Agricultural Sector Analysis, Biodiversity conservation, Community Participation, Environmental Impact Analysis, Evaluation, Household Survey, Indigenous Peoples, Integrated Pest Management, Irrigation Management, Participant Training, Participatory Rural Assessment (PRA), Project Design, Resource Management, Social Soundness Analysis, Team Leader, Water Supply and Sanitation, Women in Development, World Bank Social Analysis.]

 

 

ASSIGNMENTS:

2009-2012
The World Bank (Washington, DC)
Red Sea-Dead Sea Waer Conveyance concept (http://go.worldbank.org/MXWJ6T5RS0). Panel of Experts. Analysis of ESA.

2005
The World Bank (Washington, DC)
Sustainable Livelihoods Analysis (PRA field research in Yemeni villages) and preparation of Yemen Country Social Analysis.

2004
The World Bank (Washington, DC)
Scoping mission for preparation of Yemen Country Social Analysis.

1997
The World Bank (Washington, DC)
Preparation of resettlement plan for the Aden Free Trade Zone in Yemen. Evaluation mission.

Golder Associates (Gainesville, Florida)
Analysis of resettlement issue for Environmental Impact Assessment of proposed YemenInvest Free Trade Zone in Aden, Yemen.

1992
The World Bank (Washington DC)
Pre-appraisal mission for resource management project in Western Egypt. Focus on community participation and women in development. Preparation of Environmental Mitigation Plan.

GTZ (Germany)
Integrated Pest Management project. Collection and documentation in computerized format of indigenous farmer knowledge on plant protection in Yemen. Team Leader.

WASH Project (Arlington, VA)
(1) Development of guidelines for effective wastewater and solid waste management in WASH and AID projects. Anthropologist on five-person team. (2) Development of guidelines for community participation on projects in water and sanitation.

1991
Tams Consultants (NY)
(1) Socioenvironmental analysis for IDB- sponsored hydroelectric project in Rio Chixoy, Guatemala. (2) Preparation of proposal for environmental impact analysis of hydroelectric project in Chile.

The World Bank (Washington DC)
(1) Supervision mission of four IDA-funded agricultural projects in Republic of Yemen; visits to Aden and the Hadramawt. (2) Preparation of issues paper on conservation and agriculture for Yemen Agricultural Sector Study.

1990
Tams Consultants (NY)
(1) Socioenvironmental analysis for IDB- sponsored hydroelectric project in Rio Chixoy, Guatemala. Responsible for cultural resources, species and habitat conservation and resettlement issues. (2) Environmental impact analysis for the US Navy's proposed base closings in Philadelphia, South Weymouth, and Detroit. Responsible for four chapters and sections on community impact.

The World Bank (Washington DC)
Preparation of environmental issues brief on the Yemen Arab Republic. Analysis of environmental issues with Yemeni officials.

1989
International Council for Bird Preservation (Cambridge)
Team leader for USAID Biological Diversity Assessment of the Yemen Arab Republic. Coordinated international team of scientists and consultants. Analysis of biodiversity issues with Yemeni officials. Field study in remnant tropical forest.

1988
Development Associates (Arlington, VA)
(1) Preparation of USAID project paper for participant training of Dominican students in the USA. Interviews with government officials in the Dominican Republic.(2) Evaluation of USAID participant training program in the Yemen Arab Republic. Interviews with returned participants and government officials.

1987
World Wildlife Fund (Washington DC)
USAID- sponsored project on rhinoceros conservation. Study of rhino horn use in North Yemen and local wildlife conservation issues. Developed strategy for initiating wildlife conservation program in Yemen. Interviews with government officials in Yemen and Kenya, Yemeni craftsmen and consumers.

WASH (Arlington, VA)
USAID- sponsored study of handpump feasibility and potential for local manufacture in the Yemen Arab Republic. Interviews with government officials, Yemeni businessmen, and villagers. Design of handpump project.

1985
USAID (Sanaa mission, Yemen Arab Republic)
(1) Preparation of draft for country background section in CDSS; (2) Study of private sector initiatives for USAID mission. Review of proposals and interviews with local businessmen.

Consortium for International Development (Corvallis)
(1) Social soundness analysis for USAID irrigation project paper. (2) Preparation of report on water rights and land tenure issues in the Yemen Arab Republic. Field study and interviews with local officials.

1984
Consortium for International Development (Corvallis)
Study of beneficiary issues for USAID irrigation project in the Yemen Arab Republic. Interviews with farmers and government officials.

1983
Consortium for International Development (Corvallis)
Social analysis for USAID project identification document for irrigation in the Yemen Arab Republic.

American Institute for Yemeni Studies (Sanaa, YAR)
Principal author of Social and Institutional Profile of Yemen Arab Republic for USAID.

1982
Pragma Corporation (Falls Church, VA)
Social scientist on Agricultural Sector Assessment of the Yemen Arab Republic for USAID. Assisted team leader on final report preparation in Washington.

1981

MetaMetrics, Inc. (Washington, DC)

Team Leader on rural sanitation study for USAID in Egypt. Principal author of report, preparation of in-country budget and logistics, coordination of household survey.

 

CONSULTANCY REPORTS:

2012
The humanitarian implications of Yemen's water crisis. NOREF Briefing Note.

2005
Sustainable Rural Livelihoods in Yemen. [Report prepared for the World Bank.]

2004
Key Sociocultural Issues for the Yemen Country Social Analysis. [Report prepared for the World Bank.]

1997

Field Report: Resettlement Issue. Prepared for Golder Associates (Gainesville, FL) for Environmental Assessment for Aden Free Zone Development Projects. [Field report of Environmental Impact Assessment on resettlement issue with sections for main environmental assessment for the World Bank and annexes of documentation and photographs.]

1992

Popular Participation for the Matrouh Natural Resource Management Project. [Report submitted to the World Bank].

 

Indigenous Plant Protection in Yemen. [Report prepared for GTZ, Yemen German Plant Protection Project, Sanaa].

1991

Review of Socioenvironmental Issues for Serchil Range of Options. N.Y.: TAMS Consultants.

Strategy for Integrating Environmental Conservation in Agricultural Projects in the Republic of Yemen. [Report prepared for The World Bank].

Review of Actions for Resource Conservation in IDA-Assisted Agricultural Projects of the Republic of Yemen. [Report prepared for The World Bank].

1990

Biological Diversity Assessment of North Yemen. Cambridge: International Council for Bird Preservation. [Principal author of report for USAID. For more information, see http://www.wri.org/wdces/ye90_559.html]

Environmental Issues Brief of the Yemen Arab Republic. [Report prepared for The World Bank].

Socioenvironmental Evaluation, in Chixoy Feasibility Studies. Phase 1. NY: TAMS Consultants. [Report prepared for the Government of Guatemala].

1989
Horns and Hilts. Wildlife Conservation for North Yemen. Washington, DC: World Wildlife Fund. [Report prepared for USAID].

1988
Employment-Based Training Project Design. Arlington: Development Associates. [Co-authored with James Dawson; report prepared for USAID, Santo Domingo].

1987
Feasibility of Handpump Installation and Manufacture in the Yemen Arab Republic. Arlington: WASH Project .[Co-authored with Dennis Warner; report prepared for USAID].

1985
Social Considerations for Development of Private Sector Initiatives. [Report prepared for USAID, Sanaa, YAR].

Land Tenure and Water Rights in the Central Highlands of the Yemen Arab Republic. [Report prepared for USAID, Sanaa, YAR].

Social Analysis, in Irrigated Farming Practices Project Paper. Sanaa: CID. [Report prepared for USAID, Sanaa, YAR].

1984

Social and Institutional Profile of the Yemen Arab Republic. Sanaa: AIYS. [Principal author; report prepared for USAID].

1982

Social Milieu, in Agricultural Sector Assessment of theYemen Arab Republic. Washington, DC: USAID. [I assisted the team leader in Washington for editing the final report of ten consultants.] .

1981
Rural Sanitation in the Arab Republic of Egypt. Washington, DC: MetaMetrics, Inc. [Report prepared for USAID].

---

 

PROFESSIONAL PAPERS AND LECTURES

 

2013
Why the Sultan is Rich: A Case Study of Bureaucracy in Rasulid Yemen (13th-14th centuries), 3rd International Conference of the Research Network Imperium & Officium, "Land and Power in the Ancient and Post-Ancient World," University of Vienna, February.

2012
Armageddon Bound: Online Christian and Muslim Apocalyptic Scenarios, Middle East Studies Association, Denver, November.

Anthropology, anthroplogies; Islam, islams: Fields in Flux, CUNY (Committee for the Study of Religion, Middle East and Middle Eastern American Center and the Ph.D. Program in Anthropology), New York, March [Invited speaker].

Pars Pro Toto Observation: Historical Anthropology in the Textual Field of Rasulid Yemen, Visions of Community Conference, Institute for Social Anthropology, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna, January [Invited speaker].

2011
The Anthropologist as Historian: Reconstructing a 13th Century Yemeni Agricultural Text, Qatar University, December [in Arabic; Invited speaker].

Sailing around the Arabian Peninsula: Where Folklore meets History, Qatar University, December [Invited speaker].

The Net Worth of Orientalism: Can Discourse be Hegemonic in Cyberspace? Middle East Studies Association, Washington D. C., December.

Current Events Session: The Fall of the Dictators, 2011, Middle East Studies Association, Washington D. C., December [Invited speaker].

Teaching the Anthropology of Religion, AAA Annual Meeting workshop, Montreal, November [Invited speaker].

Anthropology, anthropologies; Islam, islams: Fields in Flux, The Department of Archeology, History, Cultural Studies and Religion, The University of Bergen, Norway, November [Invited speaker].

What is Happening in Yemen? University of New England, October [Invited speaker].

Rasulid Coinage in the Daftar of al-Malik al-Muzaffar: A Preliminary Textual Study, Third MECA Seminar on Iranian and Central Asian Numismatics, Hofstra University, April.

Rasulid Agriculture in the Ta‘izz Region, Workshop on "Ta‘izz and its Land in Islamic Times", CNRS, Paris, March [Invited speaker].

On Reading Orientalism, Leiden University, February [Invited speaker].

Political Developments in Yemen (with Dr. Najwa Adra), Leids Universitair Centrum voor de studie van Islam en Samenleving, Leiden University, February.

2010
Plowing through Dangling Diacriticals: The Reconstruction of al-Malik al-Ashraf's 13th Century Agricultural Treatise Milh al-malâha, Middle East Studies Association, San Diego, November.

What Camels Eat: A Study in Arabic Ethnobotany, “Camels in Asia and North Africa” Workshop, University of Vienna, October [Invited speaker].

The End of Life, the Ends of Life: An Anthropological View, Islamic Medical Association of North America, Ethics Symposium on End-of-Life Issues, Hofstra University, September, 2010 [also served as co-director of symposium].

Yemen and the Horn of African in History, Islam in the Horn: An Introduction, Aden, Islamism, Yemen and the Horn Today. The Horn of Africa Course, Rift Valley Instititue, Lamu Kenya, June.

Reading Beyond Orientalism: Why Polemics Never Really Die, Middlebury College, Middlebury College, Rohatyn Center for International Affairs and the Middle East Studies Program, January [Invited speaker].

The Culture Concept without a Textual Attitude: Reading against Orientalism and between the lines of Culture and Imperialism, University of Toronto, Department of Anthropology, January [Invited speaker].

Star Gazing through Religious Phrasing: The Origins of a Lunar Zodiac in Early Islamic Astronomy. Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada, January [Invited speaker].

2009
Framing the Holy Land as an Art: Illustrations of Arabs in 19th Century Bible Custom Accounts. Middle East Studies Association, Boston, DC, November.

Reading Orientalism: Said and the Unsaid. Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA, October [Invited speaker].

Qât, Sex and Traditional Healing, "The Use of Herbs in Yemeni Healing Practices: An Interdisciplinary Workshop on Traditional Knowledge and Cultural Concepts in Scientific Perspective." Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies, Martin Luther University, Halle-Wittenberg, Germany, September [Invited speaker].

Orientalism's Wake: The Ongoing Politics of a Polemic, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon, June [Invited speaker].

American Muslims and Islamophobia. John Carroll University, Cleveland, Ohio, March [Invited speaker].

Darwin and Dunya: Muslim Responses to Darwinian Evolution, Darwin's Reach Conference, Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York, March.

2008
The 14th Century Almanac Poem of ‘Abd Allâh ibn As‘ad al-Yâfi‘î. Middle East Studies Association, Washington, DC, November.

Speaking Truth beyond the Tower: Academics of Islam Engaging in the Public Sphere. American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting, Chicago, November and MESA, Washington, D.C. November [Forum participant]

Enough Said? Moving Beyond the Binary that Haunts Orientalism and the Clash of Civilizations. The Institute for the Transregional Study of the Contemporary Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia, Princeton University, September [Invited speaker].

Water Resource Development in Yemen: History and Prospects. Yemen Development Seminar: Challenges and Opportunities, USAID, Washington, D.C., August [Invited speaker].

Muslims and the Media in the Blogosphere, Muslims and the Media Workshop. Princeton University, May [Invited speaker].

Spinning the Ummah: How the News is Reported in Muslim Cyberspace. Re/Covering Islam Conference, USC Annenberg, Los Angeles, April [Invited speaker].

Reading Orientalism: Said and the Unsaid, Department of Middle Eastern and South Asian Studies, Emory University, Atlanta, March [Invited speaker].

2007
Online Fatwas: Muslim Identity in Cyberspace. American Anthropological Association, Washington, DC, November.

Turning Ploughshares into Words: Dialectical Diversity in Yemeni Arabic. Middle East Studies Association, Montreal, November.

Inventing Islamism: The Rhetoric of Representing Violence in Islam. Contemporary Islam Symposium "Beyond the Stereotypes: Dynamics of Muslim Life in the Globalized World, Amsterdam, October [Invited speaker].

Reading Orientalism: Said and the Unsaid. Center for Middle Eastern Studies, University of Chicago, April [Invited speaker].

2006
All that Clash Talk: Doing Cultural Anthropology in the Contemporary Middle East. American Anthropological Association, San Jose, November [Invited speaker].

 

The Milh al-Malâha of al-Malik al-Ashraf ‘Umar (d. 696/1296): Situating the Ur- Text of the Rasulid Agricultural Corpus. Middle East Studies Association, Boston, November.

In the Wake of the Rasulids: The 18th Century Almanac of Yûsuf al-Mahallî in the Biblioteca Ambrosiana Collection. Medieval Institute, University of Notre Dame, November. Invited speaker.

When Did the Holy Land Stop Being Holy?: Surveying the Middle East as Sacred Geography. What Is the Middle East? Conference, Council for Middle East Studies, Yale University, April.

2005
Muslims Online, Participant Webservation, and CyberIslam. Muslims and the Media, an Interdisciplinary Forum, Miami University of Ohio, Oxford, Ohio, February [Invited speaker].

2004
Islamism as an Ism: The Rhetoric of Representing Violence in Islam. Middle East Studies Association, San Francisco, November.

 

 

Turning Over a New Leaf: The Impact of Qât in Yemeni Horticulture. 2004 Dumbarton Oaks Studies in Landscape Architecture Symposium, "Horticultural and Cultural Changes," Washington, DC, May [Invited speaker].

2003
The State of Agriculture in Late 13th Century Rasulid Yemen. Convegno Storia e Cultura dello Yemen in Età Islamica, con Particolare Riferimento al Periodo Rasulide, Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, Fondazione Leone Caetani, Rome, 30-31 October [Invited speaker].

Studying the Middle East: A Rountable Discussion between Anthropologists and Historians. American Anthropological Association, Chicago, November. Organizer and panelist.

Akbar Ahmed: Discovering Islam Inside Out. Society for the Anthropology of Religion Annual Meeting, Providence, April.

Orientalism Re[tro]visited after 25 Years: Enough Said? New York University Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies, April [Invited speaker].

2002
Commodities and Uncommon Oddities: The Circulation of Trade Goods through the Port of Aden in the 13th Century. Middle East Studies Association, Washington, November.

Orientalism Re[tro]visited: Enough Said? Middle East Center, University of Pennsylvania, October [Invited speaker].

Sailing Seasons in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean: The View from Rasulid Yemen. Red Sea Trade and Travel Study Day, The British Museum, October [Invited speaker].

Anthropology and the Cultural Studies Wars: Matthew Arnold via Edward Said vs Edward Tylor via Bronislow Malinowski. Seminar Series, SOAS Dept. of Anthropology and Sociology, London University, October [Invited speaker].

Islam Obscured in Islam Observed: Where did all the Ethnography Go? Society for the Anthropology of Religion Annual Meeting, Cleveland, April.

How Anthropologists Read Edward Said. Anthropology Graduate Seminar, Harvard University, March [Invited speaker].

September 11, Jihad, and Islamic Law. Provost's Lecture Series, SUNY Stony Brook, February [Invited speaker].

2001
Dissing Orientalist Discourse: What Said Said and What Ethnographers Did. American Anthropological Association, Washington, DC, November.

What Islam Is, What Islam is Not: Critiquing Islam within Reason. Brooklyn Law College, November [Invited speaker].

Legal Advice on Less than Lethal Vices: Tobacco, Coffee and Qât in a 17th Century Yemeni Text, Arabic Studies Seminar, Columbia University, September.

2000
The Archaeologist's Spade and the Apologist's Stacked Deck: The Near East through Conservative Christian Bibliloatry. The United States and the Middle East: Cultural Encounters, Yale Center for International and Area Studies, New Haven, December. [http://www.ahjur.org/yale.html]

Slamming Islam: Participant Webservation with a Web of Meanings to Boot. American Anthropological Association, San Francisco, November.

Indigenous Knowledge and Traditional Yemeni Agriculture. The Place of Ancient Agricultural Practices and Techniques in Yemen Today: Problems and Perspectives, Sanaa, Yemen, June [Invited speaker].

Stimulants sans Sin: A Social History of Qât, Coffee and Tobacco in Yemen. American Institute for Yemeni Studies, Sanaa, Yemen, June.

Stimulants sans Sin: A Social History of Qât, Coffee and Tobacco in Yemen. Middle East Center, Rutgers University, April [Invited speaker]. [http://www.ahjur.org/rutg.html]

1999
Making "Medieval" Yemen Meaningful. Middle East Studies Association, Washington, November. [http://www.ahjur.org/mesa99.html]

The Tragedy of a Comic: Fundamentalist Christian Propaganda against Islam. University of Chicago, Middle East Center, November [Invited speaker].[http://www.ahjur.org/chick.html]

1998

Holy War and Profane Rhetoric: Fundamentalists Crusading against Fundamentalists. Middle East Studies Association, Washington, DC, November.

Reflections on Fieldwork in Yemen [not in Morocco]. American Anthropological Association, Philadelphia, November.

Irrigation in Yemen. Centre Nationale d'Études Agronomiques des Régions Chaudes, Montpellier, France, February [Invited speaker].

1997

Tricksters in Arabia. Chicago Humanities Festival, November. [Invited speaker].

Medieval Agriculture in Yemen. AIYS, Sanaa, Yemen, August.

Farming Agricultural Texts: An Anthropologist at Play in the Field of Medieval Agriculture. XXth Int. Congress of History of Science, Liège, Belgium, July.

The King James Version of the Bible. Lecture, Hofstra University, Great Books Series, March. [http://www.ahjur.org/kjv.html]

1996
Why People Don't Chew Nescafe: Qât vs. Coffee in Yemeni Society. Lecture, Drew University, Madison, NJ, December [Invited speaker].

Does it Hold Water?: Islamic Law and Customary Practice in Yemen. Middle East Studies Association, Annual Meeting, Providence, November.

1995
The Arabic Anthology of al-Malik al-Afdal: A Window on the Literary World of a 14th Century Yemeni Sultan. Middle East Studies Association, Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, December.

Gendering Islam: Orientalists, Believers and Feminists at Play in the Bed of the Prophet. American Anthropological Association, Washington, DC, November.

High in Yemen: The Social History of Qât in South Arabia. Lecture, Middle East Studies Center, University of Pennsylvania, September [Invited speaker].

Farming Texts in Context: Reconstructing Medieval Yemeni Agriculture from Anthropology and History. Lecture, Department of Classical and Near Eastern Archeology, Bryn Mawr College, April [Invited speaker].

Farming Agricultural Texts: What Medieval Yemeni Texts Can Tell Us about the Art and Practice of Agriculture. Lecture, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, University of Chicago, February [Invited speaker].. [http://www.ahjur.org/chi95.html]

1994
Anthropological Theory and the Middle East: Deadening a Beaten Camel. American Anthropological Association, Atlanta, November.

Endangered Peoples: Can Native Cultures Survive? International Scene Series, Hofstra University, September.

1993
The Qu'ran. Lecture, Hofstra University, Great Books Series, December. [http://www.ahjur.org/quran.html]

Rasulid Yemen and International Trade at the Close of the Thirteenth Century. Lecture, Center for Middle East Studies, University of Chicago, February [Invited speaker].

Is Indigenous Knowledge Better? A World Bank Project in Egypt's Western Desert. Conference on Human Rights, Ethics and Justice in Multicultural Perspectives, New York University, April.

 

1992

Popular Participation in the Matrouh Natural Resource Management Project. The World Bank, Washington, DC, November [Invited speaker].

 

The Study of "Medieval" Yemen: Recent Work and Future Prospects. Middle East Studies Association, Annual Meeting, Portland, OR, October.

 

The Legitimacy of Muhammad. Department of Sociology/Anthropology, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY, October.

 

Why People Don't Chew Nescafe: Qât vs. Coffee in Yemeni Society. Department of Sociology/Anthropology, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY, April.

 

Pests and Yemeni Agriculture. American Institute for Yemeni Studies, Sanaa, March.

 

1991

The Legitimacy of Muhammad: Eliciting Meaning from the Genealogy of the Prophet. Middle East Studies Association, Washington, DC, November.

 

Environmental Conservation and Yemeni Agriculture. American Institute for Yemeni Studies, Sanaa, July.

The Islamic Concept of Holy War. SUNY, Stony Brook. [http://www.ahjur.org/jihad.html]

Interpreting Medieval Yemeni Almanacs in the History of Science and Agriculture. Arabic Studies Seminar, Columbia University, January.

1990

Casting Pearls before Crude: Social Transformation in the Arab Gulf. Anthropology Department, SUNY Stony Brook, October.

 

Biodiversity on the Arabian Peninsula. Wildlife Conservation International, Bronx Zoo, New York, October [Invited speaker].

 

The Role of Biodiversity in Guatemalan Development. Consejo Nacional Asesora de Medio Ambiente, Universidad San Carlos, Guatemala City, August [Invited speaker].

 

Al-'Ulûm al-Islâmiyya wa-al-Turâth al-Sha'bî fî al-Khalîj al-'Arabî. (in Arabic) Qatar Science Club, Doha, Qatar, March [Invited speaker].

 

1989

Traditional Agriculture and the Almanac in Yemen. American Institute for Yemeni Studies, Sanaa, Yemen Arab Republic, December.

 

The Scientific Content of a Yemeni Almanac from the 13th Century. Institut für Geschichte der Naturwisenschaften, Frankfurt, West Germany, November [Invited speaker].

 

Who is Consulting Whom? Free-lancing in Development Anthropology. Anthropology Department, Hunter College, NY, November [Invited speaker].

 

Why People Don't Chew Nescafe: Qât vs. Coffee in Yemeni Society. Middle East Institute, Columbia University, NY, October [Invited speaker].

 

Ethnoastronomy and the Lunar Zodiac in Pre-Islamic Arabia. New York University Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies, NY, October [Invited speaker].

 

Folk Astronomy in Islam. Natural History Society, Doha, Qatar, April [Invited speaker].

 

Al-Taqwîm al-'Arabî bayna Ta'rîkh al-'Ulûm wa-al-Turâth al-Sha'bî. (in Arabic) American Cultural Center, Doha, Qatar, April [Invited speaker].

 

Mashrû' al-Taqwîm al-Zirâ'î al-'Arabî fii al-Turâth al-Sha'bî. (in Arabic). Arab Gulf States Folklore Centre, Doha, Qatar, January [Invited speaker].

1988
Horns and Hilts. The Rhino and Wildlife Conservation in North Yemen. World Wildlife Fund, Washington, DC, January [Invited speaker].

 

1987

Rhino Conservation and Daggers in North Yemen. World Wide Fund for Nature, Gland, Switzerland, December [Invited speaker].

 

Folk Astronomy in Islam. AIYS, Sanaa, Yemen Arab Republic, November.

 

On Some Aspects of Medieval Islamic Folk Astronomy. Institut für Geschichte der Naturwissenschaften, Frankfurt, West Germany, October [Invited speaker].

 

South Arabian Studies: A Workshop. Participant, Middle East Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, May.

 

1986

The Bedouin Mystique: Redefining the Tribal Concept in Middle Eastern Anthropology. Middle East Studies Association, Annual Meeting, Boston, November.

 

1985

Historical Geography of Yemen. American Institute for Yemeni Studies, Sanaa, Yemen Arab Republic, September.

 

Egypt and the Medieval Arab Agricultural Almanac. American Research Center in Egypt, Annual Meeting, New York, April.

 

Al-Taqwîm al-Zirâ'î al-Yamanî fî 'Asr Mulûk Banî Rasûl. (in Arabic) Faculty of Agriculture, Sanaa University, Yemen Arab Republic, March [Invited speaker].

 

The Agricultural Almanac in Medieval Yemen. American Institute for Yemeni Studies, Sanaa, Yemen Arab Republic, March.

 

Historical Geography of Yemen. American Institute for Yemeni Studies Sanaa, Yemen Arab Republic, November.

 

1984

The Agricultural Marker Stars in the Yemen. Seminar for Arabian Studies, Cambridge University, Cambridge, July.

 

Geography of Yemen. American Institute for Yemeni Studies, Sanaa, Yemen Arab Republic, May.

 

1983

Al-Taqwîm al-Zirâ'î fî Ta'rîkh 'Ilm al-Zirâ'a 'inda al-'Arab. (in Arabic) Third International Symposium on the History of Arab Science, Kuwait, December [Invited speaker].

 

Stars and Crops Forever: The Agricultural Almanac in Arab Tradition. American Research Center in Egypt, Cairo, November.

 

Ghayl wa-Sayl fî al-Saqî al-Yamanî. (in Arabic) Yemen Center for Research and Studies, Sanaa, Yemen Arab Republic, March.

 

The Lunar Stations in Arab Tradition. American Research Center in Egypt, Cairo, February.

 

1982

On the Meaning of Chewing: The Significance of Qât (Catha edulis) in the Yemen Arab Republic. Middle East Studies Association, Annual Meeting, Philadelphia, November.

 

The Ecology of Traditional Water Allocation in Yemen. AIYS, Sanaa, Yemen Arab Republic, November.

 

The Recent Evolution of "Scientific Creationism". Northeastern Anthropological Association, Annual Meeting, Princeton, March.

 

1981

The Role of the Health Sanitarian in Improving Rural Egyptian Sanitation. Third Annual Conference of the International Association for the Advancement of Appropriate Technology for Developing Countries, C. W. Post Campus of Long Island University, Brookville, NY, November.

 

Let Them Eat Dungcake: Rural Sanitation Problems in Egypt. American Research Center in Egypt, Cairo, March.

 

Affluence and the Concept of the Tribe in the Central Highlands of the Yemen Arab Republic. American Ethnological Society, Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, March (co-authored with Dr. Najwa Adra, who presented the paper).

 

1980

Water Right and Water Use in the Yemeni Highlands: The Phenomenon of Ghayl. Middle East Studies Association, Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, November.

 

Irrigation in the Highlands of Yemen: Reflections on an Ethnographic Study. 25th Annual Conference on Archaeology, Wheaton College, November.

 

---

COMMUNITY AND SCHOOL LECTURES

 

2012
What's Happening In Yemen, Kevorkian Center, NYU, Workshop for Teachers, March

2010
Science Comes West: The Impact of Muslim Scholars on Western Science and Scholarship, Public lecture at Lamu Fort, Lamu, Kenya, June.

Islamophobia, Muslim Students Association, Hofstra University, April.

2009
The Sultan's Green Thumb: Yemeni Agriculture in the 14th Century, MECA Study Day, Hofstra University, September.

2008
Muslims and the Media in the Blogosphere, Teachers Workshop, Princeton University, May.

2007
What Can Be Done in Iraq? Long Beach Public Library, Long Beach, NY, January.

 

2006
Caricature and Controversy -- The Journalism, Politics and Religion Behind the Muslim Cartoon Story. Panel Discussion, Hofstra University, March.

 

One Islam with Many Faces: Yemen. Hofstra University, February.

 

2005
Intelligent Design vs. Natural Selection. Hofstra's Day of Dialogue Panel, October.

 

Bones and Bonobos: Making Scientific Sense of Human Evolution. IDEAS Institute, Hofstra University, September. http://www.hofstra.edu/Faculty/ideas/ideas_videos.html

 

Stimulants without Sin: The Impact of Coffee and Qat in Yemeni Culture. Bowers Museum, Santa Ana, CA, January.

2003
The People Speak: American Debates its Role in the World. Provost's Lecture Series, Stony Brook, October. Panelist.

Daily Life in Yemen. Slide lecture, The Garden City Community Church, Garden City, NY, October.

Paved with Bad Intentions: The Road to War with Iraq, Lecture to High School Students, Friends Academy, Locust Valley, NY (January), East Meadow High School, East Meadow, NY (March)

2002

Islam and the War on Terrorism. International Scene Series, Hofstra University, October.

Israeli-Palestinian Crisis. Speaker, International Scene Series, Hofstra University, October.

Seminar on Orientalism Re[tro]visited. Medieval Studies Reading Group, Hofstra, May.

2001

Lectures on September 11 Tragedy and Islam. Locust Valley Reformed Church and St. John's of Lattingtown Episcopal Church. October.

 

Holy War and Profane Rhetoric. High School Assembly, Friends Academy, Locust Valley, NY, September.

 

Islam and the Middle East. Hofstra Teach-In on the September 11 Tragedy, Hofstra University, September. [I helped organize one of the first teach-ins after 9/11.]

 

Lecture on Islam and the September 11 Tragedy. Friends Academy, Locust Valley, NY, 12th Grade, September.

2000
Stars for all Seasons. Public presentation, American Museum of Natural History, New York, December.

Net Gains for our Students: Asigning Website Critiques. Hofstra University, Center for Teaching Excellence Workshop, March.

 

Lectures on Crusades and the Arab World and Fossil Evidence for Human Evolution. Friends Academy, Locust Valley, NY, 9th grade, February.

 

1999

The Tragedy of a Comic. Informal Faculty Colloquium, Hofstra, March.

 

Unveiling Gender: Three Middle East Dialogues [with Dr. Najwa Adra]. Chicago Humanities Festival, November.

 

Holy War and Profane Rhetoric: The Islamic Concept of Jihad. Lecture, Central Queens YMHA, March. [New York Council for the Humanities Lecture]

 

Holy War and Profane Rhetoric: The Islamic Concept of Jihad. Lecture, St. Francis College, Brooklyn, March. [New York Council for the Humanities Lecture]

 

1997

The Genesis Craze? University College for Continuing Education, Sunday Lecture Hofstra, November.

 

The Middle East. Presentation on Middle Eastern culture and language to 6th graders, Clarke Middle School, East Meadow, NY, March.

 

1996

Holy War and Profane Rhetoric: The Islamic Concept of Jihad. Lecture, Circle Penn South 1076, New York, March. [New York Council for the Humanities Lecture]

 

Holy War and Profane Rhetoric: The Islamic Concept of Jihad. Lecture. Brentwood Public Library, Brentwood, November. [New York Council for the Humanities Lecture]

 

Panel on Indigenous Peoples. Regional Amnesty International High School Conference, Ethical Humanist Society, Garden City, NY, November.

 

Who's Afraid of Islamic Fundamentalism? UCCE, Sunday Lecture, Hofstra University, November.

 

1995

Panel on Indigenous Peoples. Regional Amnesty International High School Conference, Ethical Humanist Society, Garden City, NY, November.

 

Who's Afraid of Islamic Fundamentalism? UCCE, Sunday Lecture, Hofstra University, November.

 

Middle East. Multimedia Presentation in Cultural Heritage Series for Educators, The Vanderbilt Museum, Centerport, NY, May.

 

1994

Panel on Indigenous Peoples. Regional Amnesty International High School Conference, Ethical Humanist Society, Garden City, NY, November.

 

The Islamic Concept of Holy War. Lecture, Islamic Center of Long Island,Westbury, NY, November.

 

Who's Afraid of Islamic Fundamentalism? UCCE, Sunday Lecture, Hofstra University, November.

 

Archaeology. Workshop for Quest Program, Bowling Green Elementary School, East Meadow, NY, December.

 

1993

Panel on Indigenous Rights. Regional Amnesty International High School Conference, Ethical Humanist Society, Garden City, NY, November.

 

Yemeni Agriculture. Horace Mann School, Bronx, NY, November.

 

Slide lecture on Anthropology. Wantagh Middle School, Wantaugh, NY, November.

 

Women in the Middle East and Islam. Lecture, Association of American University Women, Garden City, NY, April.

 

1985

The Land of Yemen. Exxon Cultural Series, New York.

 

---

 

FELLOWSHIPS, GRANTS, AND HONORS

 

 

2007
Presidential Research Grant, Hofstra University. [For preparation of dvd on Yemeni fieldwork.]

 

2005
Harris Manchester College Summer Fellowship, Oxford University. [Study in Oxford of early texts on Protestant Christian Apocalytpic about Islam and Catholicism.]

2002-2005
Fellow, Center for Teaching and Scholarly Excellence, Hofstra University.

2001-2002

National Endowment for the Humanities Award. [For preparation of book on history of Yemeni agriculture].

 

1999
Distinguished Alumni Award, Strongsville High School.[Strongsville High School Alumni Association.]

 

1996-98

New York Council for the Humanities. Scholar available for lectures on Jihad in Islam.

 

1994

Presidential Research Grant. Hofstra University. [For preparation of video and photographs on Yemeni agriculture.]

1989-90

Fulbright Research Grant for Qatar. [Project on contemporary Gulf almanacs.]

 

1988-89

Fulbright Islamic Civilization Research Grant. Project in Doha, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, and Istanbul, Turkey. [Manuscript research and ethnographic study on the Arabic almanac tradition.]

 

1984

Nantional Endowment for the Humanities Translation Grant. [Annotated edition and translation of 13th Century Yemeni Almanac. Residence in Sanaa, Yemen Arab Republic. In collaboration with Dr. David A. King]

 

1983

Fellow, American Research Center in Egypt. [Research in Egyptian National Library on Arabic scientific manuscripts.]

 

1978-79

Fulbright-Hayes Doctoral Dissertation Research Grant. [Ecological and ethnographic field study in highland valley of Yemen on water resource use.]

 

1974-77

NDFL Arabic Fellowship, University of Pennsylvania.

 

1973-present

Wheaton College Scholastic Honor Society.

 

---

EDITOR

CyberOrient (Editor-in-Chief, online journal started in 2006) http:www.cyberorient.net

Contemporary Islam, Editor (2006-present) http://www.springer.com/sgw/cda/frontpage/0,11855,4-40384-70-138979249-0,00.html

Yemen Update (1991-2001)

 WEBMASTER AND BLOG SITES

 

 

Middle East Muddle http://www.anthropology-news.org/index.php/tag/middle-east-muddle/ [2012-present, Commentary blog on Anthropology News of the American Anthropological Association.]

 

Tabsir: Insight on Islam and the Middle East http://www.tabsir.net [Academic blog, 2005-present]

 

Teaching the Qur’an Online and Over Time: A Virtual Seminar [SSRC Project with Dr. Bruce Lawrence, Duke University] http://www.ahjur.org/quran/virqur.htm [2003-2004]

 

Yemen Webdate (American Institute for Yemeni Studies) http://www.aiys.org/webdate/indexyem.html [1998-present] temporarily offline.

MESNET (Middle East Section, American Anthropological Association) http://www.aaanet.org/mes/index.htm [1999-2003, no longer active].

 

---

PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

 

American Anthropological Association (AAA)

American Institute for Yemeni Studies (AIYS)

• Secretary (1991-1999)

• Board Member (1986-1990, 2002-2005, 2009-present)
• Editor, Yemen Update (1991-2001)
• Webshaykh, Yemen Webdate (1998-present)

Middle East Medievalists (MEM)

Middle East Section (MES) of the AAA

• Section President (2002-2004)

Middle East Studies Association (MESA)

• Publications Committee (2010-present)

Seminar in Arabic Studies, Columbia University

Society for the Anthropology of Religion (SAR)

The American Academic Research Institute in Iraq (TAARII)

• Board Member (2003-present)

Worldwide Association for the Study of Religion (WASR)

---

LANGUAGES

 

Arabic (non-native fluent); Spanish (reading and speaking); German (reading); French, Italian (very basic reading)