The World of Manuscripts : An Introduction
Wijad Academy is a two-year, 80-hour program for MA and PhD students/candidates in disciplines that work with manuscripts produced in the Arabic script. The program of the academy covers different scientific, historical, material, aesthetic, legal, and technological aspects associated with the study of manuscripts. Wijad has a particular focus on Arabic and Ottoman Turkish manuscripts.
The Academy is designed to familiarize the participants with manuscript studies early in their academic career, and with the critical tools that are now indispensable for engaging with manuscripts as sources for research and publication. While exploring the different facets of the manuscript as an object, the training will focus on transforming the manuscript into a published source. Participants will thus acquire key training in producing critical editions and will be asked to work on individual projects.
Proposed by the Institut français du Proche-Orient (Ifpo) in 2024 and supported by a consortium of eight academic and cultural institutions in France, Lebanon and Turkey, this program also aims to build an international network of specialists in manuscript sources, that can grow and contribute to the advancement of manuscript studies at the participants’ respective universities and fields.
Wijad Academy is structured around four intensive sessions of 20 hours each, which are led scientifically by an international committee of academics and librarians. The class of 2024-2026 comprises 16 candidates who will meet in Istanbul, Beirut, and Paris.
SESSION 1
The World of Manuscripts : An Introduction
JUNE 2-6, 2025
Istanbul, Institut français d’études anatoliennes
Objectives
Material and technical aspects of manuscripts
Theoretical sessions, practical workshops and library visits
Trainers
Zouhour CHAABANE (Bibliothèque Universitaire des Langues et Civilisations BULAC)
Khalid CHAKOR ALAMI (Bibliothèque nationale de France)
Arianna D’OTTONE (Università degli Studi di Roma « La Sapienza »)
Sébastien GARNIER (Université Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne)
Sarah MALOBERTI (CIHAM – UMR 5648)
Athina PFEIFFER (Princeton University)
Program
June 2nd – Introduction to codicology Khalid Chakor Alami
- Different types of writing surfaces: papyrus, parchment, paper.
- Typology of quires
- Ink, ruling and page layout
June 3rd – Introduction to paleography Arianna d’Ottone & Sébastien Garnier
- Introduction and approaches to the study of paleography: scripts, Arabic book hands
- Copying the manuscript: craftspeople, copyists and their equipment
Visit to the Arabic manuscripts department of the Süleymaniye Library
June 4th – The manuscript in the digital sphere: identifying and locating manuscripts using online catalogues Khalid Chakor Alami & Athina Pfeiffer
- Locate collections (Middle East, Maghreb, Asia, Europe, North America)
- Catalogues, online catalogues, and digitized collections
- Other tools
Visit to the “Book Hospital” of the Süleymaniye Library
June 5th – The manuscript: acquisition and environment Zouhour Chaabane & Sarah Maloberti
Histories of collections:
- Institutions
- Private collections and archives
- History of manuscript circulation
Manuscript cataloguing:
- A brief history of the first manuscript inventories and catalogues
- The notice: the birth certificate of a manuscript
Visit to the Turkish & Islamic Arts Museum
June 6th – Review and preparation of the editorial projects
Participants will be asked to choose a manuscript to work with across the sessions, with the aim of producing a scholarly edition. Sessions will be organized for workshopping their work in progress.
