Univ. Senate approves two new majors
Kyle Goon
Issue date: 4/22/08 Section: News
The University Senate yesterday unanimously approved two new majors and minors in Arabic studies and Persian studies, a move professors and administrators say will address a long-neglected area of academic study and also satisfy a government demand for talent.
The Persian major is one of only a handful in the entire country, joining such institutions as UCLA and the University of Texas at Austin. Program Director Ahmad Karimi-Hakkak expects the program to draw in students from the Washington area, home to the third-largest Iranian diaspora in the United States, he said.
The new programs are major additions to the university's academic offerings. Four years ago, Persian studies didn't exist, and there was no dedicated funding or faculty for the few Arabic courses offered. The vote yesterday all but ensures Persian and Arabic will have a permanent place in the languages, literatures and cultures school.
"The second generation of Iranian-Americans in this area are coming of age and going to universities," Karimi-Hakkak said. "Now, we are going to actively recruit and make sure that every student who may have an interest at least hears about these majors and minors."
The university has offered Arabic courses for many years and Persian for the last four years, but mostly at introductory and intermediate levels. Madeline Zilfi, a professor who specializes in Ottoman history, said she was on five different committees over a span of 20 years that pushed for more advanced Arabic classes. Their efforts were largely ignored by the administration, who Zilfi said suffered from "a lack of vision."
"Arabic is one of the most widely used and spoken languages in the world. It's a [United Nations] language, and our nation is deeply involved in Middle Eastern policy," Zilfi said. "I consider it a badge of shame that it's taken this long to get this program developed. We're supposed to be on the cutting edge."
Charles E. Butterworth, a professor emeritus who specializes in medieval Arabic and Islamic political philosophy, said he advocated Arabic classes when he first came to the university in 1969.
The Persian major is one of only a handful in the entire country, joining such institutions as UCLA and the University of Texas at Austin. Program Director Ahmad Karimi-Hakkak expects the program to draw in students from the Washington area, home to the third-largest Iranian diaspora in the United States, he said.
The new programs are major additions to the university's academic offerings. Four years ago, Persian studies didn't exist, and there was no dedicated funding or faculty for the few Arabic courses offered. The vote yesterday all but ensures Persian and Arabic will have a permanent place in the languages, literatures and cultures school.
"The second generation of Iranian-Americans in this area are coming of age and going to universities," Karimi-Hakkak said. "Now, we are going to actively recruit and make sure that every student who may have an interest at least hears about these majors and minors."
The university has offered Arabic courses for many years and Persian for the last four years, but mostly at introductory and intermediate levels. Madeline Zilfi, a professor who specializes in Ottoman history, said she was on five different committees over a span of 20 years that pushed for more advanced Arabic classes. Their efforts were largely ignored by the administration, who Zilfi said suffered from "a lack of vision."
"Arabic is one of the most widely used and spoken languages in the world. It's a [United Nations] language, and our nation is deeply involved in Middle Eastern policy," Zilfi said. "I consider it a badge of shame that it's taken this long to get this program developed. We're supposed to be on the cutting edge."
Charles E. Butterworth, a professor emeritus who specializes in medieval Arabic and Islamic political philosophy, said he advocated Arabic classes when he first came to the university in 1969.
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Viewing Comments 1 - 4 of 5
Hmmmm
posted 4/22/08 @ 11:02 AM EST
"medieval Arabic and Islamic political philosophy" is that kinda the same thing? I would be very interested in doing a minor or even double major in Persian but Im just saying. (Continued…)
Hmmmm
posted 4/22/08 @ 4:44 PM EST
Thnx, that makes sense... The website for the courses say minimal persian is needded for acceptance, i wonder how much that is... and if anyone knows the best way to start trying let me know! smid_j@hotmail. (Continued…)
jaikie
posted 4/22/08 @ 10:05 PM EST
You can read some of the proposed course requirements here:
http://www.languages.umd.edu/persian/programs.php
I understand that these have been adjusted somewhat, so we'll see how they'll be implemented in the next couple of years. (Continued…)
Valmorphy
posted 4/22/08 @ 10:43 PM EST
Ah, derka derka jihad muhammad! jihad jihad derka derka? lol. muhammad derka derka derka fatwah....
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