News Archive

29 November 2007

• FELLOWSHIP- Post-Doc Fellowship, Resources & Political Order in Central Asia

The German Institute for International and Security Affairs (Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik) in Berlin is offering a post-doctoral fellowship funded by the Gerda Henkel Foundation for a period of 2 years for research on the following topic:

Resources and political order in Central Asia: Historical foundations, contemporary challenges and prospects for development.

Eligible candidates include post-doctoral

• historians with a relevant regional specialization
• social scientists with a good knowledge of economics
• economists with a focus on political economy
• development or transition economists with knowledge of the post-Soviet space

The successful candidate will already possess expertise on Central Asia, and research experience in the region would be desirable. A good working knowledge of German is essential, and knowledge of Russian would be a significant asset.

The candidate should be willing to work in Berlin.

Applications should include a CV, academic transcripts and diplomas, names and addresses of 2 scientific references, and a project exposé of max. 5 pages.

Please send your application to:

Dr. Andrea Schmitz
Forschungsgruppe Russland / GUS
Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP), Berlin andrea.schmitz@swp-berlin.org

• GRANT- Travel Grant for Use of Library at Western Washington University

The Center for East Asian Studies of Western Washington University is offering travel grants for research in the WWU Libraries on any subject dealing with Mongolia and the Mongols. Two grants of up to $500 each will be awarded in any one calendar year to scholars, including doctoral candidates, who at the time of application reside more than 500 miles from Bellingham. Applicants from institutions with no or few Inner Asian resources are given preference.

The grants, financed by the Henry G. Schwarz Endowment Fund for Mongolian Studies, are designed to help scholars use the more than 9,300 books and dozens of periodicals dealing with Mongolia. This large collection of materials, broadly representative of all parts of Mongolia and of every major group of Mongols elsewhere in the world, is known not only for its books on language, literature, the humanities and social sciences but also for its unparalleled resources in medicine and the natural sciences. It is supported by more than 2,700 titles on Tibet and substantial collections on neighboring areas, such as Eastern Turkestan (Xinjiang), and the indigenous populations of Eastern Siberia, the Russian Far East and Manchuria.

Applications must be submitted by August 1 for research during September through January and by January 1 for research during February through June. They should include a brief description of the research project, an up-to-date curriculum vitae, and an estimated budget. When completed, they should be sent to: Director, Center for East Asian Studies, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9057.

19 November 2007

• The Harriman Institute at Columbia University is extending invitations to graduate students at universities in North America to submit proposals for a workshop to be held in New York City on April 5, 2008. The title of the workshop is "Russia and the Ottoman Empire: Transregional and comparative approaches." Applicants with a background in either empire are encouraged to submit proposals. Proposals can be from any time period, and should reflect an interest in exploring comparative dynamics between Russia and the Ottoman Empire, or else focus upon a topic which transcends the two empires. The approximately 6-7 individuals who will be chosen to attend this workshop will be provided with airfare to New York and two nights accommodation at a hotel close to the Columbia campus. Please send a CV and 500-word précis of your proposal to James H. Meyer at jhm2133@Columbia.edu by February 14, 2008.
  
  
• The National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR) is pleased to announce the Next Generation Leadership in Asian Affairs Fellowship for 2008-2009, a year-long program that focuses on bridging the gap between scholarship and policymaking. The fellowship is open to recent master's degree recipients and professional degree holders (e.g., MA, MBA, LLM, JD, etc.) and will be based at NBR's headquarters in Seattle. Fellows will collaborate with leading scholars to conduct independent research and share research findings with the policymaking community in Washington, D.C.

  Application Deadline
  January 14, 2008

  For further information and application materials please visit http://www.nbr.org/NextGeneration.

  Full-text announcement available at http://nbr.org/nextgeneration/announcement.pdf.

• Times of Trouble: Violence in Eurasia from Past to Present Dissertation Development Workshop

  New York City
  April 4-6, 2008

  Application Submission Deadline: December 17, 2007

  The Eurasia Program of the Social Science Research Council (SSRC) invites proposals for a dissertation development workshop focusing on issues of violence in Eurasia. Graduate students at any stage of their dissertation process (from proposal to write-up) and from any disciplinary or interdisciplinary program in the humanities or social sciences are eligible to apply. We particularly encourage applicants who propose fresh theoretical perspectives and methodologies, and whose work speaks to a wide scholarly audience.
  
  For detailed information on application procedures and eligibility requirements, please visit the Eurasia Program online at www.ssrc.org/programs/eurasia or contact program staff at eurasia@ssrc.org.

05 November 2007

• Research and Advanced Language Training Grants, American Councils, 2008-09

  American Councils is pleased to announce that applications for its
  2008-2009 Grants for Research and Advanced Language Training are now available. Applications for Fall and Academic Year 2008-09 programs are due January 15. Applications are now available for download at www.americancouncils.org or by contacting the American Councils Outbound Office. Funding for these programs is available through American Councils from U.S. Department of State (Title VIII) grant support.

  Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents. All competitions for funding are open and merit based. All applications will receive consideration without regard to any non-merit factors such as race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, marital status, age (with authorized exceptions), political affiliation, or disability. Funding for this program is made available by the U.S. Department of State's Program for the Study of Eastern Europe and Independent States of the Former Soviet Union (Title VIII).

  Applications are available for download at www.americancouncils.org/researchFellowships.php or by contacting the American Councils Outbound Office.

  For more information, please contact:
  Russian and Eurasian Outbound Programs
  American Councils for International Education: ACTR/ACCELS
  1776 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Suite 700 Washington, DC 20036
  Telephone: (202) 833-7522
  Email: outbound@americancouncils.org
  Website: www.americancouncils.org

29 October 2007

• Upcoming Conference: Contemporary Mongolia - Transitions, Development and Social Transformations
  November 15-17, 2008
  Vancouver, Canada
  
  Call for Presentation Proposals
  
  Since the 1990 political revolution, Mongolia has emerged as one of the most stable democracies in the post-socialist world. Exploration of mineral resources seems to offer the promise of economic development. Mongolia has forged new international alliances with "third neighbours". At the same time, development remains hampered by corruption, a lack of infrastructure, and the turbulence associated with the transition to a market-economy.
  
  In the year of the 35th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Canada and Mongolia, a major conference will be organized under the auspices of the Program on Inner Asia at the Institute of Asian Research of the University of British Columbia.
  
  Spread over two days, academic discussions will focus on developments in Mongolia in the areas of research on
     1. agricultural economics/pastoralism,
     2. ecosystems,
     3. education,
     4. health,
     5. mining and economic development,
     6. politics and international relations,
     7. religion, and
     8. transition studies.
  
  The third day of the conference will be devoted to roundtable discussions of an outlook for contemporary Mongolia.
  
  We are now calling for proposals for presentations at this conference. Interested scholars should email their presentation proposals of no more than 250 words in English to
  mongolia@dierkes.net by January 18, 2008.
  
  For more information, please contact Dr. Julian Dierkes, Coordinator, Program on Inner Asia, Institute of Asian Research, UBC at mongolia@dierkes.net or see http://www.iar.ubc.ca/programs/InnerAsia/mongolia_conf2008.html
  
• Koç University is accepting applications for junior and senior residential fellowships for the 2008-2009 academic year at its Research Center for Anatolian Civilizations in Istanbul. The deadline for applications is December 15, 2007. For an on-line application form and information about the residential fellowship program and the RCAC, please visit http://rcac.ku.edu.tr
  
• Thursday, November 8, the Kálmán Balogh Gypsy Cimbalom Band will perform at the Waldron Arts Center, starting at 8pm.  The band blends the exciting folk music of Central and Eastern Europe with the swinging improvisational style of Gypsy Jazz.  Tickets are $10 for the general public and $7 for students and seniors.  This performance is sponsored by the Indiana University Department of Central Eurasian Studies, the Russian and East European Institute, Hungarian Studies Program, and the Hungarian Cultural Association.  The Waldron Arts Center is located on the corner of Walnut and 4th Street.  The concert will be followed by a Peasant Disco. The last time the Kálmán Balogh Gypsy Cimbalom Band  came through Bloomington, they played to a packed house. More info on the concert can be found at:  www.bloomingtonarts.info/Public/Calendar/
  performance.asp?PerfID=14140.
  
• The Turkish Student Association presents the celebration of the 84th anniversary of the Turkish Republic. Program details are as follows:
  
  Place: IMU Tudor Room, First Floor
  Date: Monday, October 29th, 2007
  Time: 7:00pm - 10:00pm
  
  7:15pm Welcoming Remarks by Serdar Abaci
  
  7:30pm Speech by keynote speaker Professor Ilhan Basgoz*
  
  8:00pm Musical Performance by Silk Road Ensemble
  
  8:15pm Buffet and Reception
  
  * Professor Emeritus of Central Eurasian Studies; Professor Emeritus of Folklore at Indiana University
  
  This event has been graciously sponsored by the Ottoman and Modern
  Turkish Studies Chair.
  

23 October 2007

• Conference/Call for Papers - Central and Inner Asia Seminar, Univ. of Toronto, May 16-17, 2007
  
  The Thirteenth Annual Conference of the Central & Inner Asia Seminar (CIAS 2008) will be held at the University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in the Croft Chapter House on Friday and Saturday May 16-17, 2008.
  
  The theme of this year's gathering is "The Material Culture, Language and Religion of Central and Inner Asia". Scholars from any relevant discipline are invited to submit proposals for papers.
  
  The time allowance for any presentation is 20 minutes.
  
  The deadline for submissions is December 21, 2007 and those selected will be notified by email as soon as possible thereafter.
  
  For further information see www.utoronto.ca/cias.

15 October 2007

• The Tibetan Cultural Center (TCC) in Bloomington, Indiana is pleased to announce that His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama of Tibet will return to Bloomington and the TCC from October 23 to 28, 2007. During his visit, His Holiness will teach from Atisha's Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment. These teachings will take place at Indiana University Auditorium on October 24, 25, and 26. For more details please visit the website of the Tibetan Cultural Center.

• Call For Papers: The 3rd University of Chicago Conference on Eurasian Archaeology

  Regimes and Revolutions:
  Power, Violence, and Labor in Eurasia
  Between the Ancient and the Modern

  May 1-3, 2008
  University of Chicago
  For more information, please see the official site.
  

• FROM TENT TO PALACE: TEXTILES OF CENTRAL ASIA AND TURKEY
  at the Santa Rosa Junior College Art Gallery, from October 4th –to December 15th. For more details, please view the announcement.

03 October 2007

• Possible Teaching Opportunity: Collins Living-Learning Center invites faculty members and advanced graduate students with teaching experience to submit course proposals each semester for the following year.
  
• FELLOWSHIP: Postdoctoral fellowships at Havighurst Center, Miami Univ. of Ohio

  http://www.units.muohio.edu/havighurstcenter
  /opportunities/postdoctoral.html

19 September 2007

• Kazakh Movie Wednesdays
  They were young directors sent to Moscow to learn how to make movies; when they came back, they revolutionized Kazakh cinema.  The New Wave Kazakh directors (the group of young Kazakh directors trained by Russian director Sergei Solovyiev) broke down Soviet filmmaking ideologies and faced new problems: Can Kazakh movies play a role in Kazakh society? Is the Kazakh cinema ready to compete with the onslaught of Hollywood and Russian movies? In the upcoming weeks, we will show three movies by directors representing the New Wave of Kazakh film. The movies will be followed by Kazakh conversation in Turkuaz café.  All movies are in Kazakh and Russian (representing the current polyglot linguistic situation in Kazakhstan) but have English subtitles. 

  Renaissance Island:

  The original Kazakh title of the film is Kaladan kelgen kyz, or "Girl from the City." It is Director Rustem Abdrashev's retrospective portrayal of Kazakhstan in early 1960s.  It attempts to project a "post-Soviet" perspective on the Aral Sea disaster, Stalin-era systems and the values of the Soviet generation. The movie was shown first in Russia and was awarded first prize at the movie festival "Kinoshock."

  
  Showing: Wednesday, 19 September 2007, 7:00pm
  Location: Psychology 101
  
  Discussion at Kazakh coffee hour: 26 September 2007, 6:00pm at Turkuaz Cafe
  
  Sholpan's Sin:
  Released in 2006, this film is based on Magzhan Zhumabayev's novel of the same name.  It is one of the first attempts by Magzhan to raise the issue of gender problems of Kazakh women in early 1900s. Once happy with her husband, Sholpan commits a sin in order to feel motherhood, but she is responsible for the consequences.
  
  Showing: Wednesday 3 Oct. 2007, 7pm
  Location: Psychology 101
  
  Discussion at Kazakh coffee hour: 10 Oct. 2007, 6:00pm Turkuaz Cafe
  
  Leila's Prayer:
  This retrospective movie from director Satybaldy Narimanov portrays 1960s era Kazakhstan.  People in a Kazakh village near Semipalatinsk live in a state of naïve drowsiness dictated by Soviet "Keeping Up Arms" policy.
  
  Showing: 17 October 2007, 7:00pm
  Location: Psychology 101
  
  Discussion at Kazakh coffee hour: 24 October 2007, 6:00pm
  Location: Turkuaz Café

   Any questions should be addressed to Zaure Batayeva (zbatayev)

• Kazakh Students Association Coffee Hour
  This Friday, September 21, the Kazakh Student Association (KSA) will be
  hosting its Coffee Hour! It is a great opportunity to meet people from
  Kazakhstan as well as from other communities, and to experience
  cultural diversity here at IU. The event will feature:
        -       the presentation "Kazakhstan today and the KSA";
        -       FREE food, including famous 'baursak' doughnut;
        -       Colorful performances by Kazakhstani students.
  Join us on September 21 from 4:00-6:00 pm at the International Center
  to share some precious moments and enjoy food!
  We are looking forward to meeting you there!
  
  Contacts: Maiya Assanova (maiassan), Talgat Yeslamgaliyev (tayeslam)

• Hungarian 1956 Commemoration
  Tuesday Oct 23, 5:30-7:00pm, President’s Club, IMU
  Sponsored by the HCA, CEUS, REEI
  Contact: Brant Beyer, (hca)

• Turkish Folk Dancing Classes
  TSA (Turkish Student Association) invites you to the weekly Turkish Folk Dance classes, which will be held every Saturday between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. starting this Saturday (September 15th). Folklore garaduate student Ozan Say will be teaching the classes. The classes will start with 'Horon' from the Black Sea region and continue with Aegean zeybeks, sirtos and hasaposervikos; Gypsy dances from Thrace; and Eastern Anatolian halays. Everyone is welcome.
  
  Those who are interested in participating, please e-mail Serdar Abaci (sabaci)
  

• New additions to the IAUNRC materials collection (19 September 2007)
  The IAUNRC has recently acquired a selection of cultural artifacts from Turkey, including traditional clothing, miniature rugs, and more. Please peruse the current list of loanable items on our Artifacts page.

• 01 August 2007

  New additions to the IAUNRC materials collection (1 August 2007)

  Film: Borovoe Legends: Burabai (Kazakh)
  DVD of Kaakhstan's natural resources produced by a tourism firm. Globus, 2007. IAUNRC Item #4621

  Book: Demons & Protectors: Folk Religion in Tibetan & Mongolian Buddhism
  Edited by Belen Kelenyi
  Ferenc Hopp Museum of Eastern Asiatic Art, 2003. IAUNRC Item # 4622

  Film: Diversity in Islam, with focus on Central Asia; Islam as Politics and Politics as Spirituality in Uzbekistan
  With Professors Ali Asani & Laura Adams
  Primary Source, 2003. IAUNRC Item #4616

  DVD: Global Voices Comprehensive: Music & Culture of Azerbaijan
  Aida Huseynova, Mary Goetze, & Jay Fern
  Mj & Associates, 2007. IAUNRC Item #4620
  
  Film: Habiba: Sufi Saint From Uzbekistan
  Featuring Where Eagles Fly
  Mysticfire.com, 1997. IAUNRC Item #4619
  
  Map: Inner Mongolia
  Sinomaps Press, 2003. IAUNRC Item #4624
  
  Map: Tibet
  Sinomaps Press, 2003. IAUNRC Item #4623

  Map: China, Mongolia, Korea
  American Map Company. IAUNRC Item 4625

  DVD: SD Process in the Republic of Kazakhstan
  Sponsored by UNEP, NESDCA, NORAD
  2006. IAUNRC Item #4614
  
  Audio CD: Sultan Memet – Veten
  World Flight Productions Studio, 2006. IAUNRC Item #4615

  Film: Tamerlane: The Nomadic Ruler; The Mughals Through History, Literature, and Art
  With Professors Beatrice Manz & Wheeler Thackston
  Primary Source, 2003. IAUNRC Item #4617

  Film: The Mongols and the Spread of Islam
  With Professor Thomas Barfield
  Primary Source, 2002. IAUNRC Item #4618

• 07 May 2007

  • Spring/Summer 2007 IAUNRC Newsletter
    Now available for download from Center website.
    
    
  • New Central Asian Language Learning Materials Launched
    The Center for the Languages of the Central Asia Region (CeLCAR) has developed online, web-based reading and listening materials for all their languages . Currently Tajik and Uyghur moduels are available, but additional languages will be posted over the coming months.
    
    The modules can be accessed on the CelCAR website:
    
    http://www.indiana.edu/~celcar/intermediate.php
    
    
  • June 15 - August 10 2007: SWSEEL - Summer Workshop in Slavic , East European, and Central Asian Languages
    Intensive language training has been offered at the Bloomington campus of Indiana University since 1950. The Summer Workshop provides up to 200 participants in Slavic, East European and Central Asian languages the opportunity to complete a full year of college language instruction during an eight-week summer session. Utilizing the resources of Indiana University's own specialists as well as native speakers from other universities and abroad, the Summer Workshop has developed and maintained a national program of the highest quality. Allowing all participants to pay in-state tuition fees, the program has as its goal the enhancement of speaking, reading, listening and writing skills through classroom instruction and a full range of extra-curricular activities. Fellowships and funding are available. See the SWSEEL website for more information.

   

• 26 March 2007

  • 29 March 2007: Contemporary Discourse on the Role of Islam in Kazakh Culture
    Dr. Zifa-Alua M. Auezova, Executive Director of Bilim-Central Asia will give a talk on the role of Islam in Kazakh culture. Dr. Auezova is also a senior lecturer on the Intellectual History of Central Asia and History of Kazakhstan at Kazakh-British Technical University, Almaty. 5:30 pm. Ballantine Hall 217.
    
    
  • 2 April 2007: Film and Discussion: Amazon Warrior Women
    Dr. Jeannine Davis Kimball (Executive Director, Center for the Study of Eurasian Nomads) will present present Amazon Warrior Women, a PBS special on the Sarmations, 6th-4th century BC warrior women of high status on the steppes of what is now southern Russia. 4:00 pm. Sycamore Hall 002.
    
    
  • 11 April 2007: CEUS Job Talk
    Presentations by Dr. Gardner Bovingdon, Assistant Professor of Central Eurasian Studies, and CEUS PhD Candidate Tristra Newyear will assist current CEUS students as they begin to prepare for life outside the department. A question-and-answer session will follow the presentations. 4:00 pm. Ballantine Hall 005

   

• 23 March 2007

  • 24 March 2007: Nazruz at IU
    The Navruz Student Association invites you to the 10th annual Navruz Festival to be held Saturday 24 March 2007.
    
    Navruz is an ancient celebration of the spring equinox for Azerbaijanis, Central Asians, Iranians, Turks and many peoples in Afghanistan and the Caucasus.
    Performances begin at 2:00PM in the Wilkie Auditorium.
    
    Festive dishes will be served following the performances (at approximately 4:30PM) in the Forest Quad Dining Hall.
    
    For more information on Navruz and the Navruz Student Association please visit http://www.indiana.edu/~navruz or contact us by email
    navruz@indiana.edu
    
    This event is free and open to the public.
    
• 31 March - 01 April 2007: ACES Conference
  

  The Fourteenth Annual Central Eurasian Studies Conference will be held on March 31 and April 1, 2007 at Indiana University, Bloomington. The conference is organized and run by the Association of Central Eurasian Students (ACES), the graduate student association for the Department of Central Eurasian Studies at Indiana University.

  In conjunction with the Student Association of Indiana University's Near Eastern Languages and Cultures Graduate Student Association (NELCGSA), ACES is pleased to announce a Special Panel Series on topics in Turkish and Persian Studies at the conference.

  The conference will be held in Ballantine Hall on the Indiana University campus. Breakfast is complimentary. There will be an optional dinner program on Saturday night at the Tudor Room in the Indiana Memorial Union. The program will feature dance, poetry and music performances from many countries of the Central Eurasian region. More details on the program will be posted on our website soon. All conference participants and their spouses or guests are invited to attend.

  The keynote address for this year's conference, "Soviet Ethnic Policy and the Discursive Roots of Central Asian Authoritarianism" will be given by Dr. Richard Anderson of the University of California - Los Angeles. All conference participants are invited to the keynote address, which will be held in Ballantine Hall room 013 at 1:45 PM. Published copies of his talk will be available free of charge to all participants.

  If you have not yet confirmed that you will be attending the conference then we ask that you please contact us immediately.  Also, if for any reason you are unable to attend we ask that you please give us notification as soon as possible so we may make arrangements for your panel.  We also request that you please send us your flight or travel details as soon as they are available, as this will help us with the conference arrangements.

  Please see http://www.indiana.edu/~aces for general information regarding the conference.  If you have any questions then please contact us by email at aces@indiana.edu .

• 26 February 2007

  • 5 March 2007: Pilaf Cook Off
    Navruz Students Association and Inner Asian & Uralic National Resource Center invite you to:   

    Pilaf Cook-Off

    5 March, 5:30pm

    Leo R Dowling International Center (Indiana University, 111 S.Jordan)

     It’s finally time to stop arguing about whose pilaf is the best…..

    As a way to kick off a month-long celebration of Navruz and Central Asia, where pilaf is a traditional dish, six groups will cook their local version and let IU decide who is the Best. A panel of four judges and you, the public, will decide which country’s Pilaf is really the best. The winning country can claim the title of the “Best Pilaf of the Year”.

     Competing cuisines:

    Kazakh
    Uzbek
    Tajik
    Uyghur
    Turkmen
    Iranian 

    Tasting will be blind!

15 February 2007

• The Art of Mongolian Calligraphy: Old Tradition Revived
  • Commemorating the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Mongolia and the United States, this exhbit will be at the Mathers Museum of World Cultures (416 N. Indiana Ave.) from 15 February through 6 May. Featuring works by Jalair Dovdon Batbayar, a renowned Mongolian calligraphist and artist. Sponsored by the Embassy of Mongolia and the Mongolia Society.

09 February 2007

• Martin Stokes--"On Sezen Aksu and Diva Citizenship in Turkey"
  • Martin Stokes, Director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies and Associate Professor of Music, University of Chicago, will give a talk, titled "On Sezen Aksu and Diva Citizenship in Turkey" on February 26, 4:00 pm in the Student Building 150. Stokes will speak about his research into the life and work of Sezen Aksu, one of Turkey's biggest and most influential stars. A light reception will follow the talk. The event is co-sponsored by the Dept. of Communication & Culture, the Ottoman and Modern Turkish Studies Chair, the Inner Asian and Uralic National Resource Center and the Turkish Student Association.
• Margaret Mead Traveling Film Festival
  • The IAUNRC is sponsoring the showing of Petr Lom's 2004 Bride Kidnapping in Kyrgyzstan. 24 February, 2 - 4 pm. Glenn Black Laboratory of Archaeology Auditorium
• Uzbek Film Festival
  • The Inner Asian and Uralic National Resource Center at Indiana University is pleased to support the Global Uzbek Council's 2007 Film Festival. A classic Uzbek film will be shown every week for 3 weeks beginning February 8th.
    
    08 February: "Alisher Navoiy" (1948)
    15 February: "Tohir and Zuhra" (1945)
    22 February: "O’tkan Kunlar – Bygone days" (1970)

12 January 2007

• Academic Year FLAS Applications due 1 February 2007
• Summer Study Abroad FLAS Applications due 1 March 2007
• Summer IU Study FLAS Applications due 23 March 2007
• Fall/Winter 2006 Newsletter Published