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CMENAS Colloquium Series. Language Issues: Ancient and Modern

Jay Crisostomo, Assistant Professor, U-M Department of Middle East Studies
Monday, October 1, 2018
12:00-1:30 PM
Room 555 Weiser Hall Map
The 2018 CMENAS Colloquium Series theme, “The Process of Discovery: How Scholars Write Books Today” will discuss how in popular media, writing is fantastically presented as a process whereby inspiration—a muse— comes to the writer (or fails to). In this fantasy, writers type fiendishly or crumple up one sheet after another. The reality is at once more complicated and humble than this. Come discover how scholars discover. The colloquium series will feature presentations from CMENAS faculty on their recent book projects and will explore the research process from start to finish.
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Lecture Abstract:
People sure love to talk and write, ancients and moderns alike. But how can we know what people four thousand years ago were trying to do when they used language? We will look at various language questions raised by ancient Middle Eastern sources and discuss how modern linguistic, anthropological, and historical methodologies can bridge thousand-year gaps, so that we can communicate with women and men from long ago. And, just as importantly, how do we explain these methodologies to non-expert readers—how do you write a book about one topic, while simultaneously taking your readers into other fields that require different modes of thinking and evaluation? How do you address one audience while speaking the language of a different one?

Speaker Bio:
Jay Crisostomo is an Assyriologist, researching language and social and intellectual histories of the ancient Middle East. His book Translation as Scholarship: Language, Writing, and Bilingual Education in Ancient Babylonia will be published in early 2019. He is currently working on the linguistic and social history of the Sumerian language, one of the world’s earliest and most important recorded languages.

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The following text will be included on all II events unless you indicate otherwise:If you are a person with a disability who requires an accommodation to attend this event, please reach out to us at least 2 weeks in advance of this event. Please be aware that advance notice is necessary as some accommodations may require more time for the university to arrange. Contact: jessmhil@umich.edu
Building: Weiser Hall
Event Type: Lecture / Discussion
Tags: Language, Lecture, Middle East Studies
Source: Happening @ Michigan from Center for Middle Eastern and North African Studies, Department of Middle East Studies, International Institute