Iberia and the Maghreb: History 20, Hofstra University

FAIN: FW-50190-10

Simon R. Doubleday
Hofstra University (Hempstead, NY 11549-1000)

This project is designed to enhance a course addressing relations between the West and the Islamic world: "The Present in Historical Perspective", adding a new dimension on the relationship between medieval Iberia and the Maghreb: the region dominated by Berber peoples. This relationship is richly complex; yet no teaching or research programs devoted to Berber studies exist in any North American university today. The inclusion of a selection of annotated short texts would allow students to re-envision such issues as the 2004 terrorist attacks in Madrid, and to ask: Is there an inevitable divide between the north and south Mediterranean? Is immigration a source of cultural invigoration, or an intrinsic problem for European identity? How can we best conceptualize partnerships between north and south? And is the "Alliance of Civilizations" a fantasy, or a restoration of symbiosis between Islamic and Christian traditions?