SOAS, University of London (The School of Oriental and African Studies)

A Historical Dictionary of Yukaghir

The Historical Dictionary of Yukaghir has two main purposes.

First, it is intended as a relatively complete source of information on the lexicon of Yukaghir. Tundra and Kolyma Yukaghir are closely related, highly endangered languages spoken in the extreme North-East of Siberia. No modern comprehensive lexicographic description of these languages is available for the international linguistic community. The dictionary presents all known varieties of Yukaghir in comparative format. Some of the materials included come from published sources, others were obtained by the author through fieldwork and are published for the first time. The dictionary also contains examples of now extinct early forms of Yukaghir, which began to be recorded in the late 17th century.

Second, the dictionary provides a first reconstruction of the common ancestor of all known Yukaghir varieties. The proto-Yukaghir stems are established based on internal reconstruction, comparison between various Yukaghir idioms, and external data. Although the dictionary does not attempt to provide etymologies for all Yukaghir words, it includes possible cognates of some Yukaghir stems from other languages, mainly Uralic and Altaic.

Since Yukaghir forms are not only cited in their modern shape but are reconstructed, the dictionary will provide a foundation for future etymological work and contribute to investigating the genetic affiliation of Yukaghir, usually classified as isolated. The book will also be useful for linguists interested in the distant genetic relations between language families and the reconstruction of the ethnic and linguistic situation in prehistoric northern Asia.

About the Author
Irina Nikolaeva is Research Fellow at Oxford University, UK.

Aiding Peace? The Role of NGOs in Armed Conflict

"Comprehensive, impressive in scope, and written with great thoughtfulness and attention to detail.... This book does a wonderful job of breaking new ground."—Martha Thompson, Development in Practice

"Effectively blending theory with real world data and a practitioner's insight, Aiding Peace provides solid, comparative research findings on the work and impact of NGO operations in seven war-torn countries."—Christine Mahoney, International Studies Review

"This is an important contribution and will be the starting point for further research."—Lawrence D. Freedman, Foreign Affairs

DESCRIPTION
As nongovernmental organizations play a growing role in the international response to armed conflict tasked with mitigating the effects of war and helping to end the violence there is an acute need for information on the impact they are actually having. Addressing this need, Aiding Peace? explores just how NGOs interact with conflict and peace dynamics, and with what results.
Jonathan Goodhand compares the programs of international and national NGOs in seven conflict arenas: Afghanistan, Armenia-Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Moldova, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. Well grounded in an analysis of the political-economy context of each conflict, his important and perhaps unexpected results point to essential policy and practice changes in the interest of enhanced NGO peacebuilding efforts. Not least, they also highlight the need for a fundamental adjustment of expectations.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jonathan Goodhand is lecturer in the Development Studies Department at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.

Christian Heretics in Late Imperial China. Christian Inculturation and State Control, 1720-1850

Following the prohibition of missionary activity after 1724, China's Christians were effectively cut off from all foreign theological guidance. The ensuing isolation forced China's Christian communities to become self-reliant in perpetuating the basic principles of their faith. Left to their own devices, the missionary seed developed into a panoply of indigenous traditions, with Christian ancestry as the common denominator. Christianity thus underwent the same process of inculturation as previous religious traditions in China, such as Buddhism and Judaism. As the guardian of orthodox morality, the prosecuting state sought to exercise all-pervading control over popular thoughts and social functions.

Filling the gap within the discourse of Christianity in China and also as part of the wider analysis of religion in late Imperial China, this study presents the campaigns against Christians during this period as part and parcel of the campaign against 'heresy' and 'heretical' movements in general.

Civil War Is Not a Stupid Thing. Accounting for Violence in Developing Countries

Why is there so much violence in the developing countries? What does it have to do with economic development? What does it have to do with globalisation? In addressing these and other questions, Christopher Cramer takes a broad comparative approach, from recent wars, insurgencies and violence in Angola, Brazil, and Iraq to the American Civil War, showing how wars have been paid for throughout history. He also compares post-conflict reconstruction efforts in Mozambique and Iraq with how nineteenth-century America and twentieth-century Europe rebuilt their shattered societies and economies. "Civil War is Not a Stupid Thing" takes issue with two common perspectives on violence and war. The first is the liberal interpretation, according to which war is exclusively negative in its effects and peace is easily achieved through democratisation and free trade. In this view, modern liberal market democracies have outgrown violence, and only resort to it in self-defence. The second is a romantic, utopian view of violence. Transposed into political rhetoric, these two views are often directly opposed, as they are nowadays in Iraq and in the 'War on Terror'. Cramer's book forges an alternative way of understanding the role of violence in the transition to capitalism and a global economy.

About the Author
CHRISTOPHER CRAMER is Senior Lecturer in Development Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), having previously taught at Cambridge and in Mozambique. His influential article on which this book is based, 'Homo Economicus Goes to War', was published in World Development.

Comparative Law in a Global Context. The Legal Systems of Asia and Africa

Now in its second edition, this textbook presents a critical rethinking of the study of comparative law and legal theory in a globalising world, and proposes a new model. It highlights the inadequacies of current Western theoretical approaches in comparative law, international law, legal theory and jurisprudence, especially for studying Asian and African laws, arguing that they are too parochial and eurocentric to meet global challenges. Menski argues for combining modern natural law theories with positivist and socio-legal traditions, building an interactive, triangular concept of legal pluralism. Advocated as the fourth major approach to legal theory, this model is applied in analysing the historical and conceptual development of Hindu law, Muslim law, African laws and Chinese law.

Creating Korean Music: Tradition, Innovation and the Discourse of Identity

With the rise of nationalism in the Republic of Korea, music has come to play a central role in the discourse of identity. This volume asks what Koreans consider makes music Korean, and how meaning is ascribed to musical creation. Keith Howard explores specific aspects of creativity that are designed to appeal to a new audience that is increasingly westernized yet proud of its indigenous heritage - updates of tradition, compositions, and collaborative fusions. He charts the development of the Korean music scene over the last 25 years and interprets the debates, claims and statistics by incorporating the voices of musicians, composers, scholars and critics. Koreanness is a brand identity with a discourse founded on heritage, hence Howard focuses on music that is claimed to link to tradition, and on music compositions where indigenous identity is consciously incorporated. The volume opens with SamulNori, a percussion quartet known throughout the world that was formed in 1978 but is rooted in local and itinerant bands stretching back many centuries. Parallel developments in vocal genres, folksongs and p'ansori ('epic storytelling through song') are considered, then three chapters explore compositions written both for western instruments and for Korean instruments, and designed both for Korean and international audiences. Over time, Howard shows how the two musical worlds - kugak, traditional music, and yangak, western music - have collided, and how fusions have emerged. This volume documents how identity has been negotiated by musicians, composers and audiences. Until recently, references to tradition were common and, by critics and musicologists, required. Western music increasingly encroached on the market for Korean music and doubts were raised about the future of any music identifiably Korean. Today, Korean musical production exudes a resurgent confidence as it amalgamates Korean and western elements, as it arranges and incorporates the old in the new, and as it creates a music suitable for the contemporary world.

About the Author
Keith Howard is Senior Lecturer in Music at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, UK.

Daily Life in the Mongol Empire

The Mongol Empire comes to life in this vivid account of the lives of ordinary people who lived under the rule of Ghengis Khan. The book allows the reader to enjoy traditional Mongol folktales and experience life in a yurt, the tent in which the nomadic Mongols lived. It explains why the Mongols had a reputation for being savage barbarians by describing their fur-lined clothes and their heavy, meat- and alcohol-based diet. It supplies first-hand accounts about fighting in Ghengis Khan's army and explores the various tasks that were left up to the women, such as loading and unloading the wagons when traveling. High school students and undergraduates can compare and contrast religious beliefs and various laws of the Mongols with those of other cultures they are studying. From traditional medicinal treatments to the Great Yasa law system, readers young and old can enjoy this comprehensive, in-depth study of everyday living during the Mongol Empire. In addition to general questions, Lane delves into specific situations of everyday living during the Mongol Empire. Questions such as "How did the judicial system of the Mongol Empire work?" and "What spices were generally used in Mongol cooking?" are answered in this extensive study. Subjects include: the structure of steppe society; clothes and hairstyles; the evolution of the nomadic life to one more permanent; the decimalization of the Mongol army; and the shaman's methods of healing sick patients. Other topics are: the Mongols' insatiable thirst for airag, an alcoholic beverage; Hu Szu-hui's royal cookbook; the liberal religious beliefs held by the Mongols; Ghengis Khan's strict law system; and the status of Mongol women. Passages fromancient texts and authors enhance this reference work, one that is essential to all school and public libraries.

Edo no igirisu netsu

It is known that the English East India Company played an important role in the early Edo period, during the decade of its operations in Japan (1613-23). The role of Great Britain in ‘opening’ Japan in the early 19th century is also often discussed. This book, however, is the first monograph to consider the image of England (then Britain) during the 200-years without direct contact. The Dutch East India Company alone among European business operated in Japan during this period, and habitually everything is attributed to them, with the term ‘Dutchmen’ often being used by modern historians to refer to Europeans, and with all imported items being referred to as Dutch. True, at the time, Japanese scholars referred to a new discipline called ‘Dutch Studies’ (Rangaku), but conversely, my research revealed, and this book sets out for the reader, how great an interest was shown in Britain. A surprising amount of information, impressive in quantity and accuracy, circulated, relating to British institutions and history, and readers were made aware that this was a different country from the Netherlands. London was a perennial subject of fascination, with its cathedral and famous bridge. Images of British sites were made and quite widely circulated. Although some other European countries were also mentioned, no other elicited this degree of interest. The mid-18th century saw the rise of Great Britain, and its increasing penetration overseas. Imported British objects arrived in Japan in large numbers, especially, highly-finished items like clocks and scientific instruments. Buyers and sellers were perfectly aware that these were British. Pocket watches became known as ‘London clocks’, and one of the shoguns was buried with his; the shogunal observatory used many London-made pieces of equipment with dials written in English.

Item Type: Authored Book

Filming the Gods. Religion and Indian Cinema

Filming the Gods examines the role and depiction of religion in Indian cinema, showing that the relationship between the modern and the traditional in contemporary India is not exotic, but part of everyday life. Concentrating mainly on the Hindi cinema of Mumbai, Bollywood, it also discusses India's other cinemas.

Rachel Dwyer's lively discussion encompasses the mythological genre which continues India's long tradition of retelling Hindu myths and legends, drawing on sources such as the national epics of the Mahabharata and the Ramayana; the devotional genre, which flourished at the height of the nationalist movement in the 1930s and 40s; and the films made in Bombay that depict India's Islamicate culture, including the historical, the courtesan film and the 'Muslim social' genre. Filming the Gods also examines the presence of the religious across other genres and how cinema represents religious communities and their beliefs and practices. It draws on interviews with film stars, directors and producers as well as popular fiction, fan magazines and the films themselves. As a result, Filming the Gods is a both a guide to the study of film in religious culture as well as a historical overview of Indian religious film.

Genetics, Mass Media and Identity

This is the first book to explore the effect of genetic research on the Lemba Judaising community of Southern Africa and the phenomenon of Israelite identity.
The science of genetics as relayed by the media is perceived by laymen as being irreproachably objective 'hard science': its disinterested 'scientific' findings appear immensely impressive and may therefore act as a powerful catalyst for change. In this case, an oral tradition cherished by many of the Lemba that they are of Jewish origin appears to be supported by recent DNA testing, which has deeply affected the narrative and religious identity of the group and the way the tribe is perceived in the Western world. 

International in appeal, this topical text brings together cutting-edge research on the social, cultural and ethical implications of genetics and the study of Judaising movements across the world. This book will be of interest to researchers and students of Jewish history, genetic anthropology, race and ethnicity studies, and religious and cultural studies.

Bio
Yulia Egorova is a Research Fellow at the School of Religious and Theological Studies at Cardiff University. She is working on a project on The Meanings of Genetics.

Tudor Parfitt is Professor of Modern Jewish Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies, Unversity of London. His areas of expertise include the history of the Jews in Africa and Asia; Judaizing movements and Modern Hebrew language and literature.Binding: Hardback
Publication Date: 26/01/2006
Pages: 176

History and the Culture of Nationalism in Algeria

Colonialism denied Algeria its own history; nationalism reinvented it. James McDougall charts the creation of that history through colonialism to independence, exploring the struggle to define Algeria’s past and determine the meaning of its nationhood. Through local histories, he analyses the relationship between history, Islamic culture and nationalism in Algeria. He confronts prevailing notions that nationalism emancipated Algerian history, and that Algeria’s past has somehow determined its present, violence breeding violence, tragedy repeating itself. Instead, he argues, nationalism was a new kind of domination, in which multiple memories and possible futures were effaced. But the histories hidden by nationalism remain below the surface, and can be recovered to create alternative visions for the future. This is an exceptional and engaging book, rich in analysis and documentation. It will be read by colonial historians and social theorists as well as by scholars of the Middle East and North Africa.

• First critical study of Algerian nationalism available in English • Valuable addition to the literature on colonialism, post-colonial culture and politics, nationalism and national identity, popular culture and the formation of nation-states, and twentieth-century Islam • Interdisciplinary research combining historical, sociological and anthropological analysis

Contents
Preface; The language of history; Prologue: Tunis, 1899; 1. The margins of a world in fragments; 2. The conquest conquered?; 3. The doctors of new religion; 4. Saint cults and ancestors; 5. Arabs and Berbers?; Epilogue: Algiers, 2001; The invention of authenticity; Bibliography.

Imperial Calligraphy of Premodern Japan. Scribal Conventions for Poems and Letters from the Palace

Imperial Calligraphy of Premodern Japan: Scribal Conventions for Poems and Letters from the Palace (by John T. Carpenter, with contributions by Kawashima Masao, Genjo Masayoshi, et al.). Kyoto: Art Research Center, Ritsumeikan University, 2006. 193 pp

Islam and the Abolition of Slavery

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 18 October 2006
'an impressive survey...and objective analysis.'

Product Description
Drawing on examples from the "abode of Islam", from the Philippines to Sengal and from the Caucasus to South Africa, the author ranges across the history of Islam, focusing on the late 18th century to the early 21st century.

Islam and the Moral Economy. The Challenge of Capitalism

How do modern Muslims adapt their traditions to engage with today's world? Charles Tripp's erudite and incisive book considers one of the most significant challenges faced by Muslims over the last sixty years: the challenge of capitalism. By reference to the works of noted Muslim scholars, the author shows how, faced by this challenge, these intellectuals devised a range of strategies which have enabled Muslims to remain true to their faith, whilst engaging effectively with a world not of their own making. The work is framed around the development of their ideas on Islamic socialism, economics and the rationale for Islamic banking. While some Muslims have resorted to confrontation or insularity to cope with the challenges of modernity, most have aspired to innovation and ingenuity in the search for compromise and interaction with global capitalism in the twenty-first century.

• Sophisticated treatment of the diverse Muslim views of capitalism • Written by a highly regarded political scientist and scholar of the Middle East • A book for policymakers, journalists, professionals, students, all those looking for a clearer and more in-depth study of Islam and its interaction with the West

Contents
Acknowledgements; Glossary; Introduction; 1. The 'social problem'; 2. Islamic social critics; 3. Islamic socialism; 4. Islamic economics and Islamic banks; 5. Repertoires of resistance: Islamic anti-capitalism; Conclusion; Bibliography; Index.

Reviews

'In this finely observed and trenchant study, Charles Tripp presents a unique examination of the assumptions behind Muslim views of economics and explores, with particular mastery, the logic behind contemporary criticisms of capitalism. He is persuasive that, amidst the ambivalent transformations of modern Muslim thought, economics emerges as a functional as well as moral endeavour, and meticulously documents the various ways in which Muslims have appropriated, or resisted, dominant views on society, economics, and politics. There could thus be no surer or more informed guide than this to the scholarly and public debates over the centrality of development, social need, and justice to the evolving 'common sense' of Muslim societies.' James Piscatori Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies and Wadham College, Oxford

 'Charles Tripp has written an admirable, deeply documented survey of Muslim thinkers responding over the past century or two not only to the challenge of capitalism but also more generally to that of Western imperialism and globalisation, terms often used synonymous.' Journal of Global History

Keepers of the Flame. Understanding Amnesty International

Winner of the Best Book in Human Rights Award given by the Human Rights Section of the American Political Science Association.

“If one organization is synonymous with keeping hope alive, even as a faint glimmer in the darkness of a prison, it is Amnesty International. Amnesty has been the light, and that light was truth—bearing witness to suffering hidden from the eyes of the world.”—from the Preface

The first in-depth look at working life inside a major human rights organization, Keepers of the Flame charts the history of Amnesty International and the development of its nerve center, the International Secretariat, over forty-five years. Through interviews with staff members, archival research, and unprecedented access to Amnesty International’s internal meetings, Stephen Hopgood provides an engrossing and enlightening account of day-to-day operations within the organization, larger decisions about the nature of its mission, and struggles over the implementation of that mission.

An enduring feature of Amnesty’s inner life, Hopgood finds, has been a recurrent struggle between the “keepers of the flame” who seek to preserve Amnesty’s accumulated store of moral authority and reformers who hope to change, modernize, and use that moral authority in ways that its protectors fear may erode the organization’s uniqueness. He also explores how this concept of moral authority affects the working lives of the servants of such an ideal and the ways in which it can undermine an institution’s political authority over time. Hopgood argues that human-rights activism is a social practice best understood as a secular religion where internal conflict between sacred and profane—the mission and the practicalities of everyday operations—are both unavoidable and necessary. Keepers of the Flame is vital reading for anyone interested in Amnesty International, its accomplishments, agonies, obligations, fears, opportunities, and challenges—or, more broadly, in how humanitarian organizations accommodate the moral passions that energize volunteers and professional staff alike.

Reviews
"Hopgood spent a year in Amnesty's International London headquarters, the International Secretariat, interviewing staff and researching the inevitable bureaucratic and philosophical challenges facing the well-known humanitarian organization. This is an interesting, ambitious, and lucid critique of the International Secretariat. . . . Recommended."—Choice, December 2006
"This is a remarkable book. A fascinating and sensitive account of Amnesty International’s organizational development, it is also a penetrating reflection on the practice and practices of moral and political authority, of the 'commodification of moral concern under globalization,' and of the possibility of universal values. How can AI govern itself, and on what basis does it make choices about its campaigns? How distant is the initial focus on Prisoners of Conscience from the statement that Guantanamo would be the gulag of our time? Throughout the narrative, Stephen Hopgood never lets the reader off the hook, presenting to us the strongest possible arguments for all sides of impossible choices—so that by the book’s end we are with him in trying to think through our own morality in the face of the quandaries he has opened up for us."—Margaret Keck, The Johns Hopkins University

"Stephen Hopgood emerged from a year doing field research at the International Secretariat of Amnesty International with an incredibly insightful, complex, and fascinating interpretation of the organization. There are points of pure brilliance and sparkling insights, especially when he discusses how the tensions between the sacred and profane, moral and political authority, play themselves out in a changing environment."—Michael Barnett, Harold Stassen Chair at the Hubert H. Humphrey School and Adjunct Professor of Political Science at the University of Minnesota

About the Author
Stephen Hopgood is a Lecturer in International Politics, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. He is the author of American Foreign Environmental Policy and the Power of the State.

Law, Infrastructure, and Human Rights

From attacks on oil infrastructure in post-war reconstruction Iraq to the laying of gas pipelines in the Amazon Rainforest through indigenous community villages, infrastructure projects are sites of intense human rights struggles. Many state and non-state actors have proposed solutions for handling human rights problems in the context of specific infrastructure projects. Solutions have been admired for being lofty in principle; however, they have been judged wanting in practice. This book analyzes how human rights are handled in varied contexts and then assesses the feasibility of a common international institutional solution under the auspices of the United Nations to the alleged problem of the inability to translate human rights into practice.

• Looks at how human rights actually function in practice • Sustained examination of the workings of legal globalization • Topical and detailed case studies

Lela in Bali. History through Ceremony in Cameroon

"Lela in Bali" tells the story of an annual festival of eighteenth-century kingdoms in Northern Cameroon that was swept up in the migrations of marauding slave-raiders during the nineteenth century and carried south towards the coast. Lela was transformed first into a mounted durbar, like those of the Muslim states, before evolving in tandem with the German colonial project into a festival of arms. Reinterpreted by missionaries and post-colonial Cameroonians, Lela has become one of the most important of Cameroonian festivals and a crucial marker of identity within the state. Richard Fardon's recuperation of two hundred years of history is an essential contribution not only to Cameroonian studies but also to the broader understanding of the evolution of African cultures.

About the Author
Richard Fardon, Professor of West African Anthropology in the University of London, is the author of four monographs on West Africa, as well as numerous works of anthropological theory. Since 1988 he has taught at the School of Oriental and African Studies, where he chaired the University of London's Centre of African Studies for eight years. In addition to its obvious archival sources, this book draws upon ethnographic research he began in Nigeria (from 1976) and in Cameroon (from 1984). Richard Fardon has been editor of the journal AFRICA since 2001.

Men and Masculinities in South India

Men and Masculinities aims to increase understanding of gender within South Asia and especially South Asian masculinities, a topic whose analysis and ethnographising in the region has had a very sketchy beginning and is ripe for more thorough examination. This is, in short, an almost empty field dominated so far by short articles and collections and the time is ripe for the first full-length ethnographic study of masculinities. This ground-breaking monograph covers a range of areas including work, cross-sex relationships, sexuality, men's friendships, religious practices and leisure.

This book is especially concerned with issues arising from debates which broadly argue over the differences and merits of approaches to gender, more broadly, identity - rooted in essentialism versus performativity. Questions about the tensions between essentialist and performative theories of self and gender are therefore highlighted throughout the book and explored in relation to various bodies of theory and to South Asian understandings of personhood. The authors present a range of original and interesting ethnography and always explore the tensions between different types of theoretical stance and competing local discourses on gender and how it is made.

This book will appeal both as a resource for researchers and for teaching in the areas of History and South Asian Studies.

About Authors, Editors, and Contributors
Filippo Osella is a senior Lecturer in Anthropology at the University of Sussex. His doctoral research was conducted in rural Kerala, South India, and examined issues of stratification, identity and social mobility among an ex-'untouchable' community.

Caroline Osella lectures in Medical Anthropology at SOAS. Her research interests include asian migrants in the Persian Gulf, sexuality, consumption and the fashion, clothing and food of South Asia

Table of Contents
Preface / Acknowledgements
Chapter 1: Introduction: Masculinities in South Asia
Chapter 2: How to make a man?
Chapter 3: Working men's lives
Chapter 4: Men of substance: earning and spending.
Chapter 5: Producing heterosexuality: flirting and romancing
Chapter 6: Negotiating heterosexuality: pornography, masturbation and "secret love"
Chapter 7: Homosocial spaces: the Sabarimala pilgrimage
Chapter 8: Masculine styles: young men and movie heroes
Chapter 9: Conclusions:
Glossary
Bilbliogrpahy

Related Titles
Religion, Law and Power
Colonial Childhoods
Subaltern Sports

Subject Areas
History
Politics & IR

Series
Anthem Modern South Asian History
Anthem South Asian Studies

Miraculous Response. Doing Popular Religion in Contemporary China

"More than an ethnographic case study on the revival of a local temple cult in Northern China, "Miraculous Response" is an intellectually stimulating engagement with the anthropological approach to Chinese local society, politics, and religion... Clearly written, with an engaging personal touch, "Miraculous Response" is an important contribution at several levels: it provides a detailed local case study of contemporary state-religion relations, describes the complex dynamics at work in rural elite politics in the post-Mao era, and provides a feast of new concepts and insights of broader relevance to anthropological history."--"China Review International"

Product Description
Based on a total of 18 months of fieldwork in Shaanbei (northern Shaanxi province), this is the first book-length ethnographic case study of the revival of a popular religious temple in contemporary rural China. The book reveals that "doing popular religion" is much more complex than praying to gods and burning incense. It examines the organizational and cultural logics that inform the staging of popular religious activities such as temple festivals. It also shows the politics behind the religious revival: the village-level local activists who seize upon temples and temple associations as a valuable political, economic, and symbolic resource, and the different local state agents who interact with temple associations and temple bosses. The study sheds unique light on shifting state-society relationships in the reform era, and is of interest to scholars and students in Asian Studies, the social sciences, and religious and ritual studies.

Muslim Society and the Western Indian Ocean. The Seafarers of Kachchh

Based on substantial ethnographic, textual and archival research, this interesting book offers a new perspective on the anthropology of the western Indian Ocean. Writing in a clear, engaging style, and covering an impressive range of theoretical terrain, Simpson critically explores the relationships between people and things that give life to the region and drive shifting patterns of social change among Muslims in the highly-politicized state of Gujarat.

Scholars of the Indian Ocean, Muslim society in South Asia, and Hindu nationalism, as well as anthropologists in general, will find this a fascinating read and a major contribution to research in this area.

Based on extensive research, this book explores politics and religion among coastal Muslims of Gujarat. The author's ethnographic analysis of labour, migration and patterns of Islam in the region suggests a new perspective on the anthropology of the western Indian Ocean.

From the Back Cover

Muslim Society and the Western Indian Ocean explores the social processes through which practical reasoning is translated into meaningful collective action. Focusing on craft learning and religious practice, the study examines the ways in which the two kinds of knowledge are simultaneously transmitted between Muslim masters and apprentices in the traditional shipyards of Kachchh, Gujarat. The chapters of the book are loosely structured around the career trajectory of the typical apprentice, from his early years of labouring in shipyards to his later life as an accomplished sailor, experienced in the ways of the Indian Ocean. Apprenticeship is treated as a process that puts into stark relief broader social processes and concerns.

Given the rise of Hindu nationalist politics in Gujarat, and the increasing importance of ‘religion’ as a forum of political identity, Edward Simpson explains how the masters of the shipyards have incorporated their rivalries with other Muslims and with Hindu nationalists into what the apprentices are taught. He demonstrates how migration and trade within the Indian Ocean can produce divisive and overlapping parochial hierarchies of corporeal, material and symbolic kinds. Based on substantial ethnographic research and further textual and archival research, this book offers a unique perspective on the anthropology of western India and the western Indian Ocean region.

Not Breaking the Rules. Not Playing the Game. International Assistance to Countries at War

Review
'excellent A... truly original, unusually thoughtful, and intellectually courageous A... makes a significant contribution in trying to understand the gap between the principles and practice of humanitarian assistance in terms of how psychological or psychosocial factors interact with politics and political economy.' -Christopher Cramer, SOAS

Product Description
Why do humanitarian principles, human rights and other 'rules' espoused by aid organisations apparently fail to influence the reality of assistance delivery, while reality does not influence these objectives? Zoe Marriage's book investigates the international assistance given to countries at war. Presenting evidence from Sierra Leone, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Southern Sudan, she finds that appealing to a morality based on rights and principles allows aid staff to justify their operational weaknesses by blaming or discrediting others. The terminology used labels political and military activity as illegitimate, pre-empting dialogue, limiting aid organisations' perception of the contexts in which they work, and ultimately questioning the sincerity behind the assistance. The book concludes that people in countries at war are not 'breaking the rules' of assistance - as assistance is not meaningfully 'ruled' by rights or principles - they are more fundamentally 'not playing the game'.

Of War and Law

The provocative new book, Of War and Law ... [is] a cautionary tale of what can go wrong when military leaders and outside observers use legal language as a substitute for independent ethical thinking. According to Kennedy, the military's increasing reliance on the law creates the illusion that there is an objective way to balance civilian lives and military goals. It relieves the decider of responsibility for judgment... Kennedy traces the evolving relationship of law and warfare as the boundaries between war and peace have steadily grown less distinct. -- Bill Ibelle Harvard Law Bulletin This powerful work by a Harvard legal scholar probes the modern transformation of warfare and the growing 'merger' of the 'professional vernaculars' of military force and law... This is an original contribution to the debate about the perils of liberal democracy in an age of limited but unending war. -- G. John Ikenberry Foreign Affairs In this provocative and timely book, Professor David Kennedy probes the relationship between war and law, incisively unraveling two concepts that have become increasingly intertwined since the Second World War ... offering lessons for politicians and citizens alike. Harvard Law Review Kennedy's [book] is an innovative and provocative assessment of the contemporary uses of the laws of war. [It] makes an utterly invaluable contribution to our understanding of the role of legal ideas in regulating, constituting and debating the use of force. -- Alex J. Bellamy International Affairs Kennedy is always an interesting thinker and writer and the themes he deals within this book are fascinating... Kennedy's points should be studied and his effort to disentangle the web of law, war and politics should be wholeheartedly supported and furthered. In this sense, Of War and Law can be viewed as an interesting contribution to a useful and intriguing debate. -- Ioannis Kalpouzos Journal of Conflict & Security Law

Review
The provocative new book, Of War and Law . . . [is] a cautionary tale of what can go wrong when military leaders and outside observers use legal language as a substitute for independent ethical thinking. According to Kennedy, the military's increasing reliance on the law creates the illusion that there is an objective way to balance civilian lives and military goals. It relieves the decider of responsibility for judgment. . . . Kennedy traces the evolving relationship of law and warfare as the boundaries between war and peace have steadily grown less distinct.
(Bill Ibelle Harvard Law Bulletin )

This powerful work by a Harvard legal scholar probes the modern transformation of warfare and the growing 'merger' of the 'professional vernaculars' of military force and law. . . . This is an original contribution to the debate about the perils of liberal democracy in an age of limited but unending war.
(G. John Ikenberry Foreign Affairs )

In this provocative and timely book, Professor David Kennedy probes the relationship between war and law, incisively unraveling two concepts that have become increasingly intertwined since the Second World War ... offering lessons for politicians and citizens alike.
(Harvard Law Review )

Kennedy's [book] is an innovative and provocative assessment of the contemporary uses of the laws of war. [It] makes an utterly invaluable contribution to our understanding of the role of legal ideas in regulating, constituting and debating the use of force.
(Alex J. Bellamy International Affairs )

Kennedy is always an interesting thinker and writer and the themes he deals within this book are fascinating. . . . Kennedy's points should be studied and his effort to disentangle the web of law, war and politics should be wholeheartedly supported and furthered. In this sense, Of War and Law can be viewed as an interesting contribution to a useful and intriguing debate.
(Ioannis Kalpouzos Journal of Conflict & Security Law )

Political Life in Cairo's New Quarters. Encountering the Everyday State

Explores everyday politics in Cairo’s new urban neighborhoods.

Since the 1970s, Cairo has experienced tremendous growth and change. Nearly three million people now live in new urban communities characterized by unregulated housing, informal economic activity, and the presence of Islamist groups.

Salwa Ismail examines the effects of these changes in Political Life in Cairo’s New Quarters. Working in Cairo, Ismail interviewed new quarter residents, observed daily life in markets and alleyways, met with local leaders, and talked with young men about their encounters with the government. Rich in ethnographic detail, this work reveals the city’s new urban quarters as sites not only of opposition and relative autonomy, but also under governmental surveillance and discipline. In doing so, it situates the everyday within the context of wider developments in Cairo: the decline of welfarism, the shift to neoliberal government, and the rise of the security state.

Original and timely, Political Life in Cairo’s New Quarters highlights the interplay of structural changes, state power, and daily governance, and presents a fascinating analysis of urban transformation and power struggles—as international forces meet local communities in a major city of the global south.

“Studies such as Ismail’s are thoroughly worthwhile.” —Insight Turkey

Salwa Ismail is a senior lecturer of politics at the University of Exeter.

264 pages | 3 halftones, 2 tables, 4 maps | 5 7⁄8 x 9 | 2006

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgments
A Note on Transliteration
Glossary of Arabic Terms
Introduction: Space, Politics and the Everyday State in Cairo

1. Reconfiguring Cairo: New Popular Quarters between the Local and the Global
2. Internal Governance: Forms and Practices of Government in Everyday Life
3. Neo-Liberalism and the Relocation of Welfare
4. Youth, Gender and the State in Cairo: Marginalized Masculinities and Contested Spaces
5. The Politics of Security: An Economy of Violence and Control

Postscript: Collective Action and the Everyday State
Appendix A: The “Field” and “Home”: The Politics of Location
Appendix B: Thematic Outline of Interview Frames
Notes
Bibliography
Index

Powerful Learning. Buddhist Literati and the Throne in Burma's Last Dynasty, 1752-1885

Powerful Learning is the first intellectual history of one of the great Buddhist empires of Southeast Asia, Konbaung Burma, before the British conquest. The book challenges the notion of the court and the monastic order as static institutions by examining how competition within and between them prompted major rethinking about the intellectual foundations of indigenous society and culture.

The catalyst for this reformation of indigenous thought was the rise of a small clique of Buddhist monks and lay people from the frontier to commanding positions in the state and monastic order over the course of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. This clique had a major influence on the creation of state myths, the ways in which the throne ruled and presented itself, and, ultimately, the relationship between the throne and the state.

The new state and monastic orthodoxy, however, was challenged by other Burmese literati, who, over the course of the nineteenth century, sought in Western science, technology, and political theory other ways in which to shape Burmese perspectives on state and society. In the process, the Burmese underwent a difficult transition from premodern to modern intellectual thought, one that helped usher in British rule.

Michael W. Charney is Senior Lecturer of South East Asian History at the School of Oriental and African Studies.

Published by the U of M Center for South East Asian Studies. Distributed worldwide by the University of Michigan Press.

Preserving Korean Music: Intangible Cultural Properties as Icons of Identity

As Korea has developed and modernized, music has come to play a central role as a symbol of national identity. Nationalism has been stage managed by scholars, journalists and, from the beginning of the 1960s, by the state, as music genres have been documented, preserved and promoted as 'Intangible Cultural Properties'. Practitioners have been appointed 'holders' or, in everyday speech, 'Human Cultural Properties', to maintain, perform and teach exemplary versions of tradition. Over the last few years, the Korean preservation system has become a model for UNESCO's 'Living Human Treasures' and 'Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Mankind'. In this volume, Keith Howard provides the first comprehensive analysis in English of the system. He documents court music and dance, Confucian and shaman ritual music, folksongs, the professional folk-art genres of p'ansori ('epic storytelling through song') and sanjo ('scattered melodies'), and more, as well as instrument making, food preparation and liquor distilling - a good performance, after all, requires wine to flow. The extensive documentation reflects considerable fieldwork, discussion and questioning carried out over a 25-year period, and blends the voices of scholars, government officials, performers, craftsmen and the general public. By interrogating both contemporary and historical data, Howard negotiates the debates and critiques that surround this remarkable attempt to protect local and national music and other performance arts and crafts. An accompanying CD illustrates many of the music genres considered, featuring many master musicians including some who have now died. The preservation of music and other performance arts and crafts is part of the contemporary zeitgeist, yet occupies contested territory. This is particularly true when the concept of 'tradition' is invoked. Within Korea, the recognition of the fragility of indigenous music inherited from earlier times is balanced by an awareness of the need to maintain identity as lifestyles change in response to modernization and globalization. Howard argues that Korea, and the world, is a better place when the richness of indigenous music is preserved and promoted.

About the Author
Keith Howard is Senior Lecturer in Music at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, UK

The Clash of Barbarisms. The Making of the New World Disorder

The London bombings of 7 July 2005 revived the debates that raged after September 11 2001. How were they related to the foreign policies of the UK and the US? Were they symptoms of a cultural clash between deep-seated values, or signs of social crisis? The title refers to the famous thesis on the "Clash of Civilizations". Achcar develops a counter-thesis, namely that the clashes we are witnessing do not oppose civilizations, but their dark sides. The war of aggression and occupation in Iraq led to blatant manifestations of Western barbarism; most strikingly epitomized by the torture at Abu-Ghraib, and inevitably nurtured fanatical Islamic and other counter-barbarisms. Each civilization produces a specific form of barbarism which tends to take over in periods of crisis. Accordingly, the Bush administration doesn't embody the values of 'Western civilization' nor does Islamic fanaticism of the al-Qa'ida type represent 'Islamic civilization'. The clash between them is truly a 'clash of barbarisms'.

REVIEWS:
'This inquiry into the probable shape of things to come is sober, uncompromising, deeply-informed, and full of provocative insights and judicious analyses.' Noam Chomsky 'Overturns the traditional perspective, and opens up avenues of understanding.' Howard Zinn 'The most forceful, most rigorous text that there is to read on this war.' Le Monde Diplomatique 'Provides rapid rehearsals of Middle Eastern history over the past half-century, erects an interesting contrast between Hobbesian and Lockean modes of US foreign policy, and vigorously denounces US actions at Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib and Fallujah.' The Guardian 'Reminds us that the barbarisms of our time are not irrational accidents but the creations primarily of US and British imperialism.' Socialist Review

AUTHOR BIO:
'An informed critique of contemporary Islam ... He knows his subject better than most. ... Not only well written, [but also] easy and comprehensible.' Democratiya

The International Politics of the Persian Gulf. A Cultural Genealogy

Provocatively written, persuasively researched and conclusively argued, Adib-Moghaddam presents the first comprehensive analysis of international relations in the Gulf from a mutidisciplinary perspective.

From the Back Cover

Adib-Moghaddam examines the causes and consequences of conflict in one of the most important regions of the world. Bridging the gap between critical theories of international relations and the empirical study of the Gulf area, this book expands on the many ideologies, cultural inventions and ideational constructs that have affected relations in the past three decades.

Key issues explored include:

the rise and fall of Arab and Persian nationalism
the international repercussions of the Islamic revolution in Iran
the events surrounding the three Gulf Wars
the 'mindset' of terrorist networks such as al-Qaeda
why US neo-conservatism is threatening regional order.
Provocatively written, persuasively researched and conclusively argued, The International Politics of the Persian Gulf presents the first comprehensive analysis of international relations in the Gulf from an explicitly multidisciplinary perspective.

The Role of Islam in the Legal System of Pakistan

The role of the judiciary in the Islamisation of Pakistan’s legal system has not received much attention by legal scholars. This book aims to fill this gap. Starting in 1947, it examines the way Pakistani judges have dealt with the controversial issue of Islam in the past 50 years. The book’s focus on reported case-law offers a new perspective on the Islamisation of Pakistan’s legal system in which Islam emerges as more than just a challenge to Western conceptions of human rights.
The first part examines the emergence of Islamic arguments in the period up to 1977 when General Zia ul Haq embarked on an ambitious project to turn Pakistan into a truly Islamic state. In these early years of Pakistan judges increasingly turned to Islam as a source of law to preserve judicial independence and to protect the country’s faltering democracy. The second part examines in detail the features and effects of Zia’s Islamisation programme especially the workings of the newly created Federal Shariat Court. The third part reviews the legal developments in the post-Zia period when the judicial gates of Islamization which were first wide opened, have gradually been closed by a series of landmark decisions.
What emerges from this analysis is an image of Islam as a source of law which is rich, complex and varied. Depending on the judge and the court, Islam was applied to varying effects ranging from liberal to extremely conservative attitudes. However, they share a common feature, namely that the role of Islam in the legal system of Pakistan is to a large degree determined by its higher judiciary.

The Triumph of Military Zionism. Nationalism and the Origins of the Israeli Right

'At the heart of Colin Shindler's book is how and why Israel transformed itself from a socialist state, based on pioneering egalitarianism, to one of the right. But it is Shindler's critical analysis of the relationship between Jabotinsky and Begin that makes this study so compelling.' - The Jewish Chronicle 'Shindler's thorough, provoking book.' - The Jewish Chronicle

Product Description
A radical reappraisal of two key figures in the history of the Israeli Right, this is the first book to explore in depth the development of military Zionism, and gives important insights into the political status of Israel today. Why did Israel shift from a state based on pioneering egalitarianism and 'making the desert bloom' to one which is chiefly known for its military prowess? "The Triumph of Military Zionism" examines Israel's shift to the right at the hands of Menachem Begin, the supposed 'disciple' of Vladimir Jabotinsky. Shindler's book uses original research to challenge the conventional wisdom that Begin was the natural heir to Jabotinsky. He demonstrates through hitherto unpublished sources how Israel drifted away from Jabotinsky's ideas towards a maximalist Zionism because Begin's very selective interpretation of his mentor's words did not reflect Jabotinsky's intentions. This invaluable addition to the study of Israel's political history will appeal to both Middle Eastern and military historians.

Jews, Muslims and Mass Media,Mediating the 'Other'

This text looks at the ways in which Jews, Muslims and the conflict between them has been covered in the modern media. Both Jews and Muslims generally receive a 'bad press'. This book will try to reveal why. The media have clearly played a pro-active role in the Middle East conflict, the coverage of which is obscured by the contrasting images of Jew and Muslim in western thought.