This volume presents the proceedings of the 26th Conference of the
Union Europeenne des Arabisants et Islamisants that took place in
Basel, Switzerland, in September 2012. The theme of the volume, "Arabic
and Islamic Studies in Europe and Beyond", indicates that research in
Arabic and Islamic Studies is not only carried out in Europe but also in
many non-European regions of the world. Furthermore, it expresses that
Muslim history no longer represents an exclusive field of research
remote from public attention.
Nevertheless, the focus of Arabic
and Islamic Studies is still highly specialized, calling on researchers
to devote their academic lives to learning and practicing the major (and
minor) languages of Islamic history and culture. In this regard, Arabic
and Islamic Studies need to find an equilibrium, again and again,
between disciplinary immersion and intellectual openness. The present
collection contributes to these endeavors and struggles while reflecting
the highly variegated nature of research in Islamic and Arabic Studies.