English 102: Middle Eastern Culture

• What is the Middle East?
• Resources for Finding Articles (Beginning your Research)
• Library Catalog (Books and other library materials)
• Reference Resources
• Electronic Journals
• Selected Web Sites
• Style Guides

What is the Middle East?

• The Middle East is a very large region, including parts of north Africa, southwest Asia, and southeast Europe. Countries in this region are: Bahrain, Cyprus, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
• Map of the Middle East.
  • From World Fact Book 2004, which also provides profiles of each country.
• Background Notes (U.S. Department of State)
  • Country profiles and articles, such as: Middle East Partnership Initiative. Middle East Peace.
• CultureGrams
  • Cultural information for 175+ countries of the world, including history, customs, lifestyle, and government
• Middle-Eastern Cultures
  • Basic overviews from the EMuseum, University of Minnesota, Mankato.
• The Arab Population: 2000. U.S. Census Bureau Brief.
  • Census 2000 measured a U.S. population of 281.4 million, including 1.2 million who reported an Arab ancestry. Arabs were 1 of 33 ancestry groups with populations over 1 million. 12 page report.
• Strength in Numbers: The Relative Concentration of Iranian Americans Across the United States.
  • Iran Census Report: National Iranian American Council. September 2003. Statistics by Congressional District.
• Iranian Cultural & Information Center. Stanford University.
• Iranian Cultural Heritage Organization. English site currently having database problems, but some links are working.
• Iranvision.com: Iran Culture and Information Center. Current news and articles.
• Iranian Cultural Organization. University of California at San Francisco

Resources for Finding Articles

• Academic Search Premier (EBSCOhost)
  • Indexes 7,800+ scholarly journals, with full text for 4,000 titles. Covers social sciences, humanities, education, computer science and engineering, general science, medicine, ethnic studies, and more. 1965- present for selected titles.
    
    Search Example:
    islam and culture and middle east and western
    One of the articles found by this search is: Islamic Fundamentalism and Women's Economic Role: The Case of Iran. Click the title to see a summary of the article, and other information.
  • The asterisk (*) is a "wildcard" character that allows retrieval of any ending on a word. For example:
    islam* and politic* and iran
    Parentheses are useful when "this term" or "that term" is acceptable in search results:
    women and (islam or middle east)
• CQ Researcher (from November 1991).
  • In-depth background reports from Congressional Quarterly. Browse the topic lists for reports on Islam, Muslims, countries, or search by keyword. Not to be overlooked!
• Ethnic NewsWatch
  • Articles, editorials, reviews, etc. from newspapers, magazines, and journals of the ethnic, minority, and native press. Search in English or Spanish. 1990 - present.
• SAGE Full Text Collections
  • Search one or any combination of peer-reviewed journal collections in communication studies, criminology, education, politics and international relations, psychology, and sociology. Full-text access to 75 journals. Coverage varies, with some titles going back to 1982.
• Sociological Abstracts
  • Indexes the international literature of sociology and related behavioral sciences from over 1,700 journals, books and book chapters, dissertations and proceedings. Since 2001, many records include references cited.
    
    Sample Search:
    (islam or middle east) and stereotypes
    blasphemy and literature
• Anthropology Plus
  • Combines Anthropological Literature (Harvard University) and Anthropological Index (Royal Anthropological Institute). Indexes journal articles, reports, commentaries, edited works, and obituaries in the fields of social, cultural, physical, biological, and linguistic anthropology, ethnology, archaeology, folklore, and material culture. Late 19th century- to present
• PsycINFO
  • The online version of Psychological Abstracts, indexing journal articles, book chapters, and dissertations from 1887 to the present.
• Historical Abstracts
  • Index of journal articles, dissertations and book reviews on all aspects of world history from 1450 to the present, excluding the United States and Canada.
• America History & Life
  • Index of journal articles, dissertations and book reviews on all aspects of North American history (United States and Canada). 1964- present.
• Contemporary Women's Issues
  • Interdisciplinary and international index of journal articles, newsletters, and research reports relevant to women and girls. 1992 - present.
• GenderWatch
  • Full text collection of articles covering women's and gender topics.
• Alt-Press Watch
  • Indexes newspapers, magazines and journals of the alternative and independent press. Covers a broad range of critical issues confronting contemporary society. 1994- present.
• Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe
  • Index and full text to news, business, legal, medical, and reference materials and links to congressional and statistical information.
• MLA International Bibliography (Modern Language Association)
  • Over one million citations to books, scholarly journals, essay collections, working papers, proceedings, dissertations, and bibliographies from languages, literatures, linguistics and folklore. 1926 - present.

The Library Catalog

The Library catalog lists books, journals (not articles, just journal titles), government publications, and media that the library owns or to which UNR users have access. The default "subject" search looks for words in the title, author, subject headings, and contents notes (usually chapter or section headings). The "subject" search is an excellent way to begin exploring the Library catalog. When you find a good book on your topic, look for the Subjects (Library of Congress subject headings) in the full catalog record. Click an underlined subject to do a new search. Library of Congress subject headings are a useful way to search because every book is assigned one or more subject headings that relate to the major focus of the work.

Examples of Library of Congress Subject Heading searches are shown below. Note that each country or ethnic group can be a subject heading, and predictable subheadings can be used to find information about ethnic groups in the United States:

arabs arabs united states arab americans arab americans in literature arab american women iranians iranian americans iranian american women iranians islam islam united states

israel israelis lebanese muslims muslim women muslims united states palestinian palestinian americans shiites syrian americans women in islam

Reference Resources

• What is a scholarly or peer-reviewed journal?
• Britannica Online
  • Online version of the complete encyclopedia with more than 75,000 entries, links to related Internet sites, and Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.
• Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged
  • A dictionary of the current vocabulary of standard written and spoken English language, from 1755-1996, containing 450,000 vocabulary entries.

Reference Books in Getchell Library

An Historical atlas of Islam = Atlas historique de l'Islam / edited by Hugh Kennedy; [cartography, Marc Bel, Peter van der Donck] Leiden ; Boston : Brill, 2002. G1786.S1 H57 2002.

New historical atlas of religion in America / Edwin Scott Gaustad, Philip L. Barlow ; with the special assistance of Richard W. Dishno. New York : Oxford University Press, 2001. G1201.E4 N4 2001.

Adamec, Ludwig W. Historical dictionary of Islam / Ludwig W. Adamec. Lanham, Md. : Scarecrow Press, 2001. BP50 .A33 2001.

Concise encyclopedia of Islam / edited on behalf of the Royal Netherlands Academy [by] H.A.R. Gibb and J.H. Kramers. Boston : Brill, 2001. BP40 .C66 2001.

Glassé, Cyril. The new encyclopedia of Islam / Cyril Glassé ; introduction by Huston Smith. Walnut Creek, CA : AltaMira Press, c2001. BP40 .G42 2001.

The Middle East / Congressional Quarterly, inc. Washington, D.C. : CQ Press, c2000. DS63.1 .M484 2000.

The Oxford encyclopedia of the modern Islamic world / John L. Esposito, editor in chief ; editors, Shahrough Akhavi ... [et al.] ; senior consultant, Albert Hourani ; consultants, Dale F. Eickelman ... [et al.] ; advisers, Feroz Ahmad ... [et al.] New York : Oxford University Press, 1995. DS35.53 .O95 1995.

The Encyclopaedia of Islam. Leiden, Brill, 1960-[i.e. 1954]- DS37 .E523.
 

Selected Web Sites

• Google | Basic Search Tips | Advanced Search Tips
  • Google can be used to find definitions of unfamiliar words. It is very important to take note of the source of the definitions, of course. For example, in the Google search box type define: fatwas to find several definitions and web sites with examples.
    
    To do a more precise Google search, try these techniques:
    • Enclose a phrase in quotation marks: "illegal literature"
    • You may combine terms with OR (caps only!): islam OR iran OR iraq
    • Complex searches are possible: "illegal literature" readers (islam OR iran OR iraq)
    • Use a plus sign to force search for a common word: "Godfather +II"
    • Use a minus sign to exclude a word from a search: Vikings -Minnesota
• Google's Directory of Regional Newspapers

Women in Islam and the Middle East

• Women in Islam
  • Part of a larger site: The Islam Website: Islam, Islamic Studies, Arabic, Religion. Prof. Alan Godlas, University of Georgia.
• Islam for Today: Women in Islam
  • A site designed for Westerners interested in Islam. Links to many related web sites.
• Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan
  • An anti-fundamentalist site.
• Islam and Women's History
  • Reviewed sites from About.com
• Women, Human Rights, and Islam. Peach Watch Online.
  • Peace Watch (ISSN 1080-9864) is published six times a year by the United States Institute of Peace, an independent, nonpartisan federal institution created by Congress to promote the prevention, management, and peaceful resolution of international conflicts.
• Maryams.net
  • A comprehensive site on women and Islam.
• Muslim Women's Organizations
  • Descriptions of and links to 13 Muslim Women's organizations. Part of Maryams.net.

Arab-Americans

• American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee.
  • "ADC, which is non-sectarian, non-partisan is the largest Arab-American grassroots organization in the United States. It was founded in 1980 by former Senator James Abourezk and has chapters nationwide."
• Arab American Institute.
  • "The Arab American Institute was organized in 1985 to represent Arab American interests in government and politics. AAI provides leadership training and strategies in electoral politics and policy issues that concern Arab Americans.
    
    Useful sections:
    • About Arab Americans. Links to articles, statistics, reports, and other information.
    • Educational Packet. Teaching and learning resources.
    • Bibliography of Selected References on Arab Americans.
    • Select Bibliography on Arab Americans.
• Caught in the Crossfire
  • PBS Special focuses on the lives of three Arab Americans in New York City after September 11.
• Children of Al-Mahjar: Arab American Literature Spans a Century
  • Overview of Arab-American writers from the early nineteenth century to the present.
• The Detroit Mosque Study: Muslim Views on Policy and Religion
  • By the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU).
• Iraqi Refugees and Kurdish Refugees
  • Baylor University. Refugee history, culture, and health concerns.
• Muslim Life in America
  • Maintained by the US Department of State, this web site " is a brief introduction to a complex subject, an attempt to explore in words and images the extraordinary range and richness of the way American Muslims live."
• One Hundred Questions and Answers About Arab Americans: A Journalist's Guide
  • Detroit Free Press. A guide for more accurate journalistic portrayals of Arab Americans.
• Project Maps: Muslims in American Public Square
  • Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding (CMCU), Georgetown University, Washington, DC., founded in 1993. Project MAPS provides information on Islam and Muslims' participation in the civic life of American society.
• The US Patriot Act: Impact on the Arab and Muslim American Community
  • Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU). Assesses the impact of the Patriot Act on civil liberties, immigration, banking services, employment, charitable giving, privacy and detention.

Cultural Differences

• Global Connections: Stereotypes | PBS
  • Addresses the question, "What are some typical misperceptions and stereotypes Westerners hold about Islam and the Middle East, and vice versa?"
• Bibliography of Anti-Arab Discrimination, Stereotyping, and Media Bias
  • Compiled by the Education Department of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee.

Political Power in Iran

• Governing Iran. PBS. One of many Online NewsHour background reports on the Middle East by Jim Lehrer.
• Iran: The Struggle for Change. BBC
• In Depth: IRAN Who Holds the Power? BBC
• Political Briefings: Iran - Political Structure. The Economist.
• In Iran, the Staying Power of the Press. Washington Post, July 3, 2004
• Iran's Revolution at 25: Out of Gas. Christian Science Monitor, February 11, 2004
• Iran Chamber Society: The Women's Movement in Iran: Women at the Crossroads of Secularization and Islamization.
  • By Homa Hoodfar, Winter 1999.

Illegal Literature

• Library catalog search examples:
  • LC Subject headings
    underground literature
    blasphemy in literature
    intellectuals iran
    oppression psychology
    protest literature
    
    Subject searches:
    holocaust and literature
    oppression and (press or newspapers or literature)
    dissiden* and politic*
    (intelligentsia or intellectuals) and literature
    
• A Teacher's Guide to the Holocaust: Accounts of Resistance
• Human Rights Watch: Iran
• Stifling Dissent: The Human Rights Consequences of Inter-Factional Struggle in Iran
• PsycINFO is a good database for psychological aspects of this topic, but you'll have to dig. Start with a search for literature and holocaust  or mass media and social movements to get into a list of relevant articles.
• Sociological Abstracts is a good database for sociological aspects of this topic. Again, you'll have to try several searches.

Style Guides

• Copies of the MLA and APA Style Manuals are available at the Reference Desk in Getchell Library.
• Citation Machine
  • The Citation Machine helps you create proper references for books, articles, or other types of resources in MLA or APA format. Just pick the type of resource you need to cite, fill out a simple form, and click "Make Citations"
• Style Guides
  • See the section on MLA (Modern Language Association) style for help on "citing" your references in a bibliography or list of references.
• Modern Language Association (MLA) Citation Guide
  • Clear, concise guide with examples for printed resources. Ohio State University.