Poetry around the World

Poetry around the World

Here is a list of sites that concentrate on the poetry of a particular country, region, etc. These sites are often indices to other internet resources. Other geographically specific sites, such as grant-making or cultural organizations are listed here as well. These sites do not generally present the work of one or a handful of poets, instead, they attempt to represent a cultural milieu.
This is an English-language website based in the United States, so my selections may be skewed . I have concentrated on, but not limited myself to, English-langauge web sites. Necessarily, this format produces a somewhat limited view of World literature. On the other hand, there is a kind of absurdity in having listings for the U.S. and England on this page, as most of the other links on this site are, by tacit assumption, links to American and British websites. For this reason, I have limited the American listings to ones that concentrate on a particular region of the United States; for the listings under England, I have confined myself to sites with a particularly strong sense of their own geography.
Many of these sites are also listed under other categories as appropriate.

U.S. Regions

Appalachia

Appalachian Writers Association, information on conferences, contests and information about the organization.
Emory & Henry College Literary Festival, celebrating writers with roots in the Appalachian region.
A Harvest of Belief: Poetry of Jesse Stuart and Louise McNeill presents the work of these two important Appalachian writers.
Jim Clark's Homepage contains many links related to Appalachian writing.
Southern Appalachian Writers Cooperative links to short bios and writings of its members.

Mid-West

Poetry Menu, a site listing events in Nebraska
Chicago Poetry features poems by published Chicago area writers, reviews and criticism, a calendar of events, a Chicago area email phonebook for local poets

North East

The Bowery Poetry Club, a liteary performance space on New York City's Lower East Side. Events virutally daily.
New York Foundation for the Arts, a large non-profit organization supporting the arts in New York State.
New York State Council on the Arts , established in 1960. The Council's mission is "to preserve and expand the rich and diverse cultural resources that are the heritage of the people of the State" through the support of nonprofit arts organizations and artists in the State.
The Poetry Project at St. Mark's Church, an epicenter of many literary movements in New York City. Their site has links, information on membership in the Project, and event listings.
Spiral Bridge Writers Guild, a group of writers based in New Jersey supporting poetry through readings and communicty outreach.
Teachers & Writers Online lists events at its T&W Center for Imaginative Writing and a broadcast schedule of its programs on WNYE 91.5 FM. A must-visit site for poets in the NYC area.
Writers and Books has information about the writing scene in and around Rochester, NY.

South

Writer's Way, a non-profit group that hosts workshops including ones aimed at community outreach. Based in Washington, D.C.
Lonzie's Fried Chicken, a journal of Southern poetry and fiction.

South-West

The Arizona State Poetry Society promotes poetry in the state of Arizona. Non-residents are welcome to join, too.

Canada

BC Bookworld research tool listing info writers living in or otherwise connected to British Columbia.
The Writers' Union of Canada, founded in 1921.
Canadian Poets a comprehensive overview from the University of Toronto.

England

Farrago Poetry promotes poetry and runs workshops and other activities.
Lynx: Poetry from Bath, edited by Douglas Clark
Martin Blyth posts his poems here and does considerable work to promote British Poetry.
Poetry London guide to events in London, UK.
The Poetry Society established in 1909 and now one of Britain's most dynamic arts organisations. Features poets and poetry in the news, extensive education resources, current activities by the Poetry Society and Poetry Cafe, excerpts from the latest Poetry Review. Many resources for writers.
THE SOUTH is a not-for-profit group that aims to support writers, poets and communities in the south of England
The Southend Poetry Group The Home Page of the The Southend Poetry Group, Essex,England. The Southend Poetry Group Activities include joint meetings with other poetry or writers' groups, occasional public readings, and publication of the annual "Southend Poetry" anthologies.
Shadowork, a performance and collaboration project with venues in and around London. They also offer workshops.

Ireland

Abbey Press, Irish Poetry and Prose published out of Newry. Information about the books and authors they publish.
hardPressed poetry, publisher and distributor of Irish poetry.
The Irish Poetry Page poems, links to Irish poets.
Medieval Irish Poetry Page in original Gaelic with literal translation.
The Strokestown Poetry Prize, awarded for poems in English and Irish. There site has past winners of both languages.
Wake Forest Press, an American-based non-profit publisher focusing on Irish Poetry

Scotland

Association for Scottish Literary Studies based at St. Andrews University, publishes annual volumes.
History of Scottish Literature, edited by novelist and critic Andrew Crumey.
The Northern Muse a collection of radio scripts by Sheila Douglas for Heartland Radio in Pitlochry
Northwords On-line: fiction and poetry from the Scottish highlands
Orkney Arts Review
Scottish Arts Council funds the contemporary arts. They post a poem of the month.
Scottish Indie Artspace, based in Glasgow: visual art gallery; issues and events; public art, essays and articles, poetry, theatre, with an emphasis on Scottish arts.
Scottish Literature at the University of South Carolina, has links and information about exhibits.

Wales

Annedd y Cynganeddwr, dedicated to the ancient art of cynghanedd. Entirely in Welsh.
The Arts Council of Wales a grant-making organizations that promotes the arts in Wales.
Bys A Bawd a bookstore specialising in Welsh and Welsh interest books and videos.
The Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies is a major international Centre for research in Welsh and Celtic Studies.
Chasing the Dragon, new writing in English from Wales.
Cyfwe, a website for Welsh literature in translation.
Cylch Llên Cymru: the Ring of Welsh Literature: a webring established to support the celebration, publication and promotion of the literature of Wales on the Web.
llyfrau, in Welsh, reading recommendations.
Gwenllian's Poetry Primer, an introduction to Welsh poetic forms. Recommended.
National Year of Reading in Wales, a literacy promotion program.
The Peter Finch Archive has a comprehensive collection of links. (The main page is here.)
sampler: poetry now is a non-profit organisation based in Cardiff, South Wales, U.K. dedicated to promoting both experienced and established poets. Samples of work and upcoming events.
Wales Arts International a collaboration between the British Council in Wales and the Arts Council of Wales to promote Welsh Arts internationally.
Welsh Books Council in Welsh and English.
Welsh Literature an introduction, with suggested reading list.
Welsh Literature Abroad, in Welsh.
Working Title Writers, a group of poets and artists in Cardiff.
Yr Academi Gymreig - The Welsh Academy is the national society which exists to promote the writers and the literatures of Wales. In English and Welsh.

Australia & New Zealand

The Animist, Australian Journal of the Arts.
Auckland Poetry, an on-line guide to Auckland's live poetry scene.
A Collective Effort of Australian Visual Poets was an important and dynamic alternative press in Australia during the late 70s and 80s, and still active on a smaller scale today.
Mangrove a journal of The University of Queensland English Department.
Car Rental Australia has a little information about Australian literature and very good links. Far and away the best literary page on any car rental site I've seen.
Tasmanian Poetry Festival, an annual three-day event.

New Zealand Writers' Website, writers' groups, message board, on-line chat and other services for poets and writers.
New Zealand Society of Authors an association of writers working together to improve conditions for New Zealand writers.
Poetry New Zealand, an international print journal of poetry and poetics. Their site offers information on submission and subscription, as well as links to writers' resources.
Southern Ocean Review New Zealand's first on-line International Literary Magazine.
Thylazine, Australian Arts and Literature on Landscape and Animals. Dr. Coral Hull, Executive Editor. Their Australian Poets Directoryis a good starting point for information on contemporary Australian poets.

France

Georges Brassens, the complete poems and songs (in French).
Jean-Michel Maulpoix & Co., presents poetry and criticism in French (including his own). The English language section of his site provides an excellent introduction to the state of French poetry. Highly Recommended.

The Netherlands

Aanbeelden, a literary magazine.
De Brakke Hond, a Belgian literary magazine containing fiction, poetry and essays written in Dutch.
Epiberen, Home-isle of the Dutch Poets from Epibreren. Poetry, audio- and video-recordings, reviews, photos and links. Mostly in Dutch, but with English, German and Danish information and translations.
ReView_36, a site based in Belgium. Primarily in Flemish.

Italy

Il Narratore, a site featuring audio recordings of important world literature, and contemporary poetry. The site is in Italian and English. Their links page is a good starting point for Italian literature on the web.

Scandanavia

Splints & Co. Journal of Scandinavian Poetry on the Web/Tidsskrift med nordisk poesi på Nettet. Mostly in Danish with some English.

Eastern Europe

(includes Russia)

Poetry of the Balkans. Includes classics and newer poets. Serbo-Croatian and English
Belarusian Poetry offers Belarusian Poetry in the original language.

A Workshop with Hungarian Visual Poets, presented by Kaldron and Light & Dust Poets.

Romanian Voice has a section on poetry available in Romanian, German, Swedish, French, and English.

The Kids' World, a poetry site by and for children. In English and Serbo-Croatian.
Poets' Societ IRIS a site featuring links to Serbian poetry and poets. In English and Serbo-Croatian.
South Slavic Litearture Library showcases work from the Balkan states in their original languages, with some English translations available.

Selection of 20th century Russian poetry, in English and Russian, presents a few poems and short commentary on some major Russian literary figures
Mayakovsky and His Circle
Russian Literature Online
Also of interest is this site, which presents Lorca's poems in Spanish and Russian.
Zephyr Press An independent publisher of literary and travel titles focusing on contemporary works of and about Russia, Ukraine, and Eastern Europe

Middle-East, North Africa

http://www.anonymous-fish.com/, a monthly journal of Hebrew poetry.
Azza El Wakeel, Egyptian author of two books of Arabic poetry.
Arabesques International Literary and Cultural Review, in English, French and Arabic, essays on culture, includes a very good on-line journal, Arabesques
Libyan Arts, Music and Literature, a survey of contemporary Libyan writing. Mostly in Arabic with some English translation.

Africa

South Africa

Barefoot Press, a web site and press devoted to South African poetry.
South Africa Online presents this index of poetry sites.
Southern Rain Poetry, a collection of poetry from South Africa.
UCT Poetry Web, a comprehensive index of poets and poetry of Capetown and the western Cape. Their index of poetry sites is here, and there index of South African poets is here.

India

Asian Studies: India, links.
123 India Literaure, links, including many to individuals publishing their work on the web in various languages.
Ee maaTa, an on-line literary magazine in Telegu.
Gujarati Poetry, site on poets & and their works in Gujarati
Gujarati Poetry from English poetry, translation of English poetry into Gujarati by Mohamed Rupani
Indian Literary Resources, links.
indialit, home of the Webring for Indian Literature.
Indiaworld Poetry seeks and posts work by both new and established writers.
IndiaStar Review of Books features book reviews, articles, short fiction, poems, and publishers' press releases
INDOlink Poetry, poetry in Hindu, Urdu, and English. Also posts poems by Rabindrath Tagore and Swami Vivekananda.
Kavavyaalaya - The House of Hindi Poetry, in English and Hindu, with downloadable fonts for the latter.
The Little Magazine, the web version of a print magazine published out of New Delhi.
The Poetry Scene in India, commentary on the state of contemporary poetry in India.
Tamil Electronic Library, a valuable resource for studying the literature of this language.
Urdu Poetry, ghazals and other forms, in the original, with and without translation.

Indian Subcontinent

Some Great Personalities in the History of Bengali Literature, major litearary figures.
Bengali Poems, collection of some Bengali poem in Bengali scripts.
Boipara.com is a site showcasing bengali literature, with an open forum where you can post and critique work.
Poetry from the Indian Subcontinent has a smattering of poetry spanning several centuries.
Sawnet Bookshelf, books by South Asian women.
Nepali Poems taken from a recent copy of Insight, published by the International Nepali Literature Society.
World of Urdu Poetry - Shairu Online

Japan

Communicative Times, a semi-annual journal for Japanese University student writers.

Pan-National Sites

Haïku sans frontières, a wonderful international haiku site run by André Duhaime
International Poetry Festival in Medellin, sponsored by the Medellin City Hall and the Ministry of Culture. In English and Spanish.
Poetry International, both new and established poets from around the world.
rushki, an international collective based in The Netherlands

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بحث كامل عن الوطن العربي ..^^

من طرف Mr_HtLr في السبت مايو 22, 2010 5:50 am

بحث عن الوطن العربي

الوطن العربي و مساحته و السكان فيه

مقدمة:يمتد العالم العربى من شاطئ المحيط الأطلسي غربا إلي البحر العربي شرقا، ومن البحر المتوسط شمالا إلى منتصف أفريقيا جنوبا، وبذلك فهو يغطي مساحة تقدر بحوالي 5.25 مليون ميل مربع.
تمتد مساحة العالم العربي لتشمل قارتي أفريقيا وآسيا، تمتد قارة أفريقيا لتشمل 72% من مساحة العالم العربي، أما قارة آسيا فهي تشمل 28% من مساحته، ذلك الموقع يجعل العالم العربي واحدا من أهم المناطق الاستراتيجية في العالم. يتميز العالم العربي باحتوائه علي مساحات عريضة من الشواطئ مثل شواطئ المحيط الأطلسي، والبحر الأبيض المتوسط، والخليج العربي، والبحر العربي، وخليج عدن، والبحر الأحمر، والبحر الهندي.

الأفكار الرئيسية:
1- مقدمة عن الوطن العربي و مساحته.
2- مناخ الوطن العربي و طقس بعض الأقاليم و تضاريسه .
3-السكان و نموهم و تقسيمهم .
4- المواد الغذائية و المعادن في الوطن العربي .
5- الديانات السماوية الموجودة في الوطن العربي و الحضارات الموجودة فيه .
المـوضـوع
وبالرغم من مناخ العالم العربي الذي يتصف بالجفاف إلا أن وجود الحدود الجبلية يسمح بسقوط المطر الموسمي، فهناك جبال أطلس المستقرة في القطاع الشمالي الغربي من قارة أفريقيا (المغرب، والجزائر، وتونس)، والتي تمثل حاجزا بين صحراء صحاري ومنطقة السواحل. ومن ضمن أهم المناطق الجبلية أيضا في الوطن العربي منطقة جبال لبنان وجبال زاجروس التي تقع شرق العراق.
وبالرغم من مناخ العالم العربي الذي يتصف بالجفاف إلا أن وجود الحدود الجبلية يسمح بسقوط المطر الموسمي، فهناك جبال أطلس المستقرة في القطاع الشمالي الغربي من قارة أفريقيا (المغرب، والجزائر، وتونس)، والتي تمثل حاجزا بين صحراء صحاري ومنطقة السواحل. ومن ضمن أهم المناطق الجبلية أيضا في الوطن العربي منطقة جبال لبنان وجبال زاجروس التي تقع شرق العراق.
وبما أن مناخ العالم العربي يتصف بالجفاف، فلابد من وجود مصادر ماء، تلك المصادر تتمثل في الينابيع التي تتكون منها الواحات، و الأنهار، ومن أشهر أنهار العالم العربي، نهر النيل في مصر ونهر الفرات في العراق.
يشتمل الجزء الأكبر من كثافة السكان في العالم العربي والتي تقدر بحوالي 150 مليون نسمة علي شبابا، فان تقريبا نصف الكثافة هي من الشباب تحت سن الخامسة عشر. وإذا استندنا إلي معدل زيادة السكان السنوي المحدد سوف نجد أن الكثافة السكانية سوف تصل تقريبا إلي 280 مليون نسمة عام 2000.
عند تطبيق نظرية متوسط كثافة السكان علي كثافة سكان العالم العربي سوف يتضح لنا عدم أهمية النظرية، وذلك لأن المستوطنات السكنية تتركز حيث وجود مصادر الماء، فان أغلبية العرب يعيشون في مجموعات كبيرة في المناطق الساحلية، وحول وديان الأنهار. و من أهم الأمثلة علي ذلك هي أن 90% من السكان في مصر يعيشون علي 5% من مساحة الأرض .
تعد الزراعة هي الحرفة الاقتصادية الأساسية في العالم العربي، فمن أهم محاصيل الغذاء التي يستهلكها سكان المنطقة هي القمح، والشعير، والأرز، والذرة، والذرة البيضاء، أما المحاصيل التي تصدر بطريقة المبادلة فهي القطن، وقصب السكر، وبنجر السكر، والسمسم.
تمتلك قلة من الدول العربية مصادر البترول والغاز الطبيعي وهذه الحقيقة هي عكس الفكر المأخوذ عن الدول العربية بكونها دول غنية بالمصادر الطبيعية كالبترول، والغاز الطبيعي. ومن ضمن أيضا المصادر الطبيعية المتواجدة في الوطن العربي، معدن الحديد، والصلب، والفوسفات، والكوبالت، والمنجنيز.
يعد الوطن العربي من أوائل المستوطنات التي أحس فيها الإنسان بالاستقرار الاجتماعي، حيث قام بزراعة الحبوب، وتربية الماشية، وإنشاء المدن، واكتساب مهارات، وحرف متعددة والقيام بتطويرها أيضا. فقد تكونت، وترعرعت في تلك البيئة حضارات عريقة مثل الحضارة المصرية القديمة، والحضارة السومرية، والحضارة الآشورية، والحضارة البابلية، والحضارة الفينيقية، تلك الحضارات العريقة كانت تعد أساطير زمانها وإلي الآن لم تتمكن أي من حملات استكشاف الآثار، العثور علي الآثار الكاملة لتلك الحضارات.
نشأت في تلك الحقبة من الزمن الأديان السماوية التوحيدية الثلاث وهي اليهودية، والمسيحية، والإسلام، وانتشرت هذه الأديان في أنحاء العالم كله. عاش معتنقي الأديان الثلاثة في حب وتآخ علي مر العصور وذلك لأنهم أيقنوا حقيقة أنهم أبناء إله واحد.
جاء النبي محمد صلي الله عليه وسلم في القرن السابع بعد الميلاد حاملا رسالة الإسلام، وسرعان ما نشر تابعي محمد الإيمان الإسلامي في الغرب، وفي شمال أفريقيا، في فرنسا، وأسبانيا، و أيضا في الشرق حتى حدود الصين. لم يكن تابعي الإسلام هؤلاء، فقط فاتحين بل أيضا لقد أقاموا حضارة جديدة، ومفعمة بالحياة استمرت علي مر العصور، لتكون بمثابة شعاع النور المضيء في عالم راكد ثقافيا وقتذاك. ففي حين حلول العصور المظلمة علي أوروبا كانت الإمبراطورية العربية الإسلامية تتمتع بأبهى عصورها. تلك الحضارة الإسلامية بكل إسهاماتها في العلوم ، والإنسانيات ساعدت علي بناء وازدهار حضارة الغرب علي ما هي عليه الآن.
يعد العالم العربي اليوم هو بمثابة مجمع غني بتأثيرات عديدة، ومختلفة، فيقطن العالم العربي الآن عدة جماعات مختلفة الأعراق، واللغات، و الأعراف. ولكن بالرغم من ذلك يمثل الإسلام واللغة العربية الظاهرتين، الثقافيتين، السائدتين في العالم العربي كله. يعيش العرب علي مساحة واسعة ، ويستمتعون بروابط تاريخية، وتقليدية موحدة، وبالرغم من أنهم أعضاء واحد وعشرون مدينة مختلفة.،ولكن العرب يعتبرون أنفسهم جزء من أمة واحدة.
يعزز، وينمي اتحاد العرب أكثر بعضويتهم واشتراكهم في جامعة الدول العربية، فهي من أقدم المؤسسات الإقليمية في العالم، فقد أسست الجامعة في الثاني والعشرين من شهر مارس، عام 1945 قبل إنشاء المقر الرسمي للأمم المتحدة. إن الهدف الأساسي لجامعة الدول العربية هو الاندماج الكلي ما بين الدول العربية وذلك من خلال تنظيم، وتناغم نشاطاتها علي الصعيد السياسي، والاقتصادي، وعلي صعيد الخدمات الاجتماعية، وعلي المستوي التعليمي، وعلي مستوي الاتصالات وأيضا علي المستوي التطويري، والتكنولوجي، والصناعي.
يعتبر العالم العربي في مرحلة انتقالية في القرن العشرين ، حيث يقوم بتطوير، وتحديث، وبناء الأساس اللازم لنهضته. فبدأت مدنه القديمة، والعظيمة مثل القاهرة، وبغداد، ودمشق والتي تحتوي علي كثافة سكانية تساوي ملايين النسمات، بتوسيع ، وتطوير خدماتها الحكومية، والاتصالات ، وتسهيلات أخري. فتتضح لنا الإنشاءات الحديثة في كل مكان حيث البناءات الشاهقة تتخذ مكان الأسواق المغطاة التي تواجدت في الأزمنة اللاحقة
تخصص البلاد العربية التي تمتلك مصادر طبيعية خاصة البترول، ودائع مصرفية وفيرة لبرامج التطوير المستخدمة في شتي المجالات، وفي نفس الوقت، تمد هذه البلاد الغنية أشقائها العرب الذين لا يمتلكون مصادر طبيعية بالمساعدة المدية لكي تمكنهم من الارتقاء أيضا. يدرس الآن آلاف من شباب العرب في جامعات جديدة، وقديمة في بلادهم أو بالخارج، خاصة في الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية حيث يوجد 60000 طالب عربي. يتخصص هؤلاء الطلاب في مهن، ونظم متعددة والتي سوف تساعد علي ترقية بلادهم.
الخــاتمــة
وبالرغم من كل هذا التطور والعصرية فإن العالم العربي ما زال يحتفظ بالتقاليد والعادات الراسخة في الإسلام. فالعرب دائما يتطلعون إلي التقدم ولكن مع محاولة تجنب الإختلاطات والالتباسات المصاحبة للتطور السريع.
تهدف تلك المعلومات المتنوعة من إعطاء القارئ لمحة سريعة عن أهم إسهامات العرب في حضارة العالم، والهدف منها ليس فقط إظهار فضل العرب الكبير علي حضارة العالم كله، ولكن أيضا لإلقاء الضوء علي منطقة وشعب، وتحويل انتباه العالم المبني علي الاحترام المتبادل، والتفاهم إلي العالم العربي.

بحث عن العالم العربي ، بحث علمى كامل جاهز عن الوطن العربى

يمتد الوطن العربي أو العالم العربي جغرافيًا من المحيط الأطلسي غربًا حيث يقع المغرب العربي إلى بحر العرب شرقًا، شاملًا الدول التي تتخذ العربية كلغة رسمية فيها، والتي تنضوي تحت عضوية جامعة الدول العربية.

تعداد السكان في العالم العربي
ويبلغ عدد سكان العالم العربي 323,825,430 نسمة في تقديرات عام 2006 من صفحة كتاب حقائق العالم في موقع المخابرات الأمريكية. وفيما يلي كلّ الدول الأعضاء في جامعة الدول العربية مع تعداد سكانها.

الدولة عدد السكان (نسمة) المساحة (كم2)
الجمهورية العراقية 24,683,313 435,052
الجمهورية العربية السورية 17,585,540 185,180
الجمهورية اللبنانية 3,727,703 10,452
المملكة الأردنية الهاشمية 5,460,265 92,300
المملكة العربية السعودية 24,293,844 2,250,000
مملكة البحرين 667,238 707
دولة قطر 817,052 11,427
الإمارات العربية المتحدة 2,484,818 83,600
سلطنة عمان 2,807,125 309,500
الجمهورية اليمنية 19,349,881 555,000
دولة الكويت 2,183,161 17,818
جمهورية مصر العربية 80,335,036 1,002,000
الجماهيرية العربية الليبية الديمقراتية الشعبية العظمى 5,499,074 1,775,000
الجمهورية التونسية 9,924,742 165,150
الجمهورية الجزائرية الديموقراطية 32,818,500 2,381,741
المملكة المغربية 31,689,265 710,850
الجمهورية الإسلامية الموريتانية 2,912,584 1,030,700
الجمهورية السودانية 38,114,160 2,505,000
جمهورية الصومال 8,025,190 637,657
دولة فلسطين 3,512,062 27,000
جمهورية جيبوتي 457,130 23,200
جمهورية القمر المتحدة 632,948 2,236
المجموع 312,364,392 14,527,098

وبجمع التعدادات السكانية بعضها مع بعض يكون عدد سكان الوطن العربي 312,364,392 نسمةً تقريبًا مع التنويه أنّ هناك فئات من السكان الذين لا يتكلمون العربية في دول مثل الصومال، جيبوتي، جزر القمر، السودان، موريتانيا، والمغرب، ونسب أصغر في الجزائر وعراق وسوريا. إلّا أنّه يوجد فئات أخرى من السكان الذين يتكلمون العربية لكنهم يسكنون دولّا أخرى غير منضمّة لجامعة الدول العربيّة مثل الأحــواز المحتلة من قبل إيران منذ عام 1925م وفيها 8 ملايين من العرب [1].
يوجد عرب كذلك في تشاد، تركيا، إيران، النيجر، تنزانيا، اريتريا، مالي، النيجر، السنغال، نيجيريا، كينيا، إثيوبيا، تنزانيا، إندونسيا وماليزيا وما يجب قوله هنا أن أغلبية هذه الدول تحد الدول العربية جغرافيا لذلك كان لا بد من أن يكون بعض سكانها عربًا أو قبائل قد تأثرت باللغة العربية فكانت هي المتداولة بينهم. وبالرجوع إلى موسوعة إنكارتا 2004 نجد أن عدد المتكلمين بالعربية قد وصل إلى 422,039,637 شخص تقريبًا. حوالى 76% من العرب يتبعون الديانة الإسلاميّة والباقي أغلبهم من المسيحين والذين يتركزون في لبنان، مصر، سوريا وفلسطين. كما توجد أعداد قليلة من اليهود في المغرب وتونس. والشريعة الاسلامية من أحد المصادر للقوانين في البلاد العربية خاصة في بلاد شبه الجزيرة العربية. إلّا أنه واضح أنّ الشريعة الإسلامية لا تطبّق بكلّيتها في أيّ من هذه الدول. وبعض الدول العربية الأخرى هي علمانية أو شبه علمانية.

المضائق التي يشرف عليها العالم العربي
مضيق هرمز والتي تشرف عليه سلطنة عمان وإيران
مضيق باب المندب والتي تشرف عليه اليمن وجيبوتي
مضيق جبل طارق والتي تشرف عليه المغرب وإسبانيا
مضيق قناة السويس والتي تشرف عليه مصر
مضيق تيران وتشرف عليه مصر والسعودية.
النشيد الوطني للدول العربية
العراق [2]
سوريا [3]
لبنان [4]
الأردن [5]
السعودية [6]
البحرين [7]
قطر [8]
الإمارات [9]
عمان [10]
اليمن [11]
الكويت [12]
مصر [13]
ليبيا [14]
تونس [15]
الجزائر [16]
المغرب [17]
موريتانيا
السودان
الصومال
فلسطين
جيبوتي
القمر
السياحة في العالم العربي
المعالم الدينية
يوجد في العالم العربي أكبر عدد من الأماكن الدينية ويعد أول مزار على العالم حيث تشكل السياحة قدرًا كبيرًا من الدخل لهذه البلدان.

من المعالم الإسلامية
المسجد الحرام في السعودية
المسجد النبوي في السعودية
المسجد الأقصى في فلسطين
جامع بني أمية الكبير في سوريا
جامعة القرويين في فاس في المغرب
مسجد الحسن الثاني في المغرب
جامع الأزهر في مصر
مسجد الحسين في القاهرة في مصر
مسجد السيدة زينب في القاهرة في مصر
مسجد أحمد بن طولون في القاهرة في مصر
جامع محمد على في القاهرة في مصر
جامعة الأزهر في القاهرة في مصر
قلعة صلاح الدين الأيوبي في القاهرة في مصر
الروضة الكاظمية في بغداد العراق
الروضة العسكرية في سامراء العراق
جامع عقبة بن نافع في القيروان تونس
جامع الزيتونة في تونس تونس.
من المعالم المسيحية
كنيسة القيامة بالقدس في فلسطين
كنيسة المهد في بيت لحم بفلسطين
كنيسة البشارة في الناصرة بفلسطين
دير سانت كاترين في مصر.
المعالم اليهودية
المعبد اليهودي في القاهرة في مصر
كنيس دنان في فاس في المغرب
كنيس الغريبة في جزيرة جربة في تونس.
المعالم الحضارية
يعد العالم العربي مكانًا جاذبًا للسياح من جميع أنحاء العالم، ومن أهم المعالم الحضارية -بالأحرى السياحيّة- فيه:
فاس، مراكش، أغادير في المغرب
شرم الشيخ في مصر
أهرامات الجيزة في مصر
دهب في مصر
جرش والبتراء في الأردن
حدائق بابل المعلقة في العراق
صيدا، بعلبك، جبيل وبيروت في لبنان
قصر الجمٌ، قرطاج والقيروان في تونس
تدمر، دمشق وحلب في سوريا
المنامة في البحرين
سد مأرب في اليمن
مدائن صالح في السعودية
دبي في الإمارات
والكثير من المدن والمناطق الأخرى التي لا يتسع المقام لسردها.

Salah Hamouda

The Arab Mind Revisited

by Norvell B. De Atkine
Middle East Quarterly
Summer 2004, pp. 47-55

Editors' preface: In the spring of 2004, the Abu Ghraib prison scandal drove headlines in the United States and the Middle East. Journalist Seymour Hersh wrote a report in The New Yorker, entitled "The Gray Zone," describing the abuse of prisoners as the outcome of a deliberate policy. Hersh also made reference to a book, The Arab Mind, by the cultural anthropologist Raphael Patai (1910-96):

The notion that Arabs are particularly vulnerable to sexual humiliation became a talking point among pro-war Washington conservatives in the months before the March 2003 invasion of Iraq. One book that was frequently cited was The Arab Mind, a study of Arab culture and psychology, first published in 1973, by Raphael Patai, a cultural anthropologist who taught at, among other universities, Columbia and Princeton, and who died in 1996. The book includes a twenty-five-page chapter on Arabs and sex, depicting sex as a taboo vested with shame and repression.… The Patai book, an academic told me, was "the bible of the neocons on Arab behavior." In their discussions, he said, two themes emerged—"one, that Arabs only understand force and, two, that the biggest weakness of Arabs is shame and humiliation."[1]

This mention of Patai's book (on the sole authority of "an academic [who] told me") sent journalists scurrying to read it—and denounce it. Brian Whitaker, writing in The Guardian, called it a "classic case of orientalism which, by focusing on what Edward Said called the 'otherness' of Arab culture, sets up barriers that can then be exploited for political purposes." He quoted an academic as saying, "The best use for this volume, if any, is for a doorstop."[2] Ann Marlowe, in Salon.com, called it "a smear job masquerading under the merest veneer of civility."[3] Louis Werner, in Al-Ahram Weeklyand elsewhere, embellished Hersh's account with a made-up detail: The Arab Mind, he wrote, "was apparently used as a field manual by U.S. Army Intelligence in Abu Ghraib prison."[4] (Hersh made no such claim.) Only Lee Smith, writing in Slate.com, suggested that critics had misread Patai, whom he described as "a keen and sympathetic observer of Arab society," a "popularizer of difficult ideas, and also a serious scholar."[5]
No one took the trouble to crosscheck Hersh's academic source on the supposed influence of Patai's book as the "frequently cited … 'bible of the neocons.'" A more accurate description of The Arab Mindwould be a prohibited book. Edward Said had denounced Patai twenty-five years earlier, inOrientalism;[6] in academe, The Arab Mind long ago entered the list of disapproved texts. It was easy to point an accusing finger at the book (again). Patai himself was also a convenient target. A Hungarian-born Jew and lifelong Zionist, he lived in British-mandated Palestine from 1933 to 1947, and in 1936, earned the first doctorate ever awarded by the Hebrew University. He edited Theodor Herzl's complete diaries and served as the first president of the American Friends of Tel Aviv University. For many antiwar conspiracy theorists, the idea of someone like Patai as intellectual father of the Abu Ghraib scandal proved irresistible.
The only concrete evidence for the book's use in any branch of government appeared in the foreword to the most recent reprint (2002) of The Arab Mind, by Col. (res.) Norvell B. De Atkine, an instructor in Middle East studies at the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare School. De Atkine wrote that he assigned the book to military personnel in his own courses because students found its cultural insights useful in explaining behavior they encountered on assignment.
While critics skimmed Patai's book for generalizing quotes, they skirted the book's premise, as restated by De Atkine: culture matters and cultures differ. The realization by Americans that culture counts explains the commercial success of several cultural handbooks, addressing the very issues that concerned Patai.[7] And while there is no reason to believe that The Arab Mind had the specific influence Hersh attributed to it, the resulting publicity has sent its sales soaring, further extending the life of the book.
The following is De Atkine's foreword to The Arab Mind, reprinted here in full.

Incurable Romanticism

It is a particular pleasure to write a foreword to this much-needed reprint of Raphael Patai's classic analysis of Arab culture and society. In view of the events of 2001—including another bloody year of heightened conflict between Palestinians and Israelis and the horrendous terrorist assault on the United States on September 11—there is a critical need to bring this seminal study of the modal Arab personality to the attention of policymakers, scholars, and the general public.
In the wake of the September 11 attack, there was a torrent of commentary on "why" such an assault took place, and on the motivation and mindset of the terrorists. Much of this commentary was either ill-informed or agenda-driven. A number of U.S. Middle East scholars attributed the attack to a simple matter of imbalance in the American approach to the perennial Arab-Israeli conflict. This facile explanation did nothing to improve the credibility of the community of Middle East scholars in the United States, already much diminished by their misreading of the Arab world and their reaction to the U.S. response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990.
To begin a process of understanding the seemingly irrational hatred that motivated the World Trade Center attackers, one must understand the social and cultural environment in which they lived and the modal personality traits that make them susceptible to engaging in terrorist actions. This book does a great deal to further that understanding. In fact, it is essential reading. At the institution where I teach military officers, The Arab Mind forms the basis of my cultural instruction, complemented by my own experiences of some twenty-five years living in, studying, or teaching about the Middle East.
Raphael Patai prefaces his 1973 edition of The Arab Mind with the sentence, "When it comes to the Arabs, I must admit to an incurable romanticism." So it is with me. I first became interested in the Arab world in an elective course at the United States Military Academy many years ago, and my military career thereafter was divided between assignments with regular army artillery units and tours in the Middle East. It was during my preparatory study at the American University of Beirut that I was introduced to the writings of Raphael Patai. In a sociology class we used his book, Golden River to Golden Road: Society, Culture and Change in the Middle East.[8] Since that time, I have read a number of his books and admired his careful scholarship, lucid writing style, and empathetic approach to his subject matter.
Over the past twelve years, I have also briefed hundreds of military teams being deployed to the Middle East. When returning from the Middle East, my students, as well as the members of these teams, invariably comment on the paramount usefulness of the cultural instruction in their assignments. In doing so they validate the analysis and descriptions offered by Raphael Patai.
The officers returning from the Arab world describe the cultural barriers they encounter as by far the most difficult to navigate, far beyond those of political perceptions. Thinking back on it, I recall many occasions on which I was perplexed by actions or behavior on the part of my Arab hosts—actions and behavior that would have been perfectly understandable had I read The Arab Mind. I have hence emphasized to my students that there must be a combination of observation and study to begin a process of understanding another culture. Simply observing a culture through the prism of our own beliefs and cultural worldview leads to many misconceptions. More often than not, this results in a form of cultural shock that can be totally debilitating to a foreigner working with Arabs. Less common, but equally non-productive, is the soldier who becomes caught up in a culture he views as idyllic and "goes native." Inevitably there will come a time (usually during a political crisis) when the cultural chasm will force unpleasant reality to resurface.

Mines and Warts

In writing about a culture, one must tread a sensibility minefield, and none is more treacherous than that of the Middle East. In pursuit of intellectual honesty and a true-to-life depiction of a people, some less-than-appealing traits will surface. All cultures and peoples have their warts. One trait I have observed in Arab society—which has become more pronounced over the years—is an extreme sensitivity to any critical depiction of Arab culture, no matter how gently the adverse factors are presented. In his postscript to the 1983 edition of The Arab Mind, Patai mentions a spate of self-critical assessments of Arab society by Arab intellectuals in the wake of the "new Arab" said to have emerged after the 1973 war; but this tendency to self-criticize proved to be illusory. While we in the United States constantly criticize our society and leadership, similar introspection is rarely seen in the Arab world today. When criticism is voiced, it is usually in terms of a condemnation of Arab acceptance of some aspect of Western culture. Criticism also often emanates from outside the Arab region and, despite the so-called globalization of communication, only the elite have access to it. This is particularly true when political systems or ideology are discussed.
In no small way, this tendency has led to the current state of affairs in the Arab world. For this reason, as well as the fact that Patai was not an Arab, some scholars are dismissive of The Arab Mind, terming it stereotyped in its portrayal of Arab personality traits. In part, this stems from the postmodernist philosophy of a recent generation of scholars who have been inculcated with the currently fashionable idea of cultural and moral relativism. Much of the American political science writing on the Middle East today is jargon- and agenda-laden, bordering on the indecipherable. A fixation on race, class, and gender has had a destructive effect on Middle East scholarship. It is a real task to find suitable recent texts that are scholarly and sound in content, but also readable.
In fact, some of the best and most useful writing on the Arab world has been by outsiders, mostly Europeans, especially the French and British. Many of the best and most illuminating works were written decades ago. The idea that outsiders cannot assess another culture is patently foolish. The best study done on American society—to take one famous example—was written some 160 years ago by the French visitor, Alexis de Tocqueville, and it still holds mostly true today.
The empathy and warmth of Raphael Patai toward the Arab people are evident throughout this book. There is neither animus nor rancor nor condescension. Arabs are portrayed as people who, like all people, have virtues and vices. Patai's description of his relationship with the Jerusalem sheikh, Ahmad Fakhr al-Khatib, is indicative of the esteem in which he held his Arab friends. It is a lamentable fact that friendships such as this one would be almost impossible to conceive of at the present time.
Along with his empathy for and understanding of Arab culture, Patai has a powerfully keen faculty for observation. In a passage in his autobiographical Journeyman in Jerusalem,[9] he describes in minute detail an Arab date juice vendor and the way he dispenses his juice. It is this ability to observe and appreciate detail that enables Patai to grasp the significance of the gestures, nuances of speech, and behavior patterns of Arabs. To most Americans, the subtlety of Arab culture is bewildering and incomprehensible. Yet, if one is to work productively in the region, one must have an understanding of these cultural traits.
It might legitimately be asked how well Patai's analysis bears up in today's world. After all, it has been about thirty years since the majority of The Arab Mind was written. The short answer is that it has not aged at all. The analysis is just as prescient and on-the-mark now as on the day it was written. One could even make the argument that, in fact, many of the traits described have become more pronounced. For instance, Islamist demagogues have skillfully used the lure of the Arabic language, so carefully explained by Patai as a powerful motivator, to galvanize the streets in this era of the Islamic revival, in a way even the great orator Abdul Nasser could not achieve.

Blustery Arabic

Patai devoted a large portion of this book to the Arabic language, its powerful appeal, as well as its inhibiting effects. The proneness to exaggeration he describes was amply displayed in the Gulf war by the exhortations of Saddam Hussein to the Arabs in the "mother of all battles." This penchant for rhetoric and use of hyperbole were a feature of the Arab press during the war. The ferocity of the Arab depiction of Iraqi prowess had American experts convinced that there would be thousands of American casualties. Even when the war was turning into a humiliating rout, the "Arab street" was loath to accept this reality as fact.
More recently, the same pattern has been seen in the Arab adoption of Osama bin Laden as a new Saladin who, with insulting and derogatory language in his description of American martial qualities, conveyed a sense of invincibility and power that has subsequently been shown to be largely imaginary. Saddam Hussein used similar bluster prior to the 1990 Gulf war. Patai traces this custom, which continues to the present era, back to pre-Islamic days. It is also an apt example of the Arab tendency to substitute words for action and a desired outcome for a less palatable reality, or to indulge in wishful thinking—all of which are reflected in the numerous historical examples Patai provides. This tendency, combined with Arabs' predilection to idealize their own history, always in reference to some mythic or heroic era, has present-day implications. Thus the American incursion into the Gulf in 1990 became the seventh crusade and was frequently referred to as another Western and Christian attempt to occupy the Holy Land of Islam—a belief galvanizing the current crop of Middle Eastern terrorists. Meanwhile, Israel is frequently referred to as a "crusader state."
Patai's discussion of the duality of Arab society, and of the proclivity for intra-Arab conflict, continues to be revalidated in each decade. The Arab-against-Arab division in the 1990 Gulf war is but one example of a continuing Arab condition. Juxtaposed against the ideal of Arab unity is the present reality of twenty-two divided states, each with the self-interest of its ruling family or elite group paramount in policy decisions. In the 1960s, it was the "progressive states" versus the "reactionary states," which pitted Iraq, Egypt, Syria, Algeria, and Libya against Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Morocco. Today it is secular forces versus the Islamists, a conflict to one degree or another being played out in every Arab state.
Even when facing a common enemy—usually Israel in this era, but also Iran or Turkey—mutual distrust and intra-Arab hostility prevail. In the Iraqi-Iranian war, for example, Arab support was generally limited to financial help—with provisions for repayment, as the angry Saddam Hussein learned after the war. In [1998], when Turkey threatened Syria with armed conflict if the leader of the nationalistic Kurdish movement in Turkey continued to be supported by Syria, it was very clear that Syria would find itself standing alone. Thus the Asad regime was forced to make a humiliating submission to Turkish demands. Perhaps the most telling validation of Patai's insight into the conflictual nature of Arab society relates to the Palestinians. While their conflict with Israel has been a bloody one over the years, it cannot approach the level of death and destruction incurred in Palestinian wars against Lebanese, Syrians, and Jordanians. Despite this great violence, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict retains its place as the primary galvanizing issue for the "Arab street."

Sinister West

Perhaps the section of this book most relevant to today's political and social environment is the chapter on the psychology of Westernization. After centuries of certitude that their civilization was superior—a belief evolving from the very poor impression the European crusaders made on the Arabs and fully justified by the reality—the Arab self-image was rudely shattered by the easy French conquest of Egypt in 1798. A declining Middle East had been far surpassed by a revitalized Europe. The initial shock among the Arab elite was followed by a period of limited emulation, at least in the form of Western political and social values.
As the Western political hold on the Arabs receded, Western cultural influence increased, which in many ways was even more irritating to the Arab elite—particularly in terms of the technology invasion that at every level was a daily reminder of the inability of the Middle East to compete. Patai's assessment of the Arab view of technology has been amply supported over the last decades. Clearly enthusiastic users of technology, particularly in war weaponry, the Arabs nevertheless remain a lagging producer of technology. Partially, as Patai demonstrates, this is a reaction to the "jinn" (devil) of Western culture as it appears to the Arab of the twenty-first century. While recognizing the superiority of Western technology, the traditional Arab sees Western culture as destructive to his way of life; hence the ever-present battle between modernity and modernism: Can a society modernize without the secular lifestyle that appears to accompany the process? Adherents of the Islamist ideology, espousing a politicized, radical Islam, see no contradiction between a seventh-century theocracy and twenty-first century technology and would answer yes; however, history does not support such a view in the Middle Eastern context. As a Muslim coworker put it, "We want your TV sets but not your programs, your VCRs but not your movies." This will be the battleground of every Arab nation for the coming generation.
In his section on the "sinister West," Patai gets to the heart of the burning hatred that seems to drive brutal acts of terrorism against Americans. Despite its lack of a colonial past in the Middle East, America, as the most powerful representative of the "West," has inherited primary enemy status, in place of the French and British. Patai points out the Arabs' tendency to blame others for the problems evident in their political systems, quality of life, and economic power. The Arab media and Arab intellectuals, invoking the staple mantras against colonialism, Zionism, and imperialism, provide convenient outside culprits for every corrupt or dysfunctional system or event in the Arab world. Moreover, this is often magnified and supported by a number of the newer generation of Western scholars inculcated with Marxist teaching who, unwittingly perhaps, help Arab intellectuals to avoid ever having to come to grips with the very real domestic issues that must be confronted. The Arab world combines a rejection of Western values with a penchant for carrying around historical baggage of doubtful utility. At the same time, there is a simplistic, if understandable, yearning for return to a more glorious and pristine past that would enable the Arabs once again to confront the West on equal terms. This particular belief has found many Arab adherents in the past decade.
Patai also delves into the extremely sensitive issue of the nature of Islam in a particularly prescient manner. He views the fatalistic element inherit in Islam as an important factor in providing great strength to Muslims in times of stress or tragedy; in normal or better times, however, it acts as an impediment. Given their pervasive belief that God provides and disposes of all human activity, Muslims tend to reject the Western concept of man creating his own environment as an intrusion on God's realm. This includes any attempt to change God's plan for the fate of the individual. Certainly one can point to numerous exceptions. But, having worked for long periods with Arab military units, I can attest to their often cavalier attitude toward safety precautions, perhaps reflecting a Qur'anic saying, heard in various forms, that "death will overtake you even if you be inside a fortress." Just observing how few Arabs use seat belts in their automobiles can be a revelation. This manifestation of Arab fatalism is often misconstrued as a lesser value put on human life.
In the all-important area of Muslim relations with other religions, Patai sums up the differences between Christianity and Islam as being functional, not doctrinal. The proponents of fundamentalist Islam do not fear Christianity. They fear that Westernization will "bring about a reduction of the function of Islam to the modest level on which Christianity plays its role in the Western world." The quarrel is not so much with Christianity—which most Muslims see as a weak religion of diminishing importance—as with the secularism that has replaced it. Frequently in the Arab world one hears references to the [singer] "Madonna" culture and its manifestations of drugs and sexual promiscuity. Today, while Western military power has become much less of a threat, the inroads made by Western cultural values have become more of one.
My special area of interest has been the impact of culture on military structure, strategy, and operations,[10] and in this regard the assessments of Patai, although not aimed at this area, are particularly informative. As he wrote, "despite the adoption of Western weaponry, military methods, and war aims, both the leaders and the people have kept alive old Arab traditions." The observations and studies of military specialists continue to support his conclusion. The Arab military establishment's ineffectiveness in the past century has never been a matter of lack of courage or intelligence. Rather, it has been a consequence of a pervasive cultural and political environment that stifles the development of initiative, independent thinking, and innovation. This has been commented on by a number of Middle East specialists, both Arab and non-Arab, but none explains it as well as Patai, who suggests that Arabs conform not to an individualistic, inner-directed standard but rather to a standard established and maintained rigidly within Arab society. As I noticed among the officers with whom I worked, there was a real reluctance to "get out front." The distrust of the military's loyalty to the regime reinforces a military system in which a young, charismatic officer with innovative ideas will be identified as a future threat to be carefully monitored by the ubiquitous security agencies.

Family Cohesion

Patai also carefully illuminates the many virtues of Arab society. The hospitality, generosity, and depth of personal friendships common in the Arab world are rarely encountered in our more frenetic society. The Arab sense of honor and of obligation to the family—especially to the family's old and young members—can be contrasted to the frequently dysfunctional family life found in our own country. Within Arab culture, old people are seen as a foundation for family cohesion, and children are welcomed as gifts from God rather than as burdens. Daughters—who traditionally are valued less than sons—remain the responsibility of their families, carrying their honor even after marriage (and it is this sense of family cohesion and honor that, in its negative aspect, results in the restrictions and controls placed on women). The idea that the state should bear responsibility for the welfare of their family would be considered insulting to most Arabs.
Finally, in his 1983 edition, Patai takes an optimistic view of the future of the Arab world but adds a caveat to his prediction with the comment that this could happen "only if the Arabs can rid themselves of their obsession with and hatred of Zionism, Israel, and American imperialism." In the eighteen years since those words were written, none of these obsessions has been put to rest. In fact, they have increased. The imported 1960s and 1970s Western ideologies of Marxism and socialism have given way to Islamism, a synthesis of Western-style totalitarianism and superficial Islamic teachings, which has resurrected historical mythology and revitalized an amorphous but palpable hatred of the Western "jinns." Nevertheless, many astute observers of the Arab world see the so-called "Islamic revival" with its attendant pathologies as cresting and beginning to recede.
Ultimately, the Arabs, who are an immensely determined and adaptable people, will produce leadership capable of freeing them from ideological and political bondage, and this will allow them to achieve their rightful place in the world.

Col. Norvell B. De Atkine (ret.) served eight years in Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt (in addition to extensive combat service in Vietnam). A West Pointer, he holds a graduate degree in Arab studies from the American University of Beirut. He teaches at the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare School at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. The opinions expressed here are strictly his own. Reprinted from The Arab Mind (Hatherleigh Press, 2002), by permission, all rights reserved.

[1] Seymour Hersh, "The Gray Zone," The New Yorker, May 24, 2004.
[2] The Guardian (London), May 24, 2004. This, despite the fact that Whitaker himself, a year earlier, had quoted an authoritative Arab source on "the Arab mind." As coalition forces encircled Baghdad, he wrote a piece on the "sense of humiliation" among Arabs and brought a quote from a Kuwaiti spokesman that could have come straight from Patai's book: "In the Arab world, there is a classical, traditional enemy. This traditional enemy has always been the west or the Americans. This is one vision that always existed in the Arab mind." The Guardian, Apr. 9, 2003.
[3] Ann Marlowe, "Sex, Violence, and 'The Arab Mind,'" Salon.com, athttp://www.salonmag.com/books/feature/2004/06/08/arab_mind/index_np.html.
[4] Al-Ahram Weekly (Cairo), July 1-7, 2004.
[5] Lee Smith, "Inside the Arab Mind," Slate.com, at http://slate.msn.com/id/2101328/.
[6] Edward W. Said, Orientalism (New York: Pantheon, 1978), pp. 308-9.
[7] Most notably, Margaret K. Nydell, Understanding Arabs: A Guide for Westerners (Yarmouth, Me.: Intercultural Press, 1996), reviewed in Middle East Quarterly, June 1997, p. 90.
[8] Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1962, and subsequent editions.
[9] Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1992.
[10] Norvell De Atkine, "Why Arabs Lose Wars," Middle East Quarterly, Dec. 1999, pp. 17-27.

Introduction

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Persian Philosophy (or Iranian Philosophy), due to a series of large-scale political and social changes such as the Arab andMongol invasions of Persia, has initiated a wide spectrum of schools of thought. In general terms, these can be split between thePre-Islamic Period and the Post-Islamic Period.

Pre-Islamic Schools

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The Pre-Islamic schools include Zoroastrianism, Manichaeism and Mazdakism:

Zoroastrianism, which follows the teachings of Zarathustra (Zoroaster) appeared in Persia at some point during the period between 1000 - 588 B.C. Zarathustra was the first to treat the problem of evil in philosophical terms, and is also believed to be one of the oldest monotheists in the history of religion. His ethical philosophy is based on the primacy ofhumata (good thoughts), hukhata (good words) and hvarshatra (good deeds). He also founded a system of rational ethics called Mazda-Yasna (Worship of Wisdom). The Avesta and the Gathas are the primary collections of sacred texts of Zoroastrianism, composed in the Avestan language. Little was known of Zarathustra's ideas in post-Classical Western culture until the late 18th Century, but he had a significant influence on Greek and Roman philosophy.

Manichaeism, (also spelled Manicheism), was founded by the Persian religious preacher Mani (A.D.210 - 276). At its height, it was one of the most widespread religions in the world, from North Africa and Western Europe in the West, toChina in the East. It died out before the 16th Century, although a modern revival has been attempted under the name ofNeo-Manichaeism, and its influence subtly continues in Western Christian thought via St. Augustine of Hippo, who converted to Christianity from Manicheism. Manichaeism claims to present the complete version of teachings only revealed partially by teachers such as Zoroaster, Buddha, and Jesus. An important principle of Manicheism is itsdualistic cosmology/theology, which it shared with Mazdakism (see below). Under this dualism, there are two original principles of the universe, Light (the good one) and Darkness (the evil one), which had been mixed by a cosmic accident, tainting everything except God. Man's role in this life is, through good conduct, to release the parts of himself that belong to Light.

Mazdakism, was founded by Mazdak (died c. 524 or 528), a proto-socialist Persian reformer who claimed to be aprophet of God, and instituted communal possessions and social welfare programs. Like Manichaeism, Mazdakism posited a dualistic cosmology, but where Manichaeism saw the mixture of good and bad as a cosmic tragedy, Mazdak viewed this in a more neutral, even optimistic, way. Mazdak emphasized good conduct, which involved a moral andascetic life, no killing and no eating flesh (which contained substances solely from Darkness), being kind and friendly and living in peace with other people. He downplayed the importance of religious formalities, and critized the strong position of Zoroastrian clergy, who, he believed, had oppressed the Persian population and caused much poverty.

Post-Islamic Schools

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Early Islamic Philosophy was very influential in the rise of modern philosophy, including the development of a strict science of citation; a method of open inquiry to disprove claims; the separation of theology and law, a precursor to secularism; the beginnings of a peer review process; the first forms of non-Aristotelian logic, including temporal modal logic and inductive logic; and even early theories of evolution.

The two main currents in early Islamic thought are Kalam (which mainly deals with theological questions) and Falsafa (which is founded on interpretations of Aristotelianism and Neoplatonism). To some extent, some schools are also considered Western in their outlook, include Avicennism, Illuminationism and Transcendent Theosophy (see below).

The main Post-Islamic schools include:

Mu'tazilism is an Islamic theological school of thought, based mainly around Basra and Baghdad (modern day Iraq). It was influenced by Greek and Hellenistic philosophy, and expanded the use of ijtihad (independent thought) to open questions of science and society. The Mu'tazilites focused on the Five Principles (Divine Unity, Divine Justice, Promise and Threat, the Intermediate Position, and Advocating the Good and Forbidding the Evil). The most celebrated proponent of Mu'tazilism was 'Abd al-Jabbar (935 - 1025), after which Mu'tazilism declined steadily and significantly.

Ash'arism is a school of early Muslim speculative theology founded by the theologian Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari (874 - 936). It marked the 12th-14th Century peak of innovation in Muslim civilization, and permitted philosophical methods to be applied to science and technology. In contrast to the Mu'tazilite school of theologians, the Ash'arite view was that the comprehension of the unique nature and characteristics of God are beyond human capability and that, while man hasfree will, he has no power to create anything. The most influential work of this school's thought was "The Incoherence of Philosophers", by the Persian polymath al-Ghazali (1058 - 1111), which laid the groundwork to "shut the door of ijtihad" in subsequent centuries in all Sunni Muslim states.

Avicennism was founded by Avicenna (also known as Ibn Sina), an 11th-century Persian Islamic philosopher. By the 12th Century (the Islamic Golden Age), it had become the leading school of Islamic philosophy. Avicenna attempted toreconcile Western Aristotelianism and Neo-Platonism with Islamic theology, and his metaphysics were very influencial on the Western Scholastics and St. Thomas Aquinas among others. He initiated a fully-fledged inquiry into the question ofbeing, in which he distinguished between Mahiat (essence) and Wujud (existence). He proposed an ontological argument for the existence of God as the first cause of all things, and developed his own system of Avicennian logicwhich had replaced Aristotelian logic as the dominant system of logic in the Islamic world by the 12th Century.

Averroism was founded by the 13th Century Arab philosopher Averroës (also known as Ibn Rushd) and was based on his interpretations of Aristotle and the reconciliation of Aristotelianism with the Islamic faith. Among his main ideas were: that there is one truth (but at least two ways to reach it, through philosophy and through religion); that the world is eternal; that the soul is divided into two parts, one individual and one divine; that the individual soul is not eternal; that all humans at the basic level share one and the same divine soul (monopsychism); and that the resurrection of the dead is not possible. While it had relatively little influence in the Islamic world, which was then dominated by Avicennianphilosophy and Ash'ari theology (see above), Averroism became very infuential in medieval Europe, especially among the Scholastics, and it can be argued that it eventually led to the development of modern secularism.

Illuminationism is a school of Islamic philosophy founded by the Persian Sufi Shahab al-Din Suhrawardi (1155 - 1191) in the 12th Century. It is a combination of Avicenna’s early Islamic philosophy and ancient Iranian philosophical disciplines, dressed up with many new innovative and mystical ideas of Suhrawardi's own, although it is often also described as having been influenced by Neoplatonism. To the Illuminationists, essence is more important than existence, and intuitive knowledge is more significant than scientific knowledge. They use the notion of light, as the name suggests, as a way of exploring the links between God (the Light of Lights) and his creation, and takes the physical world to be an aspect of the divine.

Transcendent Theosophy (or al-hikmat al-muta’liyah) was developed and perfected by the Persian philosopher Mulla Sadra (Sadr al-Din al-Shirazi) (1571 - 1640), the foremost representative of the Illuminationist school of philosopher-mystics, and commonly regarded by Iranians as the greatest philosopher their country has ever produced. It is one of two main disciplines of Islamic philosophy live and active today.