During the first centuries of Islam, the written notation of the Qur'an underwent a gradual evolution. After an early stage represented by the ‘Ḥijāzī’ tradition, red dots were introduced into ...‘Kūfic’ Qur'ans to mark short vowels. This system was soon expanded by assigning more functions to the red dots, sometimes supplemented by yellow, green, and blue dots; and by creating new orthographic signs. These devices were used in different ways by different vocalisers. Few textual sources dealing with this subject survive. By far the most consequential is al-Muḥkam fī naqṭ al-maṣāḥif (lit. ‘The Precise on the Vocalisation of Qur'ans’) by Abū ʿAmr ʿUthmān b. Saʿīd al-Dānī (371–444/982–1053). Following a line of work initiated by Yasin Dutton, the present study, to be published in two parts, will confront the assertions of al-Muḥkam with a sample of key manuscripts in an attempt to gain insights into the regional origins of early Qur'ans.
This article is a historical study of maritime trade between Tang China and early Islamic Iraq, in the seventh to tenth centuries. While the existence, in this period, of merchant communities from ...the Arab-Persian Gulf in Chinese ports has been known for a long time, the present study seeks to contextualise their emergence, to articulate the socio-economic conditions of their trade, and to consider the extent to which these were conducive to transmissions of ideas. Building upon scholarly findings accumulated in different disciplines, it outlines patterns of exchange that, while limited in scope, were more systemic than has hitherto been assumed.
This is the second part of an article begun in the previous issue (17:1) of the
Journal of Qur'anic Studies
. Part I began with a study of remarks about regional patterns of vocalisation offered by ...the Andalusian scholar of the Qur'an, al-D n (371-444/982-1053); these were then confronted with extant manuscripts of the third to fourth/ninth to tenth centuries that can be ascribed to the region between Syria, Iraq, and Iran. This analysis largely confirmed al-D n 's observations, thereby suggesting the existence of a dominant norm for vocalisation in the area he calls the Mashriq. The same approach will now be applied to Qur'ans from the Islamic West, the Maghrib, before drawing some conclusions about the use of vocalisation as a marker of regional origins.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, there are at least 65 million forcibly displaced people worldwide. Around 25 million of these people are refugees fleeing their ...homeland, mostly because of war and persecution. Around 51% of refugees are children, and even in the most optimistic estimates, only 50% of these children are attending any form of schooling. Education is one of the most critical needs of displaced populations just after food and shelter. Education in emergencies faces numerous challenges, particularly when the displacement is a result of a war as it involves political and psychosocial complexities that affect the children’s wellbeing and motivation.There has been an increasing interest from the international NGOs and academia towards harnessing technology to support the refugees, especially emergency education, after the refugee crisis in 2015. However, there is little understanding of the different challenges and possibilities for designing technology systems in the complex displacement context. Many of the projects in this do not succeed due to the complexity of the context. Moreover, no design processes exist to guide the design of educational technology systems in displacement. This research aims to develop a design process based on an understanding of the disciplines of refugee studies, emergency education, motivation and engagement, system design, and participatory design. In addition to the literature review, the process was based on discussions with several actors from the field.The design process was then implemented and evaluated in two case studies with Syrian refugees in Greece. One case study was at Ritsona refugee camp and involved creating a digital self-learning space for displaced children. The second case study was conducted in cooperation with the Greek Ministry of Education in four formal Greek schools hosting refugee children from Ritsona refugee camp with their Greek students and led to solutions that supported the teachers and children’s learning difficulties. The data from both case studies was thematically analysed and resulted in the CRIT design method (Contextual complexity, Relevance, Involvement, and Trust). The data was later discussed and highlighted the importance of supporting motivation in the design process activities and in the resulting systems through supporting the innate needs of Self-Determination Theory (SDT) which are autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Moreover, the discussion highlights the importance of adopting the Scandinavian aspects of participatory design when designing in displacement and links it to motivation, ethics, and real democracy. Furthermore, the discussion provided an overview of the design challenges from the context of displacement, the practices that allow a better problem definition, and suggestions regarding the opportunities and challenges for the use of technology for education in displacement.
The Islamic world witnessed, in the twelfth to thirteenth centuries, an explosion of figural art. The representation of living creatures had existed for centuries before in Islam, but during this ...period its nature and scale transformed. A demand for images stemming from an ever broader social base prompted craftsmen to create new designs for a wide range of objects that, in this culture of the book, naturally included manuscripts.
This is the second part of an article begun in the previous issue (17: 1) of the Journal of Qur'anic Studies. Part I began with a study of remarks about regional patterns of vocalisation offered by ...the Andalusian scholar of the Qur'an, al-Dānī(371-444/982-1053); these were then confronted with extant manuscripts of the third to fourth/ninth to tenth centuries that can be ascribed to the region between Syria, Iraq, and Iran. This analysis largely confirmed al-Dānī's observations, thereby suggesting the existence of a dominant norm for vocalisation in the area he calls the Mashriq. The same approach will now be applied to Qur'ans from the Islamic West, the Maghrib, before drawing some conclusions about the use of vocalisation as a marker of regional origins. هذا هو القسم الثاني من دراسة بدأت في العدد السابق رأ: 7 ا ا من م جلة الدراسات القرآنية. وقد بدأ القسم الأول ب م لا طا ت ل ل ع م الأندلسي الداني عن الأنماط ال م طية للتشكيل. وقد قابلنا هذه الملاحظات على المخطوطات التي بقيت من القرن الثالث إلى الرابع الهجري/ التاسع إلى العاشر الميلادي التي يمكن نسبتها إلى أقاليم بين سوريا والعراق وايران. وقد أكد هذا التحليل _ إلى حد بعيد — ملاحظات الداني مشيرا إلى وجود أنماط من التشكيل في المنطقة التي سماها **المشرق . وسنطبق نفس التناول على مصاحف من المغرب الإسلامي ثم نستخلص بعض النتائج عن استعمال التشكيل كمؤشر على الأممول الاقليمية للمحماحف.
The Blue Qur'an is one of the most mesmerising manuscripts produced in Islam. Today, the most commonly held view is that this manuscript was produced for the early F ṭimid court, before the conquest ...of Egypt in 358/969. However, in recent years our knowledge of early Qur'anic manuscripts, their calligraphy and the illumination that adorns their pages has greatly progressed. In the first part of this article, I will argue that the Blue Qur'an is in fact much earlier than has hitherto been recognised and dates to the early ʿAbb sid period. This will be the occasion to posit some elements of chronology for early Qur'anic scripts. Once this new framework has been set for the manuscript, I will move on to explore the origin of its colour scheme, and its different layers of meaning; between the practical, the temporal and the spiritual.
Trauma is a major contributor to the global burden of disease, with low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) being disproportionately affected. Trauma Quality Improvement (QI) initiatives could ...potentially save an estimated two million lives each year. Successful trauma QI initiatives rely on adequate training and a culture of quality among hospital staff. This study evaluated the effect of a pilot trauma QI training course on participants’ perceptions on leadership, medical errors, and the QI process in Cameroon.
Study participants took part in a three-day, eight-module course training on trauma QI methods and applications. Perceptions on leadership, medical errors, and QI were assessed pre and post-course using a 15-item survey measured on a five-point Likert scale. Median pre- and post-course scores were compared using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Knowledge retention and course satisfaction were also evaluated in a post-course survey and evaluation.
A majority of the 25 course participants completed pre-course (92%) and post-course (80%) surveys. Participants’ perceptions of safety and comfort discussing medical errors at work significantly increased post-course (pre-median = 5, IQR 4-5; post-median = 5, IQR 5-5; P = 0.046). The belief that individuals responsible for medical error should be held accountable significantly decreased after the course (pre-median = 3, IQR 2-4; post-median = 1, IQR 1-2; P < 0.001). Overall satisfaction with the course was high with median scores ≥4.
These initial results suggest that targeted trauma QI training effectively influences attitudes about QI. Further investigation of the effect of the trauma QI training on hospital staff in larger courses is warranted to assess reproducibility of these findings.
•Targeted QI training can improve perceptions about handling medical errors and effectively influences attitudes about QI.•The QI course can be a valuable tool to provide training for hospital staff to improve trauma care through a systems lens.•There is opportunity for trauma QI capacity building in Cameroon.
During the first centuries of Islam, the written notation of the Qur'an underwent a gradual evolution. After an early stage represented by the 'Ḥijāzi' tradition, red dots were introduced into ...'Kūfic' Qur'ans to mark short vowels. This system was soon expanded by assigning more functions to the red dots, sometimes supplemented by yellow, green, and blue dots; and by creating new orthographic signs. These devices were used in different ways by different vocalisers. Few textual sources dealing with this subject survive. By far the most consequential is al-Muḥkam fi naqṭ al-maṣāḥif (lit. 'The Precise on the Vocalisation of Qur'ans') by Abū ʿAmr ʿUthmān b. Saʿīd al-Dānī (371–444/982–1053). Following a line of work initiated by Yasin Dutton, the present study, to be published in two parts, will confront the assertions of al-Muḥkam with a sample of key manuscripts in an attempt to gain insights into the regional origins of early Qur'ans. شهدت القرون الأولى للإسلام تطورا تدريجيا في تنقيط المصاحف. فبعد المرحلة الأولى المتمثلة بالنمط 'الحجازي'، زيدت النقاط الحمراء إلى المصاحف 'الكوفية' لتشير إلى الحركات. ثم طُوّر هذا النظام بأن أضيفت وظائف أخرى للنقاط الحمراء، كما زيد عليها أحيانا نقاط صفراء وخضراء وزرقاء، وكذلك استحدثت علامات كتابية جديدة. وقد استخدم المنقّطون هذه الأدوات بطرق مختلفة. ولم يبق من المصادر التي تعالج هذا الموضوع إلا القليل، أهمها كتاب المحكم في نقط المحماحف لأبي عمرو عثمان بن سعيد الداني (٣٧١ —٤ ٤ ٤/ ٩٨٢—٥٣ ٠ ١). وسيرا على خطى ياسين دتن، ستقوم هذه الدراسة، وهي تصدر في جزئين، بالنظر فيما يقوله الداني في المحكم، ومقابلته مع نماذج من مخطوطات مهمة في محاولة للتعرف على الأمعول الإقليمية للمصاحف المبكرة.
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