Palm calligraphy: Mustafa Emary. From: One Thousand and One Nights. The book of love | © Verlag C.H.Beck
One hundred years ago, in April 1923, newly independent Egypt promulgated its first constitution. This event is considered to be one of the landmarks in the country’s recent history. It changed its people’s perception from a subject territory to a nation state. This has, until today, a continuing impact on the social and cultural conditions in Egypt.
Ever since, the political self-image of a nation evolved, and a series of legal transformations and constitutional rearrangements have taken place. Thus, on the special occasion of this anniversary, the event will pursue two perspectives:
- 1. on the framework provided by Egypt's first independent constitution and the constitutional developments ever since, as well as
- 2. how culture can help us understand the dynamics of the 1919 revolution in general and the 1923 constitutional promulgation in particular.
This hybrid event, featuring two short talks that lead into an open discussion, is a cooperation of the 4MZ and Leipzig University's Oriental Institute.
A discussion by Dina Heshmat (The American University in Cairo) and Baudouin Dupret (CNRS) in the series "Cultures of Islam: Current Research" by the Münchner Mittelost-Mittelmeer-Mittelasien-Zentrum, 4MZ (Munich Middle East Central Asia Center).
Find more information on the Website of the Institute for the Near and Middle East.