The Second Islamic Manuscript Conference
7-9 August 2006, Emmanuel College, University of Cambridge
Following the great success of the First Islamic Manuscript Conference last year, we are delighted to announce that the Thesaurus Islamicus Foundation and the Centre of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies at the University of Cambridge will host the Second Islamic Manuscript Conference, entitled The Islamic Manuscript II: A Conference to Establish The Islamic Manuscript Association, from 7-9 August 2006 at Emmanuel College, University of Cambridge.
The purpose of the Second Islamic Manuscript Conference will be the signing of the constitution and the formal establishment of The Islamic Manuscript Association (TIMA). For this reason we welcome to the conference those who are willing to work over the coming months to finalize TIMA's draft constitution and who will, in August 2006, sign that constitution and commit their institutions to TIMA's mission. Therefore, between now and the conference, we kindly request that all institutions and persons interested in joining TIMA be in communication with us so that we can come to an agreement on the constitution as well as all other aspects of the organization of TIMA, namely nominations for the membership of the board of directors and the association's subcommittees, before the conference is convened.
The Second Islamic Manuscript Conference will open with a constitution signing ceremony, a general meeting, and a celebratory dinner on the first day. The remainder of the conference will be dedicated to presentations on those subjects with which TIMA is concerned: accessibility, cataloguing, conservation, copyright, and digitization. These topics will be discussed as they pertain to furthering the work of TIMA, not as subjects in and of themselves. As explained in the draft constitution, the object of TIMA shall be to standardize the terms of and facilitate access to digital and microfilm images of manuscripts as well as construct a mechanism for protecting the rights of institutions possessing manuscripts. It will assist in the creation of universal cataloguing standards and encourage and assist with conservation. It will assess the needs of manuscript collections around the world, draw up a list of priorities for action, and seek international funding for fulfilling those objectives. Furthermore, it will encourage scholarship related to Islamic manuscripts. In general, it will promote the welfare and interests of Islamic manuscripts. TIMA is non-profit and non-denominational.
We look forward to the participation of a large number of the world's most important Islamic manuscript libraries and scholars of Islamic manuscripts. The working languages of the conference will be Arabic, English, Persian and Turkish. Space at the Second Islamic Manuscript Conference is limited. If you are interested in becoming a founding member of TIMA please contact the organizers at the address below. Should you be unable to join TIMA at the forthcoming conference but are interested in the Association, please contact us as we are interested your comments and suggestions. We will keep you informed of our work and await your participation at a later date.