Based on the recently published Of Lost Cities: The Maghribī Poetic Imagination (Montreal:
McGill-Queen’s University Press, November 2024), this book talk interactively explores the
often-overlooked role of the medieval Maghrib (North Africa) in shaping Arabic and Mediterranean elegiac and nostalgic poetry, poetics, and premodern exilic writings. Beginning
with the renowned Arabo-Sicilian poet Ibn Ḥamdīs al-Siqillī (d. 527 AH/1133 CE) and his moving laments about Sicily (Ṣiqilliyyāt), this talk will examine the Maghrib’s crucial role in shaping the tradition of city elegy (rithāʾ al-mudun) and nostalgia for one’s homeland (al-ḥanīn ilā al-awṭān) in both Sicily and al-Andalus (Iberia). Central to this discussion is the exilic and nostalgic poetry of Ibn ʿAbdūn al-Warrāq al-Sūsī (d. 401 AH/1010 CE), who tenderly reminisced about his native city, Sousse—modern-day Tunisia—while living in exile in Balarm (Palermo). Within this broader framework, I will also highlight the poetic contributions of exiled Maghribi poets such as Ibn Rashīq (d. 456 AH/1064 CE), Ibn Sharaf (d. 459 AH/1067 CE), al-Ḥuṣrī al-Ḍarīr (d. 488 AH/1095 CE), and Ibn Faḍḍāl (d. 479 AH/1086 CE), all of whom migrated to Sicily and/or al-Andalus (Iberia) following the Hilalian invasion of Kairouan and Ifrīqiya in 449 AH/1057 CE. By repositioning the Maghrib as a critical axis in the medieval Arabic and Mediterranean literary landscape, this talk challenges dominant scholarly frameworks that have long privileged the Mashriq (Islamic East) and al-Andalus (Iberia), revealing the region’s indispensable role in the dissemination and development of Arabic poetry and exilic literature in the premodern period.
Friday, April 4th 2025, 12:00pm – 1:30pm
ICC 241
CCAS Boardroom
‘Between Arabia, al-Andalus, and Sicily, There Was Always the Maghrib!’: The Forgotten
Poetic Heritage of the Medieval Maghrib
Dr. Nizar F. Hermes (University of Virginia)
Dante Here and Now
Dr. Riccardo Pratesi (Museo Galileo; Istituto e Museo della Scienza, Firenze)
Dr. Riccardo Pratesi graduated in Physics from the University of Florence (Italy) and received his PhD in History of Science from the University of Pisa. His research has focused on Dante’s traces in the history of science, with particular attention to Galileo’s studies on Dante’s Inferno. He will recite Dante’s verses and make them come to life for us, there and then!
Thursday, March 27th, 2025, 6:00pm
Old North 205
Georgetown Initiative Conference Room
Dante and Performance
Prof. Francesco Ciabattoni (Georgetown University)
Prof. Kristina Olson (George Mason University)
Dr. Riccardo Pratesi (Museo Galileo – Istituto e Museo di Storia della Scienza)
Prof. Francesco Ciabattoni (Georgetown University), in conversation with Prof. Kristina Olson
(George Mason University) will discuss the intricate musical and performative aspects of
Dante’s Divine Comedy. In medieval European towns, music, dance, and drama were integral to daily life, and Dante’s references to these art forms evoked a rich tapestry of shared spiritual
experiences for his contemporary readers. Prof. Ciabattoni’s talk brings this historical context to life, making it accessible and relevant for modern audiences. The presentation will be enriched by the live recitation of Dante’s cantos by Dr. Riccardo Pratesi, a Florentine, a scholar, and a brilliant reciter of the poem.
With special thanks to:
– Georgetown University Global Medieval Studies Program
– Istituto Italiano di Cultura, Washington DC
– Georgetown University Department of Italian Studies
Tuesday, March 25th, 2025, 6:00pm
Istituto Italiano di Cultura
3000 Whitehaven St NW, Washington, DC 20008
Previous Events
