American University in Cairo

New Cairo Campus

The Sullivan Lounge

Sun17, 1-2pm: "Arabic in a Turbulent World" talk by Yasser Suleiman, Professor Emeritus of Modern Arabic Studies at the University of Cambridge, will investigate the entanglement of Arabic in the Discourse on Terrorism in post-9/11 America, using an interdisciplinary perspective combining securitization, lateral surveillance, linguistic profiling, and language symbolism.

French Cultural Institute

Madrasset Al-Huquq Al Frinseya St, Mounira, Tel 02 2791 5800 

Wed 20, 6pm: As part of "Taste of Books" series of seminars, the institute will host writer Alaa Khaled, on the occasion of the release of his latest book, Cairo Carnival. In the book, Khaled presents scenes from the nineties, those cultural scenes that provide a testimony and are distinguished by combining an interesting narration of the scenes with a deep analysis of them and placing them in their political and historical context. 

Italian Cultural Institute

3 El-Sheikh El Marsafy St, Zamalek, Tel 02 2735 5423/2735 8791

Thurs 21, 6pm: "Health and Tradition of the Mediterranean Diet from Earth to the Stars" round table discussion is held as part of "The Week of Italian Cuisine in the World" initiated nine years ago and is dedicated to the promotion of the agri-food sector and the Italian food tradition in all its aspects. The focus of this event will be on the role of nutrition in preventive healthcare and the panelists participating to the round table will discuss the topics using several arguments. Dr. Serag Zakaria, as representative of Al Safwa Hospital will talk about The Role of Nutrition in Preventive Healthcare; Dr Aliaa Ahmed from the Egyptian Food Bank will focus on securing healthy nutritious food to alleviate the suffering of hunger, while Dr. Luca Nardi from ENEA will discuss cultivating high level nutrients vegetable in extreme environments, urban agriculture, antarctica, desert, outer space. Stefano Maffioli Ferrari, Chef with Riviera at Four Seasons Hotel Cairo, will add the final touch of Italian character to the networking cocktail.

Italian Archeological Centre 

14 Champollion Street, Tahrir Square, Downtown, Cairo

Sun 17, 6pm: Archaeological Missions Lectures (2024 – 2025) series of lectures dedicated to recent results of the Italian – Egyptian collaboration in Archaeological Missions presents "Soknopaiou Nesos Project (El-Fayyum): 20 Years of Work of Salento University" lecture by Prof. Paola Davoli, graduated and got her PHD in Egyptology at the University of Bologna, she is a full professor of Egyptology at the University of Salento, Lecce.  

The Soknopaiou Nesos Project was launched in 2004 by Mario Capasso, Professor of Papyrology at the University of Salento, and is now directed by Davoli, Professor of Egyptology at the same university. The archaeological site, now known as Dimiyt El-Seba, was chosen both because it had been little investigated scientifically in the past and because it's excellent state of preservation makes it a suitable field to multidisciplinary work. The archaeological data collected over 20 years of work concerning the topography, stratigraphy, architecture, and life of the main temple dedicated to the god Soknopaios. The excavation work has focused on the sacred area. Four sanctuaries have been brought to light, dating from the Ptolemaic period to the 2nd century AD. Houses, kitchens, and banquet halls have been unearthed. They open up new avenues of research through the possibility of combining textual data (from the papyri) with archaeological data. The lecture is in Italian with English translation and will be available both in presence and online RSVP is FREE: https://forms.gle/jvHWk3DGo583StrM7 Online attendance is available, through link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89825592144 

Tahrir Cultural Centre (TCC) 

AUC’s Tahrir Campus, Downtown, 24 Falaki St, Downtown Cairo, Tel 012 88721446

Oriental Hall

Sat 16, 6-7pm: "Sufism in Ottoman Egypt – Historiography, Sources and Methodology" talk raises questions such as when the Ottomans conquered Egypt and integrated it into their vast empire, what happened to Egyptian Sufi culture? How did this shift affect the social status of Sufis, their mosques, zâwiyas and mausoleums? What was the impact on their writings, scholarly debates, rituals and celebrations? In this talk, Rachida Chih, Research Fellow at the French National Center for Scientific Research, will address these broad questions, which have been central to her research on Sufism in Ottoman Egypt, and wil discuss the historiography, sources and methodological approaches that have shaped her understanding of this topic. 

* A version of this article appears in print in the 14 November, 2024 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly