Georges Tamer
Encyclopedia
Georges Nicolas Tamer is professor
of Arabic and Islamic studies and the holder of the M.S. Sofia Chair in Arabic Studies at the Ohio State University
in Columbus, Ohio
. A scholar of religion, philosophy, and Arabic and Islamic literature and culture, his fields of specialization include Qur'anic studies
, Arabic philosophy
, Christian- and Judeo-Arabic thought, and Islam
in modernity. He has previously taught at the Freie Universität Berlin
, the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, and the Central European University
.
as an infant in Lebanon
, Tamer was unable to attend elementary school and relied on autodidactic learning and private tutoring. After attending high school in Lebanon for one year, Tamer moved to Germany
where he studied philosophy, sociology and theology in Frankfurt
inter alios with Jürgen Habermas
. He obtained his MA in Philosophy from the Freie Universität Berlin in 1995 and was granted a Ph.D. in Philosophy in 2000. He completed his habilitation
in Islamic Studies at the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg in 2007.
Tamer is a highly productive researcher throughout Europe, the United States, and the Middle East, having taken part in a number of research bodies and colloquia
attached to institutes of higher education. These include the Institute for Advanced Study
in Princeton
and the Working Group on Modernity and Islam at the Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin
. He has planned and hosted interdisciplinary conferences on Maimonides
and humor in Arabic culture.
A member of the Antiochian Orthodox Church
, Tamer founded a parish in Berlin. He has participated in several ecumenical activities and interfaith dialogue groups in Germany.
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of Arabic and Islamic studies and the holder of the M.S. Sofia Chair in Arabic Studies at the Ohio State University
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
in Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
. A scholar of religion, philosophy, and Arabic and Islamic literature and culture, his fields of specialization include Qur'anic studies
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
, Arabic philosophy
Islamic philosophy
Islamic philosophy is a branch of Islamic studies. It is the continuous search for Hekma in the light of Islamic view of life, universe, ethics, society, and so on...
, Christian- and Judeo-Arabic thought, and Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
in modernity. He has previously taught at the Freie Universität Berlin
Free University of Berlin
Freie Universität Berlin is one of the leading and most prestigious research universities in Germany and continental Europe. It distinguishes itself through its modern and international character. It is the largest of the four universities in Berlin. Research at the university is focused on the...
, the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg, and the Central European University
Central European University
For other uses, see European University Central European University is a graduate-level, English-language university offering degrees in the social sciences, humanities, law, public policy, business management, environmental science, and mathematics...
.
Education and scholarly activity
Infected by polioPoliomyelitis
Poliomyelitis, often called polio or infantile paralysis, is an acute viral infectious disease spread from person to person, primarily via the fecal-oral route...
as an infant in Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
, Tamer was unable to attend elementary school and relied on autodidactic learning and private tutoring. After attending high school in Lebanon for one year, Tamer moved to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
where he studied philosophy, sociology and theology in Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
inter alios with Jürgen Habermas
Jürgen Habermas
Jürgen Habermas is a German sociologist and philosopher in the tradition of critical theory and pragmatism. He is perhaps best known for his theory on the concepts of 'communicative rationality' and the 'public sphere'...
. He obtained his MA in Philosophy from the Freie Universität Berlin in 1995 and was granted a Ph.D. in Philosophy in 2000. He completed his habilitation
Habilitation
Habilitation is the highest academic qualification a scholar can achieve by his or her own pursuit in several European and Asian countries. Earned after obtaining a research doctorate, such as a PhD, habilitation requires the candidate to write a professorial thesis based on independent...
in Islamic Studies at the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg in 2007.
Tamer is a highly productive researcher throughout Europe, the United States, and the Middle East, having taken part in a number of research bodies and colloquia
Colloquium
Colloquium can refer to:* the Parliament of Scotland, called a "colloquium" in Latin records.* any musical piece celebrating birth or distribution of good news, a hymn...
attached to institutes of higher education. These include the Institute for Advanced Study
Institute for Advanced Study
The Institute for Advanced Study, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States, is an independent postgraduate center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry. It was founded in 1930 by Abraham Flexner...
in Princeton
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
and the Working Group on Modernity and Islam at the Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin
Institute for Advanced Study, Berlin
The Institute for Advanced Study in Berlin in an interdisciplinary institute created 1981 in Berlin-Grunewald for studies in natural, social sciences for various research projects. It is a member of the group Some Institutes for Advanced Study....
. He has planned and hosted interdisciplinary conferences on Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
and humor in Arabic culture.
A member of the Antiochian Orthodox Church
Antiochian Orthodox Church
The Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch, also known as the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East and the Antiochian Orthodox Church , is an autocephalous Greek Orthodox Church within the wider communion of Orthodox Christianity...
, Tamer founded a parish in Berlin. He has participated in several ecumenical activities and interfaith dialogue groups in Germany.
Books
- Islamische Philosophie und die Krise der Moderne: Das Verhältnis von Leo Strauss zu Alfarabi, Avicenna und Averroes. Leiden, Boston, Köln: Brill (Islamic philosophy, theology and science, Vol. 43), 2001.
- Al-Hadātha wa-khitābuhā s-siyāsī (Modernity and its Political Discourse): An Anthology of Jürgen Habermas, translated into Arabic, with introduction and explanations, Beirut: Dar Annahar 2001.
- Tārīkh al-Qur’ān: Theodor Nöldeke et al., Geschichte des Qur’ans. Translation into Arabic, with Introduction, Explanations and Register, Beirut: Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung 2004. 2nd Edition annotated with a new Preface. Köln, Beirut: Al-Kamel 2007.
- Die Trias des Maimonides. Jüdische, arabische und antike Wissenskultur / The Trias of Maimonides. Jewish, Arabic and Ancient Culture of Knowledge (Ed.), Berlin, New York: Walter De Gruyter 2005.
- Zeit und Gott: Hellenistische Zeitvorstellungen in der altarabischen Dichtung und im Koran, Berlin, New York: Walter De Gruyter 2008.
- Humor in der arabischen Kultur / Humor in Arabic Culture (Ed.), Berlin, New York: Walter De Gruyter 2009.
- Kritische Religionsphilosophie. In Memoriam Friedrich Niewöhner, Wilhelm Schmidt-Biggemann & Georges Tamer (Eds.), Berlin, New York: Walter De Gruyter 2010.
Articles and book chapters
- “Christliche Ökumene und Islam: Zeitgemäße Betrachtungen,” in: Weg und Gestalt. Ed. Ökumenisch-Missionarisches Institut des Ökumenischen Rates Berlin-Brandenburg, Berlin 1998: 257–265.
- “Markab turāthī ya‘ūd. Talkhīs Ibn Rushd li-kitāb Aflātūn fī s-siyāsa,” in: Dirāsāt ‘Arabīya 34, Nr. 11/12 (1998): 100–111.
- “‘Laßt uns hier ein Dorf gründen’ – Rum-Orthodoxe Christen aus der Türkei in Deutschland,” in: Gerdien Jonker (Ed.), Kern und Rand. Religiöse Minderheiten aus der Türkei in Deutschland. Arbeitsheften des Zentrums Moderner Orient, Berlin 1999: 15–28.
- “Ex oriente lux? Ein Nachwort,” in: Die Zukunft der orientalischen Christen. Eine Debatte im Mittleren Osten, hrsg. vom Evangelischen Missionswerk in Deutschland (EMW), dem Informationsprojekt Naher und Mittlerer Osten (INAMO) und Alexander Flores, Hamburg und Berlin 2001: 128–134.
- “Liū Shtraus wa-l-falsafa l-islāmīya l-wasīta,” in: Al-Abhath 48/49, American University of Beirut (2000–2001): 81-126.
- “Wie können die vier Fragen Immanuel Kants im Zeitalter der Globalisierung und Gentechnik gelesen werden?,” in: Roland Kreuzer (Ed.), Über Kant und Kunst. Beiträge zum Weltfragen Symposium, Berlin 2002: 21-23.
- “Kreuz und Halbmond im Lande der Zedern,” in: Ideen und Informationen: Arbeitsheft zum Weltgebetstag, ed. Deutsches Weltgebetstagskomitee, Stein 2003: 116-121.
- “Kirche der Übergänge: Die rum-orthodoxe Kirche im Libanon und in Deutschland,” in: Sabine Gralla (Ed.), Oriens Christianus. Geschichte und Gegenwart des nahöِstlichen Christentums. Villigst Profile Bd. 1. Lit Verlag Münster/Hamburg 2003: 93-110.
- “Al-’ān mil’ az-zamān,” in: Chronos. Revue d’Histoire de l’Université de Balamand 8 (2003): 223-243
- “Kultursynthese als Friedenspotential: Rum-Orthodoxe aus Nahost in Deutschland,” in: Hans-Martin Barth/Christoph Elsas (Eds.), in: Religiöse Minderheiten - Potentiale für Konflikt und Frieden. E. B.-Verlag Hamburg 2004: 103-115.
- “Warum der christlich-islamische Dialog notwendig ist,” in: Ursula Spuler-Stegemann (Ed.), Feindbild Christentum im Islam. Verlag Herder Freiburg 2004: 62-74.
- “Monotheismus und Politik bei Alfarabi,” in: Aziz Al-Azmeh and János M. Bak (Ed.), Montheistic Kingship: The Medieval Variants, Budapest: Central European University, Dept. of Medieval Studies, 2004 (= CEU Medievalia 5): 191-214.
- “Politisches Denken in pseudoplatonischen arabischen Schriften,” in: Mélanges de l’Université Saint Joseph. The Greek Strand in Islamic Political Thought. Proccedings of the Conference held at the Institute for Advanced Study of Greek, Princeton 16–27 June 2003. Vol. LVII (2004): 303-335.
- “Zur Interpretation von Heiligen Schriften bei Averroes und Maimonides,” in: Georges Tamer (Ed.), Die Trias des Maimonides. Jüdische, arabische und antike Wissenskultur. Berlin, New York: Walter De Gruyter 2005: 237-256.
- “Glauben und Wissen: Ein Widerspruch?,” in: H. J. Luibl, K. Städler, Ch. Sudermann, K. Ulrich-Eschemann (Eds.), Gott und die Wissenschaften, Berlin: LIT Verlag 2007: 34-44.
- “Khawātir fī l-‛ilm wa-l-’īmān. A-sinwān humā am diddān?,” in: Georges Massouh, As‛ad Qattān, Georges Tamer (Eds.), Wajh wa-wahj: Festschrift for Metropolitan Georges Khodr, Beirut: An-Nour Publisher 2007: 87-107.
- “Koexistenz im Konflikt: Konfession und Politik im Libanon,” in: Karl Pinggéra (Ed.), „… so soll der Libanon fruchtbares Land werden“. Christen im Libanon – Probleme und Perspektiven, Hofgeismar: Evangelische Akademie Hofgeismar 2007: 9-24.
- “Bemerkungen zu al-Fārābīs ‘Zusammenfassung der platonischen Nomoi’,” in: Andreas Eckl / Clemens Kauffamnn (Eds.), Politischer Platonismus, Würzburg: Königshausen & Neumann 2008: 53-62.
- “Islam und Zivilgesellschaft,” in: Otto Jastrwo, Shabo Talay, Herta Hafenrichter (Eds.), Studien zur Semitistik und Arabistik. Festschrift for Hartmut Bobzin zum 60. Geburtstag, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz 2008: 403-423.
- “Christliche Trinität und islamischer Monotheismus: Yah9yā Ibn (Adīs Gottesbild,” in: Martin Tamcke (Ed.), Christliche Gotteslehre im Orient seit dem Aufkommen des Islams bis zur Gegenwart, Beiruter Texte und Studien 126. Beirut: Orient-Institut Beitrut 2008: 83-99.
- “The Qur’ān and humor,” in: Georges Tamer (Ed.), Humor in der arabischen Kultur / Humor in Arabic Culture, Berlin, New York: Walter De Gruyter 2009: 3-28.
- “Faith and Knowledge Revisited,” in: Rosenzweig Jahrbuch 4 (2009): 156-175.
- “Hellenistic Ideas of Time in the Koran,” in: Lothar Gall/Dietmar Willoweit (Eds.), Judaism, Christianity, and Islam in the Course of History: Exchange and Conflicts, München: Oldenbourg-Verlag 2010: 21-42.
- “Alter Wein in neuen Schläuchen? Zum Umgang des Averroes mit dem Koran und seiner Rezeption im zeitgenössischen islamischen Denken,” in: Wilhelm Schmidt-Biggemann and Georges Tamer (Eds.), Kritische Religionsphilosophie. In Memoriam Friedrich Niewöhner, Berlin, New York: Walter De Gruyter 2010: 47-84.