Middle East Studies Center at Portland State University

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Middle East Studies Center at Portland State University

Founded in 1959, the Middle East Studies Center at Portland State University serves a diverse, inclu

The Middle East Studies Center started in 1959 as the first federally supported undergraduate program for Arabic language and Middle East area studies in the nation. Portland State’s Middle East studies curriculum includes foreign language courses in Arabic, Hebrew, Turkish and Persian as well as area studies courses in a number of disciplines. The Middle East studies program boasts a distinguished faculty and vast library resources.

05/04/2026

Join us for our next Online Lecture Series!

Title: War, Crisis, and Survival: A Feminist Perspective from Lebanon

We’re honored to welcome Joulia Bou Karroum, a GESSI expert with 18+ years of experience in gender equality, human rights, and inclusive development across the MENA region.

This is a conversation you don’t want to miss.

🗓 Thursday, May 21, 2026
🕚 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM PST
💻 Online via Zoom
✅ Free & open to the public

Scan the QR code to join!

Co-sponsored by the

05/04/2026

Time is running out!

Apply for a Middle East Studies Center scholarship before May 10 at 11:59 PM.

Three awards available — $600 to $2,000.

Check out our website, link in bio. Tag a student who should apply!

04/24/2026

MESC Online Lecture Series.

Join us for an engaging session with our guest speaker Alireza Nader!

🗓 Date: Thursday, April 30, 2026
⏰ Time: 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM
📍 Location: Zoom (scan QR Code to join)
🎙 Talk Title: Inequalities in Iran

We are excited to bring you another thought-provoking discussion as part of our ongoing series.

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn and connect!

Feel free to share this with anyone who might be interested, we would love to see you there.

OnlineEvent

04/13/2026

Join us for an upcoming event MESC is co-sponsoring!

Turkish Studies Presentation

🗓 Thursday, April 30, 2026
⏰ 5:30 PM
📍 SMSU 298, Smith Memorial Student Union
1825 SW Broadway, Portland, OR 97201

Burcu Karahan, Advanced Lecturer in Comparative Literature at Stanford University, will give a talk titled “Desire, Humor, and the End of an Empire: On Translating One Thousand and One Kisses.” Her presentation explores how desire, humor, and empire collide in 19th-century Ottoman storytelling — diving into translation, literary history, and the cultural significance of late Ottoman texts.

This event is co-sponsored by the Middle East Studies Center (MESC), PSU Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies, English, History, and University Honors.

Free and open to the public, hope to see you there!

04/13/2026

Join us this Thursday for our Spring Tarbell Mentor Program lecture:

Fakes or Forgeries? Examining Problematic Examples of Islamic Ceramics

Date: Thursday, April 16, 2026
Time: 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM PT
Venue :Zoom

Free & open to the public, registration required!

Guest speaker Dr. Richard McClary (Senior Lecturer, University of York) will explore heavily restored and newly manufactured ceramic vessels circulating in the art market, with a focus on polychrome mina’i ware and luster-decorated pieces.

Register via the link in our bio! 👆

Co-sponsored by

04/13/2026

Three scholarships. One deadline!

The Middle East Studies Center at Portland State University has three scholarship opportunities open now for undergraduate and graduate students, ranging from $600 to $2,000!

✨ Gary & Patricia Leiser Scholarship
✨ John Damis Scholarship
✨ Elizabeth Ducey Scholarship

Deadline: May 10, 2026 at 11:59 PM

Visit the Middle East Studies Center website (link in bio!) to check your eligibility and apply.

04/13/2026

Join us for an insightful talk next week!

Title: Shifting Landscape of Social Relationships and the Depression Epidemic in South Korea

Over the past two decades, South Korea has seen a striking rise in depression, anxiety, and su***de. What if depression is better understood as a relational crisis?

Dr. Eun Kyong Shin, Associate Professor at Korea University and Visiting Scholar at Harvard University, will explore how accelerated modernization, urbanization, and digitalization are reshaping the very foundations of relationship-making in Korean society.

Date: Thursday, April 23, 2026
Time: 12:40 PM – 2:00 PM
Location Parson Gallery, 2nd Floor, 506 SW Mill St, Portland, OR 97201

Free & open to the public, registration is highly recommended!

Visit our website for more info and to register (scan the QR code).

Inform a friend who’d love this!

This event is co-sponsored by and

04/08/2026

Thank you to our panelist for today’s discussion panel, Developments in Iran.

A huge thank you as well to the 45+ attendees who joined us both in person and online and contributed such thoughtful and informative questions. Your engagement made this conversation especially meaningful.

We are also deeply grateful to our community and co-sponsor for helping make this event possible. Thank you for your support! 🤍

Address

632 SW Hall Street
Portland, OR
97201

Telephone

(503) 725-4074

Website

http://www.pdx.edu/middle-east-studies

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