An interesting digital archive: the TIMEA “focuses on Western interactions with the Middle East, particularly travels to Egypt during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries”.

Nothing left to read? Check out “Kalimat“!

This brand new open access magazine aims to rejuvenate Arabic culture by providing an outlet for political, cultural and social expression within the Arab region and its Diaspora. It is as well a visual communication tool to change Western perception of Arabs.

“Kalimat”, which means “words”, is inspired from the Magda Roumi song written by Nizar Qabbani.

Since the summer of 2010 the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek has been present in the mobile Internet, presenting an innovative offer: the App “Famous Books”. It was the world’s first library to present digital copies of most valuable, outstanding items from its collections in the form of an App for iPads and iPhones. In 2011, one year later, the library presents the new App “Oriental Books. Oriental Treasures of the Bavarian State Library”, containing precious and remarkable books and manuscripts of the library’s famous and internationally renowned oriental collection. 20 items can be downloaded free of charge in the Apple App store and can be browsed from the first to the last page on the brilliant colour displays of iPads and iPhones. Oriental treasures which so far were hidden in vaults and usually were accessible for the interested public only rarely in exhibitions can now be admired anytime and anywhere.

With the App “Oriental Books” the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek has achieved a further milestone on the way to the virtual library and again gives proof of its competence as innovation centre for digital information technology and services. We invite you to browse “The wonders of creation”, an Arabic illustrated manuscript, which is dated to 1280, “The prayer book of Düzdidil”, a Turkish and Arabic manuscript from 1845 orthe renowned “Book of King”, written in Shiraz between 1550 and 1600. Welcome to the App “Oriental Books. Oriental Treasures of the Bavarian State Library”!

The ISL recently acquired the Adam Mathew Digital product Confidential Print: Middle East. The resource is accessible here.

What can be found in this product? From the website, “The Confidential Print series, issued by the Foreign and Colonial Offices since c. 1820, is one of the fundamental building blocks for research that should be possessed by any academic library and one of the most important series produced by the British Government.

The series originated out of a need for the Government to preserve all of the most important papers generated by the Foreign and Colonial Offices. Some of these were one-page letters or telegrams; others were large volumes or texts of treaties. All items marked ‘Confidential Print’ were printed and circulated immediately to leading officials in the Foreign Office, to the Cabinet and to heads of British missions abroad.”

The resource is full of excellent primary documents geared to students studying Empire, colonial studies, Middle East and Western (British) relations, and Middle East history between 1839-1969.

The Islamic Studies Library is glad to announce two new databases are now available for McGill users: The Middle East Online Series volume 1 (Arab-Israeli Relations, 1917-1970) and volume 2 (Iraq, 1914-1974).

These fully searchable databases provide access to more than 400.000 primary source documents, such as original material from the Foreign Office, Colonial Office, War Office, Cabinet Papers but also historical photographs and maps. All resources have been evaluated by an editorial team composed of recognized Middle East Studies scholars.

You can access them through the McGill Libraries’ catalogue: check them out and let us know what you think!