The afikra Podcast

George Junne is a scholar and an associate professor in the Africana studies department at the University of Northern Colorado and the author of "The Black Eunuchs of the Ottoman Empire: Networks of Power in the Courts of the Sultan", 2016.  Created & Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikra conversation series: Our long-form interview...

Tasneem Alsultan is an acclaimed Saudi photographer whose work explores gender & social issues across the GCC and MidEast. Created & Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikra conversation series: Our long-form interview series, hosted on Zoom, featuring academics and arts ‎and media experts who are helping document and/or shape the hist...

Antonio talks to us about what Clay Pot Yogurt is and about Kitchen Pottery in the Arab World. Hosted by:  Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About afikra Community Presentations: Every Saturday a community member delivers an in-depth presentation on a ‎topic related to the Arab world’s history and culture during a one-hour online event. The presentation is...

Maria reads to us into Edward Said’s essay “Living in Arabic". Camilia explores how invisible black Moroccans can be made visible through the ideas and works of M’Barek Bouhchichi. Nadia Muijrers reviews "On Identity" by Amin Maalouf. Yasmine looks into the story of Swatch . Hosted by:   Mikey Muhanna , afikra  Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani Once a month we hold an afikra Mez...

Natasha is a Ph. D. candidate in modern Middle Eastern history at Columbia University. She studies the establishment and development of the oil industry in Iraq and the Levant after the First World War. Created & Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikra conversation series: Our long-form interview series, hosted on Zoom, featuring acad...

We talked with Mohammed Zakaria about his work as a photographer, as well as his career building the budding skateboarding scene in the region. Created & Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikra conversation series: Our long-form interview series, hosted on Zoom, featuring academics and arts ‎and media experts who are helping document...

Laila explores the work of Karimeh Abbud: (كريمة عبّود‎) who was a Palestinian professional photographer and artist who lived and worked in Palestine in the first half of the twentieth century.  Note: Laila is not an expert on this subject but is sharing information in the hopes of spurring interest in the subject. Hosted by:  Rami Abou-Khalil Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani A...

Greg Burris is a film maker, cultural theorist, and professor at the American University of Beirut whose work focuses on race, media, and emancipatory politics. He is also the author of "The Palestinian Idea: Film, Media, and the Radical Imagination" (Temple University, 2019) Created & Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikra conversat...

Ahmad Damen realized that World Music research is based on a comparative study with Western Music Theory. Thus, he asked, how would this field of study be like if the music of the world were studied based on a Middle Eastern Theory model instead?  Connect with Ahmed: https://www.instagram.com/damenjarre/ Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About a...

Malika Bilal is the host of The Take podcast by Al Jazeera and former co-host of The Stream, a social-media driven talk show on Al Jazeera English. Connect with Malika: https://www.instagram.com/mmbilal/ Follow The Take: https://www.instagram.com/ajthetake/ Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna   & Yazan Kopty Created by:   Mikey Muhanna   Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikra c...

Nihal looked for the ways Abu Abdullah Muhammad Al-Idrisi contributed to cartography while Ahmed researched “Things We Lost in the Fire: What was in the University of Mosul's Central Library when it Burned?”, Usman shared his reading and information on the “Animals Lawsuit Against Humanity” book, and Maha forwards us the legacy of Doria Shafik (درية شفيق‎‎). Hosted by:   Mikey Muhanna , afikra  Ed...

We talked to the creative powerhouse & scholar, Maytha Alhassen about her academic scholarship, her work as a poet and activist, and her recent work as a writer on the Hulu show Ramy.  Connect with Maytha: https://www.instagram.com/maythaalhassen/ Created & Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikra conversation series: Our long-form int...

We talked to Rana Abdelhamid, a  social entrepreneur and community organizer, about the organizations she founded like MALIKAH and Little Egypt. Connect with Rana: https://www.instagram.com/ranaabdelhamid/ Created & Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikra conversation series: Our long-form interview series, hosted on Zoom, featuring a...

We had a conversation with Antonia Carver,the director of Art Jameel, about the organization's work in the UAE and across the Middle East. Know more about Art Jameel: https://jameelartscentre.org/ Connect with Antonia:  https://www.instagram.com/antoniamcarver/ Created & Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikra conversation series: Our...

We spoke to the director of the Arab American Museum Diana Abouali to learn more about the history of the museum, its work and exhibitions, and her career as a museum director.  Connect with Diana: https://www.instagram.com/tabbouli /  Follow the Arab American Museum: https://www.instagram.com/arabamericanmuseum/ Created by: Mikey Muhanna Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna & Yazan Kopty  Edited by: Ramzi Ra...

Listen to what Alexandra has been researching on Khaleeji Swing. The presentation features an overview of the most important African-influenced Khaleeji rhythms, from the UAE, to Saudi Arabia to Yemen, including some examples of their contemporary interpretations. Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About afikra Community Presentations: Every Satu...

We talked to Dalal about her work as a journalist and video producer. We also talked about her work with refugees, and more! Dalal Mawad is an award-winning Lebanese journalist currently working as a senior Middle East and North Africa video producer and correspondent with the Associated Press.   Connect with Dalal: https://twitter.com/dalalmawad Created & Hosted by:  Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited...

Journalist and writer Zahra Hankir talks about her work and publishing the fantastic collection "Our Women on the Ground: Essays by Arab Women Reporting from the Arab World."  Connect with Zahra: https://instagram.com/zahrahankir / https://twitter.com/ZahraHankir/ Created & Hosted by:  Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikra conversation series:...

Farrah shares with us her deep dive into the 5000 year old Khufu ship. It was sealed in a pit in the Giza pyramid complex at the foot of the Great Pyramid of Giza around 2500 BC. Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About afikra Community Presentations: Every Saturday a community member delivers an in-depth presentation on a ‎topic related to the A...

We interviewed acclaimed street artist Yazan Halwani to talk about his career, his inspiration, and some the technical challenges he faces while working on large scale murals. Connect with Yazan:  https://www.instagram.com/yazanhalwani/‎ ‎Created & Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikra conversation series: Our long-form interview se...

Bader shares his passion and research with us as he explores how different breeds of horses are classified, focusing on the Arabian horses.  Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About afikra Community Presentations: Every Saturday a community member delivers an in-depth presentation on a ‎topic related to the Arab world’s history and culture during...

Under the title “Nostalgia in Art” we talked to designer and Studio owner, Rana Salam, and the cultural cartographer behind “The confused Arab”, Sofiane Si Merabet.  Connect with Rana: https://www.instagram.com/ranasalam/ Connect with Sofiane: https://www.instagram.com/theconfusedarab/ Created & Hosted by:  Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikr...

Mazen looks into Sci-Fi epics, mentioning examples of the different Arab epics that have passed ‎throughout history. He also talks about how they used to write them versus how they are written today. ‎ Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna & Rami Abou-Khalil Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About afikra Community Presentations: Every Saturday a community member delivers an in-depth presenta...

We talked to Rosaline Elbay about her career as an Egyptian actor and writer. Rosaline is best known for ‎her roles as Amani on Hulu/A24 Films series Ramy and as Sara on MBC Masr series Qabeel.   Connect with Rosaline: https://www.instagram.com/rosaline.elbay/‎ Created & Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About the afikra conversation series: Our...

Have you ever wondered what were the origins of Egyptology or how Napoleon played a part in it? Join Julia as she talks about her research on Napoleon’s “scientific expedition.”  Hosted by: Mikey Muhanna , afikra Edited by: Ramzi Ramman Theme music by: Tarek Yamani About afikra Community Presentations: Every Saturday a community member delivers an in-depth presentation on a ‎topic related to the A...