The General Directorate of Syriac Culture and Arts in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region has just released the new, 51st issue of “Banipal” magazine, in both paper and electronic versions, and it is full of abundant topics, as well as various research articles and studies.
The issue begins with a foreword stating that “Banipal” magazine continues to present a culture of tolerance, acceptance of others, and commitment to free speech with contemporary horizons that go beyond traditional frameworks.
The editorial states that the Directorate’s aim in issuing it is, “to research the depths of our history, heritage, national culture, arts, and the treasures of knowledge they contain; to shake off the dust of past years and present them to researchers and scholars, so that they may become familiar with this great legacy.”
Also in this new issue, is the third and final part of a history of the Diocese of Kashkar by Bishop Habib Hormiz, pastor of the Chaldean Catholic Diocese of Basra, as well as an article by Ahmad Mahmoud Al-Shraideh regarding Syriac and its cultural and human heritage in light of modern changes between extinction and diaspora, and a study by writer Nazar Hanna al-Derani on the language of the pre-Islamic Arabian Peninsula based on inscriptions discovered, between Syriac and Yemeni.
The issue also covers various articles and poems, as well as the General Directorate of Syriac Culture and Arts’ most important news and activities during the past period.
As for the Syriac section, writer Akkad Murad studies the issue of emigration from the homeland, to which our people are exposed, and this is complemented another study on minorities by minority rights activist Mikhael Benjamin. These are in addition to poems, texts, and interviews in the mother tongue.
The magazine’s Kurdish section includes an article by Khalil Abdullah about Iraqi journalism pioneer Raphael Batti, and a study on the art of pottery making by Lawrence Nader Makho, in addition to reports on the Directorate’s news and activities.
Finally, the magazine’s English section discusses a detailed interview with Prof. Sebastian Brock about the First Athra Syriac Symposium, which is scheduled to be held this September in Erbil’s Ankawa district.
It is worth noting that “Banipal” is a quarterly cultural magazine issued by the General Directorate of Syriac Culture and Arts in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region in four languages: Syriac, Arabic, Kurdish and English. It is owned by the Regional Government’s Culture and Youth Ministry, and its editor-in-chief is Kaldo Ramzi Oghanna.
You can read the new issue through the link below: