Matthew Keegan and Johannes Stephan participated in the international workshop Conceptions and Configurations of the Arabic Literary Canon which took place between June 17 and 19, this year in the Columbia University Global Center of Paris.
A central aspect discussed at the workshop is the overlap of the concepts of canon, literary history, anthological literature and tradition. The question of canonicity is crucial to our project, as Kalīla and Dimna happened to be included and excluded from processes of canonization throughout its long history within the Arabic tradition. A complex process culminating in first critical editions in the early 19th century led to its acquiring the status of a classic within Arabic literature. Moreover, all versions of Kalīla and Dimna carry with it an internal textual history, as they all thematize in their introductory chapters the travelling of texts between different languages and localities, and hence may be seen as an early contribution to an Arabic literary canon.
Recap by Johannes Stephan