Unearthing Rabiʿa's Grave
Placemaking, Shrines, and Contested Traditions in Balkh, Afghanistan
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8967784 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Shamim Homayun (0000-0002-3939-7602, Australian National University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2023 |
| Volume | 55 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 1-24 |
| Publication date | 2023-02-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Journal Middle East Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0020-7438 • E-ISSN: 1471-6380 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s0020743823000314 |
| OpenAlex | W4322505166 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 9 |
Rabiʿa Balkhi was a princess and poet who, according to medieval accounts, flourished in 10th-century Balkh. She gained wide popularity in 20th-century Afghanistan, where she has been the subject of books, poems, and movies. This article recounts the story of her grave's discovery in the center of Balkh's town park in the 1960s, the emergence of a shrine around it, and its integration with Balkh's landscape of antiquity. Drawing on parallels from across the Muslim world, I argue that Rabiʿa's shrine emerged through a dialogue between state officials and local forms of placemaking. But although initially motivated by nationalist sentiment, the Afghan state lost its ability to define Rabiʿa's life on nationalist terms. As Afghanistan fragmented through war, her shrine survived as a space where her life was constantly reinterpreted and where disputed visions over the nation's past and future played out
Afghan · Ancient history · Archaeology · Art · Literature · Nationalism · Parallels · Placemaking · Poetry · Political science · Politics · State (computer science · Subject (documents · Architecture · Classics · History · Islamic Studies and History · Law · Politics and Conflicts in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Middle East · Turkey's Politics and Society
Wisdom sits in places
From Persianate pasts to Aryan antiquity. Transnationalism and transformation in Afghan intellectual history, c.1880–1940
Illicit Acts and Sacred Space
The Religious and Cultural Roles of Dreams and Visions in Islam
Modern Sufis and the State
Afghan women between Marxism and Islamic fundamentalism
The Afghan Discovery of Buddha
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,5 |
| Citation span | 2024 - 2024 (1) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |