Thread by @TeachingCodex

We're beginning #teachingcodex with a set of panel presentations. First up is Mulaika Hijjas from @SOAS speaking on 'Community-sourcing as hybrid philology'

There are about 10,000 surviving Malay MSS, earliest are C15, most are C19. Things need to be recopied constantly because of the climate. #teachingcodex

#teachingcodex

Most Malay MSS are written in a modified form of Arabic called Jawi. Script changed in mid C20.

So there's a disjunct with lots of older literature. #teachingcodex

Jawi was taught in schools until 1980s, last newspaper went out of print in 2006. #teachingcodex

There are fewer and fewer opportunities to teach Jawi. Take opportunities to insert it into curriculum, e.g. in a course on environmental humanities about elephants!

The hybridity here is finding ever more surreptitious ways of continuing the field! Text editions are not popular with the REF. #teachingcodex

Project on community sourcing transcription, in-person and online, using From the Page. Members of the public turned up, & who they were depended on the venue: Singapore National Library produced different participants from heritage organisations or indie bookshops elsewhere.

#teachingcodex Mulaika is now showing us a video of one of the transcribers on the project performing one of the texts.

The community-sourced translation has resulted in this book. Text collected in 1804, and it's been in the British Library, unread. Now it's available in affordable copy & reached the top 5! #teachingcodex

This matters! It's about reading the texts, not just talking about them. Teaching AND co-creation of knowledge #teachingcodex

@threadreaderapp
please unroll