A NEW centre for Islamic Studies, at the University of Abertay Dundee, has been hailed as a bridge between Scotland and the Muslim world. The institute was recently opened by the deputy ruler of Dubai and the finance and industry minister of the UAE, Shaikh Hamdan bin Rashid al-Maktoum. It was established with an endowment from the Al-Maktoum Foundation to promote excellence in teaching and research in Arabic and Islamic studies.

The Al-Maktoum Institute is now a division of Abertay University’s School of Social and Health Sciences, with a comprehensive programme of teaching and research, comprising postgraduate degrees, cultural and historical research activities, and courses for Scottish companies and organizations which interface with the Muslim community. Members of the institute’s council include academics, politicians, local community representatives and religious leaders from Scotland’s Presbyterian, Episcopal and Roman Catholic communities.

At a special graduation ceremony to confer an honorary degree on Shaikh Hamdan bin Rashid al-Maktoum, Professor Bernard King, principal and vice-chancellor of Abertay University, said: “By founding the institute with a generous endowment, His Highness Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid al-Maktoum has created within Abertay a source of knowledge and learning which will contribute immeasurably to promoting deeper understanding, awareness and tolerance between cultures. Now, when the world more than ever needs mechanisms for the exchange of knowledge, ideas and trust between communities, Abertay has been enabled through the Institute to play a key role in breaking down barriers and building a secure, multicultural future for Scotland.”

The university believes that it will rapidly become an important new resource for Scotland. The institute has already held discussions with public-sector bodies in Tayside, and plans are being drawn up for cultural awareness projects involving regional schools, hospitals and doctors’ surgeries. Several research and teaching facilities have been created, including a library and study centre for Arabic and Islamic texts. The institute will run seminars and research programmes attracting guest scholars from around the world, and intends to develop modules in the subject for use in the postgraduate course. Specialized research into new areas of study, including Scotland’s Muslim tradition and the history of Islamic Jerusalem, are also planned.—LPS

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