Look up Kurdish in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Kurdish edition of Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kurdish (Kurdish: Kurdî كوردى) may refer to:

• The Kurdish people
• The Kurdish language
• The Kurdish alphabet
• Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes:

• Iranian Kurdistan
• Iraqi Kurdistan
• Turkish Kurdistan
• Syrian Kurdistan

• History of the Kurdish people
• Kurdish literature
• Kurdish music
• Yazidi, the religion of some Kurds
• Kurdish rugs
• Kurdish cuisine
• Kurdish culture

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

A modern raised-relief world globe

A globe is a three-dimensional scale model of Earth (terrestrial globe) or other spheroid celestial body such as a planet, star, or moon. It may also refer to a spherical representation of the celestial sphere, showing the apparent positions of the stars and constellations in the sky (celestial globe). The word "globe" comes from the Latin word globus, meaning round mass or sphere.

Terrestrial and planetary[link]

A globe is the only representation of the earth that does not distort either the shape or the size of large features; flat maps are created using a map projection that inevitably introduces an increasing amount of distortion the larger the area that the map shows. A typical scale for a terrestrial globe is roughly 1:40 million.

Sometimes a globe has surface texture showing topography; in these, elevations are exaggerated, otherwise they would be hardly visible. Most modern globes are also imprinted with parallels and meridians, so that one can tell the approximate coordinates of a specific place. Globes provide the best view of Earth today.

Celestial[link]

A German celestial globe c.1770

Celestial globes show the apparent positions of the stars in the sky. They omit the Sun, Moon and planets because the positions of these bodies vary relative to those of the stars, but the ecliptic, along which the Sun moves, is indicated.

A potential issue arises regarding the "handedness" of celestial globes. If the globe is constructed so that the stars are in the positions they actually occupy on the imaginary celestial sphere, then the star field will appear back-to-front on the surface of the globe (all the constellations will appear as their mirror images). This is because the view from Earth, positioned at the centre of the celestial sphere, is of the inside of the celestial sphere, whereas the celestial globe is viewed from the outside. For this reason, celestial globes may be produced in mirror image, so that at least the constellations appear the "right way round". Some modern celestial globes address this problem by making the surface of the globe transparent. The stars can then be placed in their proper positions and viewed through the globe, so that the view is of the inside of the celestial sphere, as it is from Earth.

History[link]

The "Erdapfel" of Martin Beheim is the oldest surviving terrestrial globe. The Americas are not yet included. 1491-1493. Germanisches Nationalmuseum Nuremberg

The sphericity of the Earth was established by Hellenistic astronomy in the 3rd century BC, and the earliest terrestrial globe appeared from that period. The earliest known example is the one constructed by Crates of Mallus in Cilicia (now Çukurova in modern-day Turkey), in the mid-2nd century BC.

No terrestrial globes from Antiquity or the Middle Ages have survived. An example of a surviving celestial globe is part of a Hellenistic sculpture, called the Farnese Atlas, surviving in a 2nd century AD Roman copy in the Naples Museum, Italy.^[1]

Early terrestrial globes depicting the entirety of the Old World were constructed in the Islamic world.^[2][3] According to David Woodward, one such example was the terrestrial globe introduced to Beijing by the Persian astronomer, Jamal ad-Din, in 1267.^[4]

The oldest surviving terrestrial globe is the Erdapfel, created by Martin Behaim in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1492.^[1] A facsimile globe showing America was made by Martin Waldseemueller in 1507. Another early globe, the Hunt-Lenox Globe, ca. 1507, is thought to be the source of the phrase "Here be dragons". Another "remarkably modern-looking" terrestrial globe of the Earth was constructed by Taqi al-Din at the Istanbul observatory of Taqi al-Din during the 1570s.^[5]

An unusually high proportion of vintage 20th century world globes feature the Australian town of Birdum, which no longer exists but once held an important position at the end of the Northern Australian Railway.

Globus IMP electro-mechanical devices including five-inch globes have been used in Soviet and Russian spacecraft from 1961 to 2002 as navigation instruments. In 2001, the TMA version of the Soyuz spacecraft replaced this instrument with a virtual globe.^[6]

Manufacture[link]

A short, 1955, Dutch film showing the manufacture of globes

Traditionally, globes were manufactured by gluing a printed paper map onto a sphere, often made from wood.

The most common type has long, thin gores (strips) of paper that narrow to a point at the poles,^[7] small disks cover over the inevitable irregularities at these points. The more gores there are, the less stretching and crumpling is required to make the paper map fit the sphere. From a geometric point of view, all points on a sphere are equivalent – one could select any arbitrary point on the Earth, and create a paper map that covers the Earth with strips that come together at that point and the antipodal point.

A thermoplastic globe hemisphere, before the excess plastic has been trimmed off.

Modern globes are often made from thermoplastic. Flat, plastic disks are printed with a distorted map of one of the Earth's Hemispheres. This is placed in machine which molds the disk into a hemispherical shape. The hemisphere is united with its opposite counterpart to form a complete globe.

A globe is usually mounted at a 23.5° angle on a meridian. In addition to making it easy to use this mounting also represents the angle of the planet in relation to its sun and the spin of the planet. This makes it easy to visualize how days and seasons change.

Notable examples[link]

• The Unisphere in Queens, New York, at 120 feet (36.6 m) in diameter, is the world's largest global structure.
• Eartha, currently the world's largest rotating globe (41 ft or 12 m in diameter), at the Delorme headquarters in Yarmouth, Maine
• The Mapparium, three-story, stained glass globe at the Mary Baker Eddy Library in Boston, which visitors walk through via a 30-foot (9.1 m) glass bridge.
• The Babson globe in Wellesley, Massachusetts, a 26-foot-diameter (7.9 m) globe which originally rotated on its axis and on its base to simulate day and night and the seasons
• The giant globe in the lobby of The News Building in New York City.
• The Hitler Globe, also known as the Führer globe, was formally named the Columbus Globe for State and Industry Leaders. Two editions existed during Hitler's lifetime, created during the mid-1930s on his orders. (The second edition changed the name of Abyssinia to Italian East Africa). These globes were "enormous" and very costly. According to the New York Times, "the real Columbus globe was nearly the size of a Volkswagen and, at the time, more expensive." Several still exist, including three in Berlin: one at a geographical institute, one at the Märkisches Museum, and another at the Deutsches Historisches Museum. The latter has a Soviet bullet hole through Germany. One of the two in public collections in Munich has an American bullet hole through Germany. There are several in private hands inside and out of Germany. A much smaller version of Hitler's globe was mocked by Charlie Chaplin in The Great Dictator, a film released in 1940.^[8]

Gallery[link]

• 

  Top view of 1765 de l'Isle globe

• 

  The Unisphere, attributed to "uribe"/Uri Baruchin

• 

  1594, Mechanised Celestial Globe

• 

  A Globus IMP navigation instrument from a Voskhod spacecraft.

• 

  Eartha, the largest rotating globe in the world.

• 

  A map of Mars that circulated commercialy in the 19th century. It is an example of how maps are printed in order to be folded around a sphere to form a globe.

• 

  Muhammad Salih Tahtawi of Sindh, headed the task of creating a massive, seamless celestial globe using a secret wax casting method in the Mughal Empire, the famous celestial globe of Muhammad Salih Tahtawi is inscribed with Arabic and Persian inscriptions and was completed in the year 1631.^[9][10]

• 

  Multitouch spherical Globe with digital EARTH based on multitouch software

See also[link]

• Armillary sphere
• Cartography
• Dymaxion map
• Emery Molyneux
• Google Earth
• NASA World Wind
• Johannes Schöner globe
• Virtual globe
• Voskhod Spacecraft "Globus" IMP navigation instrument

References[link]

1. ^ ^{a b} Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 2003.
2. ^ Medieval Islamic Civilization By Josef W. Meri, Jere L Bacharach, page 138-139 - available via google books - http://books.google.com/books?id=H-k9oc9xsuAC&pg=PA138&lpg=PA138&dq=al-Ma%3Fmun%3Fs+globe&source=bl&ots=TSmSiEUZXk&sig=NGzhTsbRRoSmH4UiPQCh0Y1sO_c&hl=en&ei=NMxYSvbsBeS6jAfNjNwa&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8
3. ^ Covington, Richard (2007), Saudi Aramco World, May–June 2007: 17–21, http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200703/the.third.dimension.htm, retrieved 2008-07-06 
4. ^ David Woodward (1989), "The Image of the Spherical Earth", Perspecta (MIT Press) 25: 3–15 [9], JSTOR 1567135 
5. ^ Soucek, Svat (1994), "Piri Reis and Ottoman Discovery of the Great Discoveries", Studia Islamica (Maisonneuve &#38) 79 (79): 121–142 [123 & 134–6], DOI:10.2307/1595839, JSTOR 1595839 
6. ^ Tiapchenko, Yurii. "Information Display Systems for Russian Spacecraft: An Overview". Computing in the Soviet Space Program (Translation from Russian: Slava Gerovitch). http://web.mit.edu/slava/space/essays/essay-tiapchenko1.htm. 
7. ^ http://netpbm.sourceforge.net/doc/globe.jpg
8. ^ "The Mystery of Hitler's Globe Goes Round and Round", by Michael Kimmelman, September 18, 2007. Accessed September 18, 2007.
9. ^ Savage-Smith, Emilie (1985), Islamicate Celestial Globes: Their History, Construction, and Use, Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C. 
10. ^ Kazi, Najma (24 November 2007). "Seeking Seamless Scientific Wonders: Review of Emilie Savage-Smith's Work". FSTC Limited. http://www.muslimheritage.com/topics/default.cfm?articleID=832. Retrieved 2008-02-01. 

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Globe

• ppmglobe - generate strips to glue onto a sphere
• 3D VRML globe
• 3D Java Globe with coastlines, parallels, meridians, etc.
• How to orient a globe in homothetic position to the Earth

Kurdish women (Kurdish: Jinên/Afiretên Kurd) have traditionally played important roles in Kurdish history, society and politics.

Lady Adela (center), ruler of Halabja, meeting with Major Soane in 1919.

Historical Accounts[link]

In Politics[link]

Sharaf ad-Din Bitlisi's 1597 Sharafnāma mentions three Kurdish women assuming power in Kurdish principalities. Evliya Çelebi also noted that Kurdish women did occasionally assume power in Kurdistan and Ottoman authorities accepted the succession in those principalities by a female ruler.^[1]

In the late 19th century, Lady Halima of Hakari was the ruler of Bash Kala until she was forced to surrender to the Ottoman government after the suppression of Bedir Khan revolt in 1847. A young Kurdish woman named Fatma became chief of the Ezdinan tribe in 1909 and she was known among her tribe as the queen. During the World War I, Russian forces negotiated their safe passage through tribal territory with Lady Maryam of the famous Nehri family, who according to Basile Nikitine, wielded great authority among her followers. Lady Adela, ruler of Halabja, exerted great influence in the affairs of Jaf tribe in the Shahrazur plain on the Turco-Iranian frontier. The revival of commerce and restoration of law and order in the region of Halabja is attributed to her sound judgement.^[2]

In Society and Literature[link]

According to the Kurdish writer Mahmud Bayazidi, the Kurdish women did not veil and they participated in social activities such as work, dancing and singing together with men.^[3] In traditional Kurdish literature, both matriarchal and patriarchal tendencies are found. In the Ballad of "Las and Khazal" (Beytî Las û Xezal), female tribal rulers openly compete over a lover, while in patriarchal contexts, women are subject to male violence.^[1]

Accounts of Western Travelers[link]

European travelers have mentioned that Kurdish women enjoyed more freedom than their Persian, Arab or Turkish counterparts. They have also noted the absence of veil, free association with males (such as strangers and guests), and female rulers.^[4] Vladimir Minorsky has reported several cases of Kurdish women running the affairs of their tribes. He met one of these female chiefs named Lady Adela in the region of Halabja in 1913. She was known for saving lives of many British army officers during World War I and was awarded the title of Khan-Bahadur by the British commander.^[5]

Kurdish Women in Iraq[link]

The prominent Kurdish poet Goran denounced discrimination and violence against women. The first journal for Kurdish women, Dengî Afiret "Woman's Voice", was published in 1953. Following the overthrow of monarchy in 1958, the Union of Kurdish Women lobbied for legal reform in the Iraqi civil law and it succeeded in bringing marriage under civil control and abolishing honor killing. The first female judge in Middle East was a Kurdish woman named Zakiyya Hakki who was appointed by Abd al-Karim Qasim. She later became part of the leadership of KDP.^[6]

During the Anfal campaign in 1988, Kurdish women were kept in concentration camps and rape was used as a form of punishment. In 1994, Kurdish women marched for peace from Sulaimaniya to Arbil and protested against the civil war in Iraqi Kurdistan.^[1] After the establishment of KRG, women were able to form their own organizations and several women became ministers in the cabinet of local government. In September 2003, Nasrin Berwari was appointed to the 25-member Iraq provisional cabinet as minister of municipalities and public works, and in June 2004, she was among six women named to the 30-member transitional cabinet and in April 2005 was named permanently to that post. As the top Iraqi official in charge of municipal and environmental affairs, Berwari is considered as one of the most important figures in the Iraqi civil administration.^[6]

Kurdish Women in Turkey[link]

Leyla Zana giving a speech at Newroz celebrations, Diyarbakir, March 21, 2007.

In 1919, Kurdish women formed their first organization, the "Society for the Advancement of Kurdish Women", in Istanbul.^[7]

During the revolts of 1925-1937, the army targeted Kurdish women, many of who committed suicide to escape rape and abuse.^[8] By the mid-1990s, thousands of women had joined the ranks of PKK, and the mainstream media began a campaign of vilifying them as "prostitutes". In 1996, Kurdish women formed their own feminist associations and journals such as Roza and Jujin.^[9]

Leyla Zana became the first Kurdish woman elected to Parliament of Turkey in 1991. During her inauguration speech, she identified herself as a Kurd and spoke in Kurdish. She was subsequently stripped of her immunity and sentenced to 15 years in prison. She was recognized by Amnesty International as a prisoner of conscience and was awarded the Sakharov Prize by the European Union in 1995.

Eight Kurdish women stood successfully as independent candidates in the 22 July 2007 general election, joining the Democratic Society Party after they entered the Turkish parliament.

Kurdish Women in Iran[link]

During World War I, Kurdish women suffered from attacks of Russian and Turkish armies. In 1915, Russian army massacred the male population of Mahabad and abused two hundred women. Reza Shah issued his decree for coercive unveiling of women in 1936. According to government correspondence, there was no need for unveiling in Kurdistan, since women were usually unveiled. Nevertheless, government treated the colorful traditional Kurdish female custome as ugly and dirty and it had to be replaced with civilized(i.e. Western) dress. Kurds called this forced dress as Ajami rather than European.^[10][11]

Republic of Mahabad encouraged women's participation in public life and KDPI launched a political party for women which promoted education for females and rallied their support for the republic.^[12] In August 1979, the Iranian Army launched an offensive to destroy the autonomist movement in Kurdistan. Kurdish organizations such as Komala recruited hundreds of women into their military and political ranks. Within its own camps, Komala abolished gender segregation and women took part in combat and military training.

Over the years, Kurdish women assumed more roles in the Iranian society and by 2000, a significant number of Kurdish women had become part of the labor force, while an increasing number of females engaged in intellectual activities such as poetry, writing and music. On the other hand, discriminatory laws against women and domestic violence forced many women to commit suicide, most commonly through self-immolation.^[13][14]

Renowned Kurdish Women[link]

Asenath Barzani was among the first female Rabbis in history. Mestureh Ardalan(1805–1848) was a Kurdish poet and writer. She is well known for her literary works. Lady Adela, Leyla Zana, Leyla Qasim, Professor Kajal Rahmani anthropologist,founder and president, Kurdistan Justice and Peace Academy in the US,champion for Kurdish rights and Feleknas Uca are among the well known women for their role in the modern Kurdish and European politics.

Pêşmerge Women[link]

Pêşmerge forces have a female combat unit called "The Pêşmerge Force for Women". Kurdish women have struggled hard to prove their worth as tough soldiers in a traditional society and they have earned a reputation for bravery and skill in the battlefield. While they were engaged in previous battles such as capture of Sulaimaniya in 1992, the first official female unit of the Pêşmerge was formed in 1996. Pêşmerge women are sometimes compared with Amazons.^[15]

References[link]

Qubad Talabani (born 21 July 1977) is the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) representative in the United States. He is the second son of Iraqi President Jalal Talabani.

Early life[link]

Qubad grew up in Surrey, United Kingdom with his maternal grandparents, Ibrahim Ahmed, a novelist, poet and a founder of the modern intellectual Kurdish movement and Galawejh Ahmed, (also a novelist). After graduating from High School, Qubad took a keen interest in Engineering, and obtained his Diploma in Motor Vehicle Engineering at Carshalton College, and later obtaining his B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering (majoring in Automotive Systems Engineering) at Kingston University in what used to be part of Surrey but became part of Greater London in 1965.

Throughout the mid-nineties, Qubad worked on and off as a car-mechanic for a dealership that specialized in Lancia, Suzuki and Maserati vehicles.

Representative to the KRG[link]

From 2001 - 2003, Qubad worked as a special assistant to Barham Salih, at that time the Representative of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (one of Iraq's leading Kurdish political parties) in Washington D.C., and later as the Deputy PUK Representative.^[1] In 2003, he returned to Kurdistan for one year and served as the PUK's Senior Foreign Relations officer to the coalition forces and the Coalition Provisional Authority. He also acted as a liaison officer between the PUK and U.S. military forces in Iraq.^[2] He was a leading negotiator in the drafting of the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL), the first Iraqi constitution since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein.^[1]

In April 2004, Qubad returned to the US, and was stationed as the Representative of the PUK and the Kurdistan Regional Government.

In 2006, with the unification of the two administrations in Kurdistan and following the forming of the Democratic Patriotic Alliance of Kurdistan and the establishment of the Kurdish National Assembly.,^[3] Qubad was subsequently appointed as the first representative of the Kurdistan Regional Government, a position he has held until the present.

Personal life[link]

Qubad lives in Washington, D.C. with his wife Sherri Kraham whom he married in great secrecy in Il Castello del Palagio in Italy in 2005.^[4] He appears frequently on major television networks and in the press where he discusses Iraqi and Kurdistan issues.^[1]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Qubad Talabani's blog [1]
• Laura McCandlish, "Qubad Talabani, son of Iraqi President, promotes peace," Daily Press (Hampton Roads, VA) (eKurd.net), March 11, 2005.
• "Testimony of Qubad Talabani, Kurdistan Regional Government delivered to the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, March 18, 2003. Qubad Talabany is the Deputy US Representative of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan. Posted on the official website of Congressman Mark Steven Kirk.
• Sharon Behn, "Kurds, Shi'ite agree on leadership positions, Qubad Talabani," Washington Times (ekurd.net), April 3, 2005.
• "Who Runs Iraq?" PBS Online NewsHour, April 5, 2003.
• Eli Lake, "Kurdish Deal Sets Stage For First Government To Emerge in Iraq," New York Sun, April 6, 2005.
• "Diplomatic Wedding in Chianti," Chianti Classico, May 2005.
• "Iraq and the Thorny Issue of Autonomy," NPR Talk of the Nation, August 16, 2005.
• Transcript: "Interview with Zalmay Khalilzad; Interview With Qubad Talabani," CNN Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer, December 11, 2005.
• "Iraqi President's Son to Speak on Iraq's Future Jan. 24," James Madison University, January 17, 2006.
• "Qubad Talabani disagress with the New York Times Halabja coverage," Turkish Daily News (KurdishMedia.com), June 23, 2006.
• "Qubad Talabani calls for amnesty for PKK," Turkish Daily News (KurdishMedia.com), June 14, 2006. See speech on "Amnesty for PKK" at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), June 13, 2006, posted at YouTube.
• Mikio Ikuma, "Split It Up: Learn From Former Yugoslavia," PostGlobal Blog/'Washington Post, August 2, 2006. Scroll down to "Independence no longer an impossible dream" posted by Talabani.
• "Kurds Hike D.C. Presence," O'Dwyer's PR Daily (sub req'd), February 22, 2007.
• Laura Rozen, "The Scion: Kurdistan's Man in Washington," Washington Monthly, June / July 2007 issue.

Sami Yusuf
Yusuf in 2011
Background information
Born	July 1980 (age 31) Tehran, Iran
Genres	Spiritique
Occupations	musician, composer, producer, multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter
Instruments	piano, keyboard, violin, tar, santour, tombak, oud, tabla
Years active	2003–present
Labels	Awakening Records 2003–2009 ETM International 2009–Present
Associated acts	Ian Brown, Sezen Aksu, Conner Reeves
Website	SamiYusufOfficial.com

Sami Yusuf is a British singer-songwriter, composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist musician of Azerbaijan origin.^[1]

In 2003 Yusuf released his first album "Al-Mu`allim" at the age of 23, selling over two million copies. Following the release of his second album "My Ummah" in 2005, Yusuf was heralded as "Islam's Biggest Rock Star" by Time magazine for his success in attracting a relatively young fan base from diverse regions across the world, many of whom were of Muslim backgrounds. Yusuf has sold over 9 million albums.^[2] In October 2010, following a five-year hiatus, Yusuf’s third official album "Wherever You Are" was launched, manifesting his self-coined genre “Spiritique”. Yusuf is involved in humanitarian initiatives, supporting, among others, Islamic Relief and Save the Children.

Early life[link]

An ethnic Azeri born in Tehran, Yusuf was raised in London from the age of three.^[3] He initially began composing simple melodies starting at the age of three,^[4] and performing on stage for the first time around the age of nine.^[5] His “defining moment”^[6][7] musically occurred when his father loaned him a book on the basics of the Tombak [Persian instrument]. Upon returning from a tea break, his father found that the young Yusuf had mastered the book that had taken months for his students to finish.^[8] As a teenager he was a devotee of classical music and classical icons like Chopin and Mozart, admitting that he listened to Classic FM radio station for hours in a day.^[9] He went on training professionally in several other instruments including the santoor, piano, violin, oud, setar, tar, and daf under the guidance of traditional teachers, as well as professional musicians. While producing and demo-recording for another singer, he became aware of his own singing abilities which were further developed by the encouragement of his family. Divided between pursuing a musical career or studying law at King’s College London, Yusuf opted for music while committed to “doing something dignified and respectable”.^[9] Though he claimed to having been always spiritual, he reconnected with his Islamic faith through a “religious awakening”^[10] at the age of sixteen. He then set out to share his experience with the other young British Muslims he felt were direly in search of an identity especially post 9/11. Yusuf self-produced and released his debut album “Al-mu’allim” at the age of 23, pioneering an innovative trend other Muslim artist would seek to emulate and promote, termed "Islamic pop".^[11]

Professional career[link]

(2003–2004) – Al-Mu'allim[link]

Shortly before traveling to Egypt to study Arabic, Sami Yusuf released his debut album Al-Mu`allim in July 2003 and 2004, a primarily percussive album comprising eight tracks.^[12] The radiant cube and purple background of the album cover symbolized “the light of the Prophetic message illuminating the darkness of the night”.^[12] Its feature song, "Al-Mu’allim", became an instant hit in the Middle East, North Africa, and South-East Asia topping the charts in Egypt and Turkey for twelve consecutive weeks, selling over two million copies worldwide.^[13] Believing that music can be a "powerful medium to promote ideas and establish dialogue within society”,^[14] he coalesced Eastern percussive instrumentation and Western melodies in “Al-Mu’allim” with a focus on the English and Arabic languages. The last track, “Supplication”, was used in the Golden-Globe award-nominated film, “The Kite Runner”.^[15] Though the album was described as a “project to define British Muslim identity”^[16] in a post 9-11 period — with explicitly religious themes praising the Prophet Mohammad and Allah in songs like “The Creator” and “Ya Mustafa” — it reached the ears of unexpectedly diverse range of listeners, constituting of various nationalities, ages, and races.^[12] Redirecting the current of Muslim music through his songs and professionally produced music videos (“Al-Mu’allim” and “Supplication”), Yusuf had “unintentionally” cultivated grounds for a fresh genre of music coined "Islamic Pop"^[11] by setting a new benchmark in the religious music industry. The journal Transnational Broadcasting Studies analyzed the main causes of his success by attributing it to Yusuf’s ability to blend “a religious worldview with a mainstream form of entertainment, and in doing so, [communicating] a personable, accessible expression of the Islamic faith that is in harmony with the modern world and incorporated into the mundane activities of daily life”.^[17]

(2005–2009) – My Ummah[link]

Performing at Royal Concert Hall Glasgow, April 2006

Yusuf gained worldwide recognition following the release of his second album, My Ummah, in July 2005. This album appeared in both musical and percussive versions and includes fourteen tracks. The album’s thematic elements include empowerment of women in “Free”, raising awareness of the plight of victims of conflict-laden regions like Palestine and Darfur in the respective tracks of “Try Not to Cry” (featuring Outlandish) and “Make A Prayer”; “Muhammad” was dedicated to the victims of the 2004 Beslan school massacre, whereas “We Will Never Submit” protested against acquiescence to oppression.^[18] The album, both Eastern and Western in sound, utilized wide-ranging musical instrumentation from classical instruments like piano, violin, flute and drums to ethnic instruments like oud, santour, tar, drums, tombak and more. "My Ummah" was an embodiment of Yusuf’s "utopia for the Muslim World or humanity at large".^[19] Considered a breakthrough album^{[by whom?]}, it sold over four million copies globally and was received enthusiastically by a diverse range of listeners, particularly young people, who identified closely with the topics included therein.^[20] Transnational Broadcasting Studies discussed the exposure of Muslim youth to a new dawn of Islamic “art with purpose”, accrediting this opening to Yusuf’s music that had the power "to both preserve core cultural identity and promote spiritual and material progress“.^[17] Yusuf's music video featuring the Afghan folklore “Hasbi Rabbi” became a regional hit in Egypt, and was used to launch Vodafone Egypt’s value-added-service (VAS) platform Vodafone Live.^[21] The video portrays Yusuf in multiple characters and locations: as a practicing Muslim businessman in London, a teacher playing soccer and tutoring in Taj Mahal, then a professional Volinist jubilantly laughing and chatting with his bandmates in Turkey, and finally as a jovial carpenter in the lively bazaar's of Egypt. Recognized by The Independent as the "Voice of Islam",^[22] Yusuf emphasized that he was not a "preacher",^[23] rather a musician with a message^[24] who believes in the urgent need for “a wave of people to come along and bridge the gaps, because we have so much in common, so much to learn from each other”.^[20] A major addition to his artistic repertoire was Oscar-winning director Marc Forster's proposal to Yusuf to compose a credit-piece for the Golden Globe award-nominated film, The Kite Runner.^[25] Due to time constraints on both sides however, the credit piece was never realised but “Supplication”, a track from Yusuf’s debut album, was used to voice one of the film’s climactic scenes.^[26] Reluctant to be dubbed as “Islam’s Biggest Rock Star” by Time, Yusuf later explained that he does not "want to be a rock star ... a popstar. ... I just want to make good music, and do what I feel I’m confident in doing ... and that’s music”.^[11]

(2005–2009) Dispute with Former Label[link]

In a contractual dispute lasting from 2008 to 2009, Yusuf legally separated from his former record label Awakening. He claimed the "third" album, Without You, released by Awakening in January 2009, was released without his prior “blessings nor consent”. He stated: “I therefore wish to make it perfectly clear that an album comprised of any such recordings could only be put on to the market against my wishes and without my approval”.^[27] In mid-2009, he signed a five-album contract with the UK-based record label ETM International.^[28]

(2009 – present) – Wherever You Are Pre-Release[link]

In July 2009, Yusuf was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters degree in recognition of his “extraordinary contributions to the field of music” by Roehampton University in southwest London.^[29] Earlier in the year, he was selected to serve as the first Global Ambassador of HH Sheikha Moza Bint Nasser’s (Qatar's First Lady) initiative, Silatech, which seeks to engage “the public, private and civil society sectors to promote large-scale job creation, entrepreneurship and access to capital and markets for young people”.^[30] Ranked in the “Top 500 Influential Muslims of 2009 (and 2010) ”, a publication edited by Georgetown University’s John Esposito and Ibrahim Kahlin, Yusuf was described as an “internationally popular British singer-songwriter whose music has revolutionized the nasheed industry. ... He is also known for his extensive involvement in charity work”.^[31] Yusuf released his video single, “You Came To Me,” in four languages (English, Arabic, Turkish, and Persian) in the summer of 2009.^[32] Rolling Stone magazine called the style by which Yusuf sung the track’s lyrics “touching”, listing it as one of the key tracks of the “Wherever You Are” album.^[33] SamiYusufOfficial.com announced the release of “Wherever You Are”, Yusuf’s third official album, in March 2010, introducing it as “A renaissance. A Rebirth. A New Beginning”.^[34] Meanwhile in the following summer, Yusuf shared his music video “Healing” sung in English and Arabic that was created in cooperation with the KSA-based International Medical Center.^[35] It was also listed as another key track by Rolling Stone magazine.^[33] In reference to the song’s underlying philosophy of generosity in lines like “Heal and you will be healed/…Give and you will receive/It’s nature’s order”, Yusuf’s wrote on his blog: “I hope it helps, albeit in some small way, in showing that every single one of us can be a healer”.^[36] Amidst the torrential monsoons that wreaked havoc in Pakistan and affected 20 million lives in the summer of 2010, he promptly released a charity single entitled “Hear Your Call”, performed in English and Urdu, to raise funds for the displaced Pakistanis in a joint-effort with the UN-sponsored charity organization Save the Children.^[37][38] The song was featured on a short film by the United Nations Office for Coordination of Human Affairs (OCHA)^[39] appealing for renewed donations towards the relief effort. Prompted by the protests and clashes that transpired in Egypt in February 2011, Yusuf released a free track entitled “I’m Your Hope”, dedicating it to the “Shabaab” or youth.^[40] The lyrics are in English and Arabic.^[41] Sami Yusuf has expressed keen interest on initiating his own “record company to help artists and talents that are not supported” in the near future.^[42]

(2009–Present) Wherever You Are: “New Chapter” and“Spiritique”[link]

Performing live in the Maida Vale Studios,^[43][44] Yusuf explained that “It's 2009, I have different challenges, I've got different issues and I will not sing religious-themed music just for the sake of business – it's got to be what I feel”. After a five-yearlong hiatus, Yusuf released his third, official studio album named Wherever You Are in October 2010, welcoming what he termed a “New Chapter” in his professional career and music.^[45] "Spiritique" is Yusuf’s self-coined musical and philosophical classification of his music. Spiritique, according to Yusuf, is a blend of both the “oriental and occidental” sounds, underpinned by spirituality that “will utilize music as a facilitator for spiritual appreciation, regardless of race and religion”. Yusuf considers it his new sound and “something [he] wants to stand for from now”.^[46] With the exceptions of songs like “No Word is Worthy”, “You Came To Me” and "Salaam" (though the latter is more of a 'humanitarian ode' than religiously themed) the 12 track-set album purposely draws less upon religious content^[47] leaving room for interpretation for listeners of all backgrounds. Yusuf maintains, however, that it follows the “same principles and ingredients [of] honesty, [and] sincerity”.^[48] Introducing the album in its official trailer as a “mini diary of events”^[49] that occurred from 2007 to 2010, Yusuf emphasized that the content is essentially a reflection of his worldview: “This third album is about who I am and the reality of the day and age we are living in. It talks about the hypocrisy. ... it’s quite dark”.^[47] Songs like “Give the Young A Chance”, featuring lyrics by Ian Brown, incorporate heavy usage of metaphors, likening the youth to “jewels” and allusions to “gardens where birds will sing lullabies” and “sweet scents fill the air”.^[50] British singer-songwriter Conner Reeves and Turkish singer Sezen Aksu also collaborated with Yusuf in the track “Without You”.^[51] “In Every Tear, He Is There” song, another track collaboration with Conner Reeves, concludes with an African choir singing “In Every Tear/ That is where/He is There” repeatedly in Zulu.^[52] “Fragile World”, Yusuf’s admittedly own favorite track,^[53] is reflective of the “dark”^[47] experiences he underwent throughout the years.^[54] Though predominantly performed in English, several tracks include verses in Arabic, Malaysian, Persian and Urdu. It has been given 3.5 stars out of 4 by Rolling Stone magazine, and commended as a “beautifully produced album”.^[55] Sami Yusuf has visited Turkey, UAE, and Qatar to promote “Wherever You Are” and is due to travel to Egypt, Singapore, Malaysia, and Jordan in the near future,^[56] plus an upcoming European tour scheduled for spring 2011.^[57] The video for "In Every Tear He Is There" has been released and that for "Make Me Strong" was released on 6th April 2012.^[58]. Sami Yusuf has also announced his forth upcoming studio album called "Salaam" which is featuring Siti Nurhaliza, the pop-star of Malaysia. Sami Yusuf will release it soon.^[59].

Notable Tours/Concert Performances[link]

Yusuf arrives in the Netherlands on tour in 2006

Yusuf’s tours and concert performances throughout the past eight years have been extensive. His more notable^{[by whom?]} tours include sold-out concerts in the Royal Albert Hall and Royal Concert Hall in the UK in 2006, in addition to a comprehensive Germany tour in 2007. He performed to crowds of thousands in Bosnia, Canada, France, Belgium, Finland, Austria, Greece, and the Netherlands (which he considers one of his favorite concerts).^{[citation needed]} He toured the United States in 2006 and 2007, singing at venues in Los Angeles, Detroit, Dallas, Chicago, and New Jersey in venues like the LA Shrine Auditorium.^{[citation needed]} In the Middle East and Asian regions, he performed to tens of thousands in Egypt’s Cairo and Alexandria, Qatar, Kuwait, UAE, Algeria, Bahrain, Syria, Jordan, Tajikistan, and Saudi Arabia. He received a record crowd of 250,000 in Istanbul, Turkey earning the name “Islam’s Biggest Rock Star” in Time magazine. In an early concert in Azerbaijan, Yusuf experienced what he likened to a “hero’s welcome” in his ancestral homeland.^{[citation needed]} Over 50,000 people attend his shows in the Casa Music Festival in Casablanca, Morocco in 2007, exceeding by double the venue’s space limit.^{[citation needed]} In the highly publicized concert at Wembley Arena [dubbed the press as the “Muslim Live Aid”^{[citation needed]}], which served as a milestone event where approximately two million pounds were raised for the relief effort in Darfur, Sudan. It was warmly received by a thank-you video message by the British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown.^{[citation needed]} Performing in The Velodrome in Capetown, Durban, and Johannesburg in his 2008 South Africa Tour, Yusuf accompanied the Agape Children Orphanage’s choir, singing along with their feature song “We Are Together” – the title of a multi-award winning HBO film on the Agape Children’s Orphanage. After performing in the Moroccan Fez Wold Sacred Music Festival in 2009, he agreed to do a free concert for the locals that drew in approximately a hundred thousand attendees, with one day’s notice.^{[citation needed]} Packing venues again in Faruma Arena, Denmark, Grugahalle in Germany, and De Doelen in Netherlands, Yusuf introduced his forthcoming album, “Wherever You Are”.^[60] Sami Yusuf has visited Turkey, UAE, and Qatar^[56] to promote “Wherever You Are” and is due to travel to Egypt, Singapore, Malaysia, and Jordan^[56] in the near future. An upcoming European tour is scheduled for spring 2011.^[57]

Acclaim/Recognition[link]

• “Islam’s Biggest Rock Star” – Time Magazine (2006)^[20]
• “Biggest Star in the Middle East” – Guardian (2006)^[61]
• “King of Islamic Pop” – Al-Jazeera (2007)^[11]
• IOL Star of 2009 (2009)^[62]
• 500 Most Influential Muslims in 2009 (2009)^[63]
• BBC’s 30 More Famous Britons (2009)^[64]
• First Global Ambassador of Silatech (2009 – Present)^[65]
• Doctor of Letters Award – Roehampton University (2009)^[66]
• 500 Most Influential Muslims in 2010 (2010)^[63]

Collaborations[link]

• Outlandish – Try Not to Cry, I’ve Seen (2005)
• Erkan Mutlu – Wherever You Are (2010)
• Sezen Aksu – Wherever You Are (2010)
• Ian Brown – Wherever You Are (2010)
• Conner Reeves – Wherever You Are (2010)

Charity Work/Humanitarian Initiatives[link]

• Charity Event for Disabled Children – Cairo, Egypt (2005)^[67]
• Evening of Inspiration – Islamic Relief/UK Tour (2006)^[68]
• Evening of Inspiration – Islamic Relief/US Tour (2006)<refname=time1/>
• Evening of Inspiration – Islamic Relief/US Tour (2007)^[69]
• Wembley Arena – UK (2007)^[70]
• Agape Children’s Orphanage concert – South Africa (2008)^[71]
• Telethon Fundraiser for Gaza (2009)^[72]
• Gaza Rally – Istanbul, Turkey (2009)^[73]
• First global ambassador of Silatech (2009)^[74]
• “Hear Your Call” – Save the Children, Pakistan (2010)^[75]
• “I’m Your Hope” (2011)^[76]
• “In Every Tear, He Is There” – Haiti, South Africa (2011)

Discography[link]

• Al-Mu`allim (2003) – 3 Million^[77]
• My Ummah (2005) – 4 Million^[2]
• Without You (2009)
• Wherever You Are (2010) – N/A

Soundtracks (Singles)[link]

• "Supplication" – Adapted in “The Kite Runner” (2007)
• "Palestine Forever" (2009)
• "Anything For You" (2009)
• "You Came to Me" (2009)
• "Healing" (2010)
• "Hear Your Call" (2010)
• "I’m Your Hope" (2011)
• "In Every Tear, He Is There" (2011)
• "The Source" (2011)
• "Forgotten Promises" (2011)

Music Videos[link]

• Al-Mu’allim – Dir. Hani Osama
• Supplication – Dir. Hani Osama
• Hasbi Rabbi – Dir. Hani Osama
• Mother – Dir. Hani Osama
• Asma Allah – Dir. Hani Osama
• Healing – Dir. Jacob Viit Kusk
• You Came to Me – Dir. Jacob Viit Kusk
• In Every Tear He Is There – Dir. Jacob Viit Kusk
• Hear Your Call – Dir. Daniyal Noorani
• I’m Your Hope – Dir. Kareem Shaaban
• Forgotten Promises - Dir. Siros Kerdouni
• Make Me Strong – Dir. Jacob Viit Kusk

References[link]

External links[link]

• Sami Yusuf's Official Website