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Lois Lamya al-Faruqi

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Lois Lamya al-Faruqi
Born25 July 1926
Plentywood, Montana, United States
Died27 May 1986 (1986-05-28) (aged 59)
Wyncote, Pennsylvania, United States
Cause of deathMurder by stabbing
Resting placeForest Hills Cemetery, Pennsylvania[1]
Nationality American
Alma materSyracuse University
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1949; died 1986)​
Children3
Academic work
Main interestsIslamic art, Ethnomusicology, Islamic music
Notable ideasIslamic perspective on music, Music and religion
Websitehttps://ismailfaruqi.com

Lois Lamya al-Faruqi (born Lois Rachel Ibsen, July 25, 1926 – May 27, 1986) was an American scholar and expert on Islamic art and music. She made contributions to the field of ethnomusicology, particularly in the study of Islamic musical culture, and co-authored the work The Cultural Atlas of Islam with her husband, Ismail al-Faruqi.

Biography[edit]

Lois Lamya al-Faruqi was born in 1927 in Plentywood, Montana to Fred Ibsen (1877-1958) and Rachel (Flaten) Ibsen (1888-1986), who were Danish and Norwegian immigrants, respectively. She graduated from the University of Montana in 1948 with a degree in music, where she studied piano. She then attended Indiana University, receiving an M.A. in music in 1949. During this period, she met and married Ismail Raji al-Faruqi. Al-Faruqi taught at Butler University for three years before focusing on Islamic studies. She continued her education at McGill University and later obtained her Ph.D. in Humanities from Syracuse University with a thesis entitled The Nature of the Musical Art of Islamic Culture: A Theoretical and Empirical Study of Arabian Music.[2]

Lois Lamya al-Faruqi held positions as an adjunct professor at Temple University and Villanova University from 1977 onwards. She was actively involved in the Society for Ethnomusicology, serving on various committees, including as president and program chairman of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter.[3]

Professional and academic contributions[edit]

Areas of expertise[edit]

Lois Lamya al-Faruqi focused on Islamic musical culture. Her research included topics such as Arabic music, the role of music in Islamic culture, and the relationship between music and religious practices.

Major publications[edit]

She authored several works, including The Cultural Atlas of Islam, co-authored with her husband, Ismail Raji al-Faruqi, and published posthumously by Macmillan. This book is a comprehensive resource on the cultural and historical aspects of Islam, including its artistic expressions.

Scholarly contributions[edit]

Lois Lamya al-Faruqi's scholarly contributions include numerous articles and papers that explore various aspects of music, Islamic art, and culture. Her Ph.D. dissertation, The Nature of the Musical Art of Islamic Culture: A Theoretical and Empirical Study of Arabian Music, provided an analysis of Arabian music, combining theoretical perspectives with empirical research.

She focused on articulating an Islamic perspective on music and examining Muslim musical practices. Her contributions in this area include An Annotated Glossary of Arabic Musical Terms, a resource for scholars studying Arabic music, and several articles on the role of music in Islamic societies.

Professional activities[edit]

Lois Lamya al-Faruqi was an active member of the Society for Ethnomusicology, serving on various committees, including as president and program chairman of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter. She promoted ethnomusicology in the Muslim world and represented that constituency to the broader ethnomusicological community.

Additional roles[edit]

In addition to her academic work, Lois Lamya al-Faruqi was involved in various professional activities, including lecturing, organizing conferences and exhibits, and participating in numerous organizations. She was a board member of the Islamic Arts Foundation, a member of the UNESCO working group for the preparation of a Universal Scientific and Cultural History of Mankind, and chaired the Arts and Literature Group of the Association of Muslim Social Scientists from 1975 until she died in 1986.

Shared grave of Lois Lamya al-Faruqi and her husband

Death[edit]

On May 27, 1986, Lois Lamya al-Faruqi and her husband were murdered in their home in Wyncote, Pennsylvania. The motivations behind the murders have been the subject of various theories, including a botched burglary and politically motivated assassination.[4][5][6][7]

Bibliography[edit]

Books[edit]

  • (1981) An Annotated Glossary of Arabic Musical Terms. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
  • (1986) The Cultural Atlas of Islam, co-authored with Ismail Raji' al-Faruqi, NY: Macmillan.
  • (2002) Women, Muslim Society, and Islam, IL: American Trust Publications.

Articles[edit]

  • (1969) "Ancient Arab Religion." Islamic Literature (July): 391-411.
  • (1971) "The Relevance of Religion in a Study of Indian Ragamala Paintings." In Asian Religions: 1971, ed. Bardwell Smith, 83-104. Chambersburg, PA: American Academy of Religion.
  • (1973) "Women's Rights and the Muslim Woman." Islam and the Modern Age 3(2): 76-99.
  • (1974) "The Nature of the Musical Art of Islamic Culture: A Theoretical and Empirical Study of Arabian Music." Ph.D. dissertation, Syracuse University.
  • (1975) "Muwashshah: A Vocal Form in Islamic Culture." Ethnomusicology 19(1): 1-29.
  • (1976) "The Aisled Hall and the Domed Chamber: Their Use in Islamic Culture." Islamic Culture 50(3): 155-67.
  • (1976/77) "Dances of the Muslim Peoples." Dance Scope 11(1): 43-51.
  • (1977) "Development and the Islamic Arts." In Proceedings of the Annual Convention of the Association of Muslim Social Scientists, 1976, 27-35. Plainfield, IN: A.M.S.S.
  • (1977) "The Aesthetics of Islamic Art: Afterwords." Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 35(3): 353-55.
  • (1978) "Accentuation in Qur'anic Chant: A Study in Musical Tawazun." Yearbook of the International Folk Music Council 10: 53-68.
  • (1978) "Al Muwashshah: Al Janib al Sawt fil al Thaqafah al Islamiyyah." Al-Kitharah (Baghdad) 52: 9-15; 54: 12-21.
  • (1978) "An Extended Family Model from Islamic Culture." Journal of Comparative Family Studies 9(2): 243-56.
  • (1978) "Dance as an Aesthetic Expression in Islamic Culture." Dance Research Journal 10(2): 6-13.
  • (1978) "Ornamentation in Arabian Improvisational Music: A Study of Interrelatedness in the Arts." The World of Music 20(1): 17-32.
  • (1979) "Tartil al-Quran al-Karim." In Islamic Perspectives: Studies in Honour of Sayyid Abul A'la Mawdudi, 105-119. Leicester, UK: The Islamic Foundation.
  • (1979) "Dances of the Muslim People." In Dance Curriculum Resource Guide, ed. Nadia Chilkovsky Nahumck, 159-60. New York: American Dance Guild, Inc.
  • (1980) "Islamic Influences." In Interdisciplinary Horizons in the Study of Musical Traditions of East and West, 11-13. Twelfth Congress report of the American Musicological Society. New Haven, CT: A.M.S.
  • (1981) "The Status of Music in Muslim Nations: Evidence from the Arab World." Asian Music 12(1): 56-84.
  • (1982) "Al Ghazali on Sama'." In Essays in Islamic and Comparative Studies, 43-50. Herndon, VA: International Institute of Islamic Thought.
  • (1982) "Artistic Acculturation and Diffusion among Muslims of the United States." In Essays in Islamic and Comparative Studies, 85-100. Herndon, VA: International Institute of Islamic Thought.
  • (1982) "God in Visual Aesthetic Expression: A Comparative Study in Transcendence Symbolization." In Proceedings of The Global Congress of the World's Religions, 1980-1982, ed. Henry O. Thompson, 234-66. New York: The Rose of Sharon Press.
  • (1982) "Islam and Aesthetic Expression." In Islam and Contemporary Society, 191-212. London: Longman, Islamic Council of Europe.
  • (1982) "Islamization through Art: Implications for Education." Islamic Culture 56(1): 21-35.
  • (1982) "Muslim Women in Changing Environments." In The Search for Absolute Values and the Creation of the New World, vol. 2, 797-801. Proceedings of the Tenth International Conference on the Unity of the Sciences, Seoul, Korea, 1981. New York: The International Cultural Foundation Press.
  • (1982) "The Shari'ah on Music and Musicians." In Islamic Thought and Culture, 27-52. Herndon, VA: International Institute of Islamic Thought.
  • (1982) "Wadl' al Musiqa fi al'Alam al Muslim." Al Muslim al Mu'asir 8(29): 107-31.
  • (1983) "Al Fann al Islami." In Funun 'Arabiyyah. London: N.p.
  • (1983) "Islamic Art or Muslim Art?" In The Arts in Islamic Lands, ed. Jalal Uddin Ahmed. London: Islamic Arts Foundation.
  • (1983) "Islamic Music." In Funk and Wagnall's New Encyclopedia, vol. 14, 286-88. New York: Funk and Wagnall.
  • (1983) "Islamic Music, American." In The New Grove Dictionary of Music in the United States, ed. H. Wiley Hitchcock and Stanley Sadie, vol. 2, 501-02. New York: Macmillan.
  • (1983) "Nazarah al Islamiyyah Ila al Ramziyyah fi al Funun: Ara'Jadidah fi Fann al Taswir." In Funun 'Arabiyyah. London: N.p.
  • (1983) "The Andalusian Tradition." In The Genius of Arab Civilization: Source of Renaissance, ed. John Richard Hayes, 144-45. 2nd ed. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
  • (1983) "The Golden Age of Arab Music." In The Genius of Arab Civilization: Source of Renaissance, ed. John Richard Hayes, 142. 2nd ed. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
  • (1983) "What Makes 'Religious Music' Religious?" In Sacred Sound: Music in Religious Thought and Practice, ed. Joyce Irwin, 21-34. JAAR Thematic Studies 50(1). Chico, CA: Scholar's Press.
  • (1983/84) "Factors of Continuity in the Musical Cultures of the Muslim World." Progress Reports in Ethnomusicology 1(2): 1-18.
  • (1984) "An Islamic Perspective on Symbolism in the Arts: New Thoughts on Figural Representation." In Art, Creativity and the Sacred: An Anthology in Religion and Art, ed. Diane Apostolos-Cappadona, 164-78. New York: The Crossroad Publishing Company.
  • (1984) "Unity and Variety in the Music of Islamic Culture." In The Islamic Impact, ed. Yvonne Haddad, Byron Haines, and Ellison Findly, 175-94. Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press.
  • (1985) "The Suite in Islamic History and Culture." The World of Music 27(3): 46-64.
  • (1986) "Ibn Sina's Contribution in the Field of Music Theory." Proceedings of the Symposium on Ibn Sina (Avicenna), Kuala Lumpur: University of Malaysia.
  • (1988) "The Cantillation of the Qur'an." Asian Music 19(1): 2-25.
  • (n.d.) "The Sleeping Rabbit Lost the Race." North Star 1(1): 3-6.
  • (undated) Women In a Quranic Society
  • (undated) Islamic Traditions & The Feminist Movement: Confrontation or Co-operation?

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Lois Lamya Rachel Ibsen Al-Faruqi (1926-1986)". Find a Grave. Ancestry.com. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  2. ^ Braibanti, Ralph (August 11, 1986). "Lois Lamya' al-Faruqi". The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs. V (5). Washington Report on Middle East Affairs: 11.
  3. ^ Qureshi, Regula Burckhardt (1988). "Lois Lamya Ibsen al-Faruqi (1927-1986)". Ethnomusicology. 32 (2). University of Illinois Press: 93–96.
  4. ^ Toth, Anthony B. (November 1986). "Focus on Arabs and Islam". Washington Report on Middle East Affairs.
  5. ^ Fletcher, Charles (2014). Muslim-Christian Engagement in the Twentieth Century: The Principles of Inter-faith Dialogue and the Work of Ismail Al-Faruqi. United Kingdom: I.B.Tauris.
  6. ^ "Assassination motive behind al-Faruqi killings". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. August 20, 1986. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
  7. ^ "Zionist backlash against Arab intellectuals". New Straits Times. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. August 21, 1986. Retrieved June 22, 2024.

Further reading[edit]

  • Qureshi, Regula Burckhardt (1988). "Lois Lamya Ibsen al-Faruqi (1927-1986)". Ethnomusicology. 32 (2). University of Illinois Press.
  • Braibanti, Ralph (August 11, 1986). "Lois Lamya' al-Faruqi". The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs. V (5). Washington Report on Middle East Affairs.
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