Faculty of Oriental Studies
This is one of the world’s leading centres for research and teaching on the languages, history and cultures of Asia and the Middle East. The multidisciplinary Faculty has members in linguistics, philology, literature, archaeology, history, religious studies, art history and the social sciences. The many research projects undertaken by the Faculty include The Book of Curiosities Project, which aims to edit, translate, and analyse the manuscript, probably made in the early thirteenth century, of an anonymous work compiled in Egypt between 1020 and 1050. A unique manuscript of a hitherto unknown Arabic cosmographical treatise, The Book of Curiosities was acquired by the Bodleian in 2002.
The University appreciates gifts to its general subject endowments which will support the area of greatest need, but specific priorities include: