The fourteenth session of the “Islamic Sciences Talks” series, jointly organized by Ibn Haldun University’s School of Islamic Studies and the Department of History, has been held. During the program, the source value of manuscripts in the context of biography writing was discussed in depth.
As part of Islamic Sciences Talks XIV, Asst. Prof. Alpaslan Fener from the Turkish Institution of Manuscripts (Türkiye Yazma Eserler Kurumu) delivered a presentation titled “Searching for Biographies Between the Lines: The Source Value of Manuscripts in Biography Writing”.
The conference, held on April 7, 2026, at the Teoman Duralı Conference Hall, drew significant interest from academics and students alike.
Asst. Prof. Alpaslan Fener explained how every detail—from the physical characteristics of manuscripts to marginalia, and from ownership records (tamlik) to certificates of authorization (ijazah)—can be transformed into data sources to go beyond standard information in traditional biographical writing (tarajim). He emphasized that clues provided by manuscripts, not just as texts but as historical objects, allow researchers to reconstruct the life stories of scholars on a more original and Studies and the Department of History, this series continues to bring the relationship between Islamic sciences and various other disciplines to the academic agenda through expert speakers.
The program concluded with a Q&A session, followed by mutual discussions between the participants and Asst. Prof. Alpaslan Fener on the subject.
