Abu Dhabi, October 25 / WAM / Participants and attendees praised the interest of the Archive and the National Library in oral history and giving it a scientific character and historical approach, and the importance of the sessions of the Second Emirates International Conference on Oral History, which was organized by the Archive and the National Library under the slogan “Their Memory is Our History: Sustainability of Inherited and Orally Transmitted Concepts and Practices.”
The conference witnessed a distinguished presence of experts and specialists, narrators of oral history and those contributing to its collection and preservation, from inside and outside the country. The conference sessions were characterized by new and innovative ideas that were keen to emphasize the importance of collecting oral history, preserving it and making it available through modern technological methods so that it is close to generations of students and youth, and the importance of Introducing some oral history outputs into students’ curricula, training them to collect and memorize it, and the necessity of benefiting from artificial intelligence and its outputs in this important field that complements written history.
His Excellency Abdullah Majid Al Ali, Director General of the National Archives and Library, confirmed – in his opening speech – that the Second Emirates International Conference on Oral History came in continuation of the success of the first conference, which contributed to enriching the nation’s memory. He explained that the Archives and the National Library were not limited to collecting the interviews it conducted with narrators. From prominent citizens and residents, he preserved it and made it available, but he intended to transmit it to students and youth, and to those concerned with this type of documentation. He enriched the local and Arab library with a series of volumes (Their Memory is Our History); Until oral history interviews became a source we rely on in the search for documented historical information.
His Excellency pointed out that oral history is not the product of today and yesterday, but rather is one of the exploits taught to us by the founder and builder, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, “may God rest his soul,” when he used to sit with his people and direct researchers to conduct recorded interviews with some narrators and historians. He was fully aware that oral history is an important source in the process of documenting the history of nations and peoples, and that eyewitnesses are more reliable than hearing witnesses. He, may God have mercy on him, was keen on strengthening the ties between the people of Emirati society and the past of their fathers and grandfathers, which makes them able to bear responsibility. Continuing to build and prosper the nation and ensuring a bright future for future generations.
Al Ali stressed the importance of sustaining heritage and dealing with it energetically and effectively to contribute to the development of our human treasures.
For her part, Dr. Aisha Belkhair, head of the oral history team and research advisor at the National Archives and Library, said in her speech at the conference, “The founder and builder, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may God have mercy on him, laid down the rules of good morals, doing good, spreading happiness, embracing others, and other things.” The values and deeds that contributed to building humanity and creating a social environment dominated by cooperation and harmony until the UAE became a model for spreading peace and planting seeds of harmony.
She pointed out that the Second UAE International Conference on Oral History examines aspects of rapprochement between civilizations. Pointing out that the outcomes of this conference are part of the vision and mission of the wise leadership and its endeavors to bring humanity closer together and document local and common history.
After that, the first session of the conference began, entitled “Oral Heritage and its Sustainability… and Anticipating the Future,” moderated by Dr. Aisha Belkhair, in which Dr. Najima Tay Tay, former Minister of National Education and Youth in the Kingdom of Morocco, and Dr. Diaa Abdullah Khamis Muhammad Al-Kaabi, Head of the Department of Education, spoke. Arabic language and Islamic studies at the College of Arts at the University of Bahrain, and Sheikha Al-Jabri, media advisor at the Family Development Foundation.
Dr. Najima Tay Tay discussed the role of the international festival “Morocco of Tales” in valuing human treasures and contributing to development, pointing out the importance of the folk tale in Morocco, the necessity of its inclusion in schools, the importance of heritage as a means of developing society, the importance of listening to the voice of heritage, the role of the narrated word and the meaning it carries. Values, love and peace.
For her part, Dr. Diaa Abdullah Al Kaabi discussed her experience with university students in collecting Bahraini tales in the spoken dialect, pointing out the necessity of preserving narratives of popular literature, digitizing heritage, promoting it, investing in digital transformation and artificial intelligence in popular literature and cultural industries, and the arrival of the Arabic tale in global archives and its entry. folds of academic disciplines.
Sheikha Al Jabri reviewed aspects of the UAE’s role in preserving heritage, and strategies for bringing the voice of the past to the present and towards the future, and listed the most important institutions that pay attention to oral history and the narrated story, noting that these institutions translate into reality the collection, preservation, and making of oral history available. At the conclusion of the first session, the National Archives and the National Library honored the team working on the Al-Ishara program, broadcast by the Emirates Channel, and the team of the Al-Sinyar program, broadcast by Sama Dubai Channel, for their effective contribution to preserving and sustaining the heritage.
The second session, entitled “Elements, Mechanisms and Procedures for Archiving Personal Stories and Anecdotes,” was moderated by Maitha Al Zaabi, and was attended by Dr. David Berlekhoi, President of the International Oral History Society in the Kingdom of Spain. His participation came virtually, and he talked about one of the projects he undertook, and explained the methods of collecting… Scientific material from oral history sources.
For his part, Dr. Mohamed Shehata Al-Omda, Editorial Director of the Popular Culture Series – Egyptian General Book Authority in the Arab Republic of Egypt, narrated the story of the determined princess, and presented a variety of material that combined singing with expressive narration and pictorial narration.
The third session was entitled “Narratives Told by Performing Arts” and was moderated by Yasser Al Neyadi at the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority. Khaled Al Badour, a poet and researcher from the Emirates, Dr. Carlos Guedes, a composer, artist and music researcher from Portugal, and Rehab Al Dhanhani, an oral history researcher, participated. from the UAE.
While the fourth session was entitled “Influence and Being Influenced by Social Media,” it was moderated by Sheikha Al Jabri, a media advisor at the Family Development Foundation, and participated in by Khalfan Musabah Al Kaabi, a journalist and researcher in history and heritage, from the Emirates, and Kim Kaho “Janna,” a Korean translator who is fluent in the Emirati dialect. Khaled Suleiman Obaid Al-Hindassi, a researcher and content creator on heritage and national identity, from the Emirates.
The Second Emirates International Conference on Oral History, which was organized by the Archives and the National Library, concluded with a speech by Dr. Aisha Balkhair, in which she thanked all the participants and followers, stressing that the outcomes of this conference will enrich the field of oral history, and will make it a link between the Archives, the National Library, and other institutions and parties interested in this field, noting that This conference is a real opportunity to exchange expertise and distinctive experiences.
2023-10-25 18:58:00
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