NEWS
During Her Participation as A Keynote Speaker in The Second UAE International Oral History Conference Dr. Al-Ka’abi Calls for the Digitization of Gulf Oral Narratives to Ensure Their Sustainability and Spread
Sakhir – University of Bahrain (Ali Al-Sabbaq)
2 November 2023
Head of the Department of Arabic Language and Islamic Studies and Associate Professor of Narratives and Modern Literary Criticism, Dr. Diya Abdullah Al-Ka’abi, called for the digitization of the GCC oral narratives, aiming to contribute to their sustainability, and helping to circulate them culturally, regionally, and globally, among current and future generations.
This came during her participation in the Second International Conference on Oral History of the Archives and the National Library in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, which was held under the title “Their Memory is Our History: The Sustainability of Inherited and Orally Transmitted Concepts and Practices”.
Dr. Al-Ka’abi presented a paper at the Conference -as a keynote speaker-titled: “Oral Narratives and the Digital Cultural Innovation Industry in Gulf Universities: Folklore Curricula as a Proposed Cultural Model”.
The research approach presented by Dr. Al-Ka’abi proposed developing a cultural strategy to create cultural innovation, and to utilize it in the field of preserving oral narratives (folklore narratives), at the level of universities and academic institutions in the GCC states, through (folklore) courses.
In addition, she stressed the importance of this cultural strategy including the utilization of modern technology to digitize and market heritage, and to transform it into an attractive (cultural knowledge industry) on social media: (e-blogs, Instagram, X platform, Facebook, Snapchat, podcasts, YouTube and other interactive e-outlets), which preserves the identity of Gulf oral narratives, and helps in their sustainability and circulation culturally, regionally, and globally among new and future generations.
The research paper discussed how to create cultural databases (Big Data) to preserve Gulf folklore culture and invest in artificial intelligence techniques, proposing to develop creative means to employ heritage in creative products, transforming them into real cultural added value in the Gulf knowledge economies, in addition to achieving cultural sustainable development goals, which produce the cultural strategy of the Gulf Cooperation Council states.
Oral folklore narratives in ancient and contemporary Arab culture are considered an interdisciplinary discourse connected to multiple fields of knowledge, in which aesthetic, cultural, oral and written aspects coexist in texts that present a discourse that is usually circulated on a large scale.
It is worth mentioning that Dr. Al-Ka’abi is an academic and critic working on cultural narratives. She holds a PhD in Philosophy in Arabic Language and Literature from the College of Graduate Studies at the University of Jordan 2004, for her thesis “Transformations of the Ancient Arabic Narrative: A Study of Cultural Patterns and Problems of Interpretation.”. She also holds a Master’s degree from year 1999 in the same university for her thesis: “The Image of Women in Ancient Arabic Narratives, a Study of Al-Jahiz’s Books, Songs, and Arab Folklore Biographies.”. Additionally, Dr. Al-Kaabi has published several books and scientific research, which qualified her to win numerous scientific awards.
The head of the Department of Arabic Language and Islamic Studies at the University is active in many specialized frameworks and societies, in addition to her membership in several scientific committees to arbitrate literary, critical, and narrative works.
