A great introductory view on the peoples, cultures, languages, religions, and history of Afghanistan. We also discussed the country’s neighbors in some depth with respect to their relationships with Afghanistan and how their cultures and languages overlap. You can of course get more visual information on topics like the meaning of Afghanistan’s flag and the history of its borders if you watch the video (embedded below and available on our Facebook page). In this hour-long video, you will get a sense of the diversity of the country and why it has been involved in so many global power struggles over the ages.

Ohio State is an amazing place to learn more about Afghanistan. We regularly host public presentations where our faculty address headlines and discuss the history of Afghanistan. Most recently, we commissioned and produced two plays about Afghanistan based on stories written by Afghan women. If you are a student or researcher at Ohio State, you’ll learn about the many resources for studying the country and its people at our university. We offer nearly all of the languages spoken there and have an amazing library collection*, in addition to faculty such as Dr. Payind who are offering related courses.

Meet Professor and anthropologist, Dr. Joy McCorriston, and learn about what life was like thousands of years ago in the Arabian Peninsula. Hear about her experiences in #Yemen​ and #Oman​ doing #archeology​. What can knapped stones, graffiti, animal bones, and more, tell us about how people lived their lives? Dr. McCorriston sheds light on how people made social ties, how groups shared resources, and what technologies people created to get what they needed from their environments. Some of these practices are found throughout the world, not just in the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula.

Her Books:

World Prehistory & the Anthropocene https://wwnorton.com/books/9780500843185​

Landscape History of Hadramawt https://ioa.ucla.edu/press/hadramawt​

Pilgrimage and Household in the Ancient Near East https://www.cambridge.org/us/academic…​

Her archeology in Yemen:

ASOM Project https://u.osu.edu/asomproject/​

Some of her classes at Ohio State U:

ANTH 2201 Introduction to Archaeology

ANTH 3451 Archaeology of the Ancient Near East

ANTH 3434 Archeology of the Holy Land

“Who Are the Taliban” shed light on the Taliban’s origins, how they differ from the other well-known jihadists, the Mujaheddin, and what a pivotal role Pakistan plays in the region. Check it out!