Samuel Liebhaber  0:12  
The basic idea behind my project is to draw attention to the oral poetic traditions of the Maharaja of Yemen, and Oman, roughly 200,000 people who have maintained their indigenous unwritten language in the face of broad historical trends towards the adoption of the Arabic language in the Middle East and especially on the Arabian Peninsula. Going further, the project aims to provide a window on how poetry is formulated in a strictly oral context. The interactive display featured in this project prompts visitors to explore a variety of possible routes to a poetic conclusion to walk through the process of poetic creation, from the moment of initial inspiration to final considerations of performance and transmission type. Unlike print publications, the development of this project has been collaborative at every step of the way, and has brought me into the orbit of some extraordinary technologists at my home institution, and has introduced me to a broader network of digital humanists and in many ways this was the most gratifying aspect of bringing this project to fruition.

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