The Social and Charitable Activities of Algerian Muslim Ulemas at Local Level

Internal Seminar

February, 16th 2025 (09h-13h) at CRASC

Moderated by: Fouad SOUFI 

Objectives of the seminar:

• To give an overview of the state of the Ulema's charitable activities.
• To shed light on the evolution of charity and sociability at local level.
• To show the important role of charitable associations linked directly or indirectly with the Ulema Association.

Abstract:

The general tendency of Algerian civil society to take joint action, to come together in associations, whether charitable, sporting, or musical, and more broadly mass organizations, went hand in hand with increased politicization as a result of the centenary celebrations of the French conquest in 1930, which mobilized Algerian Muslims for unity and the defense of their rights.

The objective of this internal seminar is to shed light on the role of the local sections of the Ulama and the way in which they maintained links with other associations in the town or region. 

The aim is also to demonstrate the effervescence of the Muslim intellectual milieu in the 1930s, which had indeed resulted in the creation of associations that enabled people to come together and exchange ideas. The countless new associations were not necessarily directly affiliated to the Association of Ulemas, but most of them had a link with it. Sports and cultural activities were part of the Ulema's overall conception of Islamic education, which was intended to enable the younger generation to live healthily, and in harmony with their identity.

Charlotte COURREYE, University of Lyon3

 Biography:

Charlotte COURREYE is a Lecturer at the University of Lyon 3. Her research interests include cultural exchanges between the Arab Near East and the Maghreb in the 20th century, the history of colonisation and decolonisation in the contemporary Maghreb (particularly Algeria), the history of the Arabic language and teaching in the Maghreb, and the history of Muslim reformism and Islamism (19th-20th centuries). Her main publications are:

• L'Algérie des Oulémas. Une histoire de l'Algérie contemporaine (1931-1991), Paris, Éditions de la Sorbonne, 2020.
• Le Maghreb par les textes, XVIIIe-XXIe s. with Annick Lacroix and Augustin Jomier, Paris, Éditions Armand Colin, 2020