Najaf Hosts Second International Heritage Conference
Najaf : Gulf Tech News
The Imam Ali Holy Shrine organized the Second International Heritage Conference in Najaf, with broad participation from scholars and researchers representing universities and academic institutions from Iraq and abroad, as part of its ongoing efforts to preserve Islamic heritage and protect valuable manuscript collections.
The conference was held under the theme Najafi Heritage: Authenticity and Enlightenment and titled Manuscript Heritage in the Libraries of Najaf: A Treasure of Civilization and History, highlighting Najaf’s historical role as a global center of Islamic scholarship and intellectual production.
In the opening address, the Secretary General of the Imam Ali Holy Shrine, Issa Al Kharsan, emphasized that hosting this conference reflects a deep sense of scientific and historical responsibility toward safeguarding the intellectual legacy of the Islamic world and presenting it through rigorous academic frameworks aligned with contemporary research standards.
The Head of the Al Alawi Center for Research and Islamic Studies, Sheikh Salam Al Nasseri, stated that the conference received more than ninety academic papers, of which fifty-eight were approved according to recognized scientific criteria. Researchers participated from nine countries, including Iran, Turkey, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Lebanon, the Russian Federation, Pakistan, and Uzbekistan.
The conference featured specialized research sessions that examined rare manuscripts preserved in Najaf’s historical libraries, including collections from the Imam Ali Library and the Sayyid Muhammad Hasan Al Taliqani Library. These sessions reflected the depth of academic engagement with Najafi manuscript heritage and its broader contribution to Islamic intellectual history.
On the sidelines of the conference, a specialized academic dialogue seminar titled The History of Najafi Repositories: An Open Discussion was held, addressing the role of Najaf’s manuscript repositories in disseminating knowledge across the Islamic world. The seminar highlighted the efforts of the Imam Ali Holy Shrine in cataloging, preserving, and digitizing rare manuscripts according to internationally recognized scholarly standards.
The Second International Heritage Conference reaffirmed Najaf’s position as a global hub for Islamic scholarship and research, while underscoring the leading role of the Imam Ali Holy Shrine in preserving human heritage, supporting academic studies, and strengthening international scientific and cultural cooperation
