Sharjah Ruler Inaugurates "Arab Studies Center" at Portugal's University of Coimbra

The ruler of Sharjah has opened the first Arabic Studies Center at Portugal's University of Coimbra, marking a historic milestone for Arabic language education in the country. Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi also launched the digital version of the famous Joanina Library and donated a rare 1565 Barbosa manuscript that he had personally acquired after it was lost for nearly 100 years.

The center sits within one of Europe's oldest universities, founded in 1290, giving it significant academic weight. This isn't just about teaching Arabic grammar and writing. The center will host seminars bringing together Arab writers with their Portuguese and European counterparts, and invite poets and authors from the Arab world for literary events.

The Barbosa manuscript tells a different story than what most history books say about the 16th century Portuguese presence in the Arabian Gulf. Sheikh Sultan spent years tracking down this document, following leads from one archive to another until he found a complete copy.

"The first thing I noticed was that the writer showed integrity in his descriptions and honesty in his reporting," Sheikh Sultan said during the ceremony. The Portuguese officer Duarte Barbosa had accompanied occupation forces from the Gulf of San Sebastian to China's coasts, passing through the Arabian Gulf region. But his account painted Arab populations as civilized, advanced in sciences and culture, while clearly showing that the occupying forces "practiced destruction and devastation."

This matters because it challenges the dominant historical narrative. Sheikh Sultan published his book "A Journey of Great Importance" in Arabic, English, and Portuguese to give future generations "a solid knowledge document they can rely on as they engage in civilizational dialogues in a world where concepts change overnight."

The digital library project represents a practical collaboration between Sharjah and Coimbra. They're digitizing 30,000 books and manuscripts, making them accessible to researchers worldwide. The process even uncovered manuscripts the university didn't know it had.

University President Amilcar Falcão noted how this partnership began when Sheikh Sultan received an honorary doctorate from Coimbra in 2018. During a previous visit to the Joanina Library, the Sheikh had expressed interest in developing a joint digitization project.

The first section of the digital collection, called the "Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi Collection," focuses on historical materials related to the Portuguese presence in the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula. It serves as a research resource for multiple academic fields.

Sheikh Sultan's decision to donate the original Barbosa manuscript back to Portugal shows his commitment to returning historical documents to their proper homes. Despite his personal attachment to the manuscript - he learned parts of Portuguese from reading it so often - he believes it belongs in the Portuguese library.

The Arabic Studies Center represents Sharjah's broader strategy to establish Arabic cultural presence in international academic institutions. It will work as a bridge between universities and research centers on one side, and Arab cultural and creative output on the other.

This initiative fits into the UAE's wider cultural diplomacy efforts, building dialogue bridges between East and West. But it's also practical - giving non-Arabic speakers access to Arab culture and providing a platform for ongoing cooperation and dialogue.