The American Society of Overseas Research (ASOR), founded in 1900 as the American School of Oriental Study and Research in Palestine, is a non-profit
501(c)(3) organization
A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of ...
based in
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of downtown Washington, D.C.
In 2020, the population was 159,467. ...
which supports the research and teaching of the history and cultures of the
Near East
The ''Near East''; he, המזרח הקרוב; arc, ܕܢܚܐ ܩܪܒ; fa, خاور نزدیک, Xāvar-e nazdik; tr, Yakın Doğu is a geographical term which roughly encompasses a transcontinental region in Western Asia, that was once the hist ...
and Middle Eastern countries. ASOR supports scholarship, research, exploration, and archeological fieldwork and offers avenues of disseminating this research through their publications. ASOR also provides support for undergraduates and graduates in institutions of higher education around the world pursuing studies of the history and cultures of the Near and Middle East.
As of January 2020, Sharon Herbert, is the president of ASOR. Her predecessor, Susan Ackerman served as President from 2014-2019.
ASOR collaborates with the following independent overseas institutes:
*
Albright Institute of Archaeological Research
The W. F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research (AIAR) is an archaeological research institution located in East Jerusalem. It is the oldest American research center for ancient Near Eastern studies in the Middle East. Founded in 1900 as t ...
,
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
– former directors of which include
Millar Burrows Millar Burrows (Wyoming, Ohio, October 26, 1889 – April 29, 1980) was an American biblical scholar, a leading authority on the Dead Sea scrolls and professor emeritus at Yale Divinity School. Burrows was director of American School of Oriental Res ...
who was instrumental in the first publications of the
Dead Sea scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls (also the Qumran Caves Scrolls) are ancient Jewish and Hebrew religious manuscripts discovered between 1946 and 1956 at the Qumran Caves in what was then Mandatory Palestine, near Ein Feshkha in the West Bank, on the ...
.
* Cyprus American Archaeological Research Institute,
Nicosia
Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaori ...
.
*
American Center of Research
The American Center of Research (ACOR) is a private, not-for-profit scholarly and educational organization. Based in Alexandria, Virginia, with a facility in Amman, Jordan, ACOR promotes knowledge of Jordan and the interconnected region, past and ...
,
Amman
Amman (; ar, عَمَّان, ' ; Ammonite: 𐤓𐤁𐤕 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''Rabat ʻAmān'') is the capital and largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of 4,061,150 as of 2021, Amman is ...
.
The overseas institutes support scholars working in the Middle East that focus on
Near Eastern Archaeology
Near Eastern archaeology is a regional branch of the wider, global discipline of archaeology. It refers generally to the excavation and study of artifacts and material culture of the Near East from antiquity to the recent past.
Definition
The ...
,
Semitic languages
The Semitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken by more than 330 million people across much of West Asia, the Horn of Africa, and latterly North Africa, Malta, West Africa, Chad, and in large immigrant ...
,
history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
,
Biblical
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of ...
studies, among a variety of other fields. The institutes are also members of the
Council of American Overseas Research Centers
The Council of American Overseas Research Centers (CAORC) is a private not-for-profit association of centers that research, conserve and record cultural heritage and modern societies.
CAORC, founded in 1981, helps arrange research projects that spa ...
.
Annual conference
ASOR convenes a scholarly conference once a year in North America, always beginning 8 days before
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden ...
(on a Wednesday evening) and running through Saturday evening.
2008 –
Boston, MA
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- most ...
and drew over 730 scholars and interested lay members from around the world.
2009 –
Denver, CO
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the United ...
.
2019 –
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...
, CA.
2020 – Virtual
2021 –
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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University of Chicago Press
The University of Chicago Press is the largest and one of the oldest university presses in the United States. It is operated by the University of Chicago and publishes a wide variety of academic titles, including '' The Chicago Manual of Style' ...
began publishing all three ASOR journals in 2019. Two of the journals are academic flagships in their respective areas:
*''
Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research
The ''Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research'' is one of three academic journals published by the American Schools of Oriental Research. It began as the ''Bulletin of the American School of Oriental Research in Jerusalem'', in 1919 ...
'' presents archaeological, historical, and epigraphic articles on topics from the ancient Near East
*'' Journal of Cuneiform Studies'' presents articles in English, German, and French on Mesopotamian topics.
The organization also publishes
*''
Near Eastern Archaeology
Near Eastern archaeology is a regional branch of the wider, global discipline of archaeology. It refers generally to the excavation and study of artifacts and material culture of the Near East from antiquity to the recent past.
Definition
The ...
'', a quarterly that reports recent research for both popular and professional audiences.
*''The Ancient Near East Today'' (ANE Today or ANET) is a monthly e-newsletter, informing registered "Friends of ASOR" about new discoveries and ideas from its field of activity.
Sources
* King, Philip J. ''American Archaeology in the Mideast: A History of the American Schools of Oriental Research'' (1983).
* Clark, D.G. and V.H. Matthews ''100 Years of American Archaeology in the Middle East: Proceedings of the American Schools of Oriental Research Centennial Celebration'' (2003).