Talk:Qusayr 'Amra

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Why: the discoverer, who reproduced phonetically the name used by locals, called it, in German, Ḳuṣejr ʻAmra (j in German is read like an i in Latin). That was in 1898 (discovery), 1902 (scientific publication in Vienna), 1907 (artistically enhanced folio). The UNESCO adopted it on its World Heritage List as Qusayr Amra in 1985. The World Monuments Fund, who is currently organising much of the restoration work there, calls it Qusayr 'Amra. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and the Louvre called it Qusayr 'Amra, as does one of the best known books on 'Amra, written by Garth Fowden and published by UCLA Press. Three very popular websites, Lonely Planet, ArchNet, and Museum with No Frontiers are spelling it Qusayr Amra.

• Book by Western discoverer: Alois Musil, Ḳuṣejr ʻAmra und andere Schlösser östlich von Moab, Wien 1902. So the discoverer, who was told by locals how they call the building, writes the name - in German, in 1902 - Ḳuṣejr ʻAmra.
• Qusayr Amra, UNESCO World Heritage List, 1985
• Qusayr 'Amra, World Monuments Fund, organisers of the restoration project.
• Qusayr 'Amra, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
• Qusayr 'Amra, Louvre Museum
• Qusayr 'Amra: Art and the Umayyad Elite in Late Antique Syria. By Garth Fowden, UCLA Press, 2004. Garth Fowden is Research Professor at the Centre for Greek and Roman Antiquity, National Research Foundation in Athens.
• Qusayr Amra, Lonely Planet
• Qusayr Amra, ArchNet
• Qusayr Amra, Museum with No Frontiers (MWNF)

Etc., etc., etc.

It seems that somebody - maybe the Jordanian Department of Antiquities? - decided to drop the diminutive (qusayr = little qasr, small palace) for patriotic reasons? For conformity with the other qasrs/desert castles? Anyway, it's an artificial change imposed from above, going against the authentic name used by locals, and against a century of research and publications. Why should Wikipedia follow this lead?

@Zero0000: Zero, hi, sorry to bother you again, but if this convinces you, maybe you would consider doing the move/renaming. Thanks! Arminden (talk) 00:43, 14 December 2019 (UTC)[reply]

@Arminden: I agree entirely and I'll move it. Incidentally, the sources here are not wonderful. I read that the most detailed description is Creswell, K. A. C., Early Muslim Architecture, vol. 1, Umayyads, A.D. 622-750 (1940). 2d ed. Oxford, 1969. See pages 390-449. Zero^talk 06:12, 14 December 2019 (UTC)[reply]

@Zero0000: Thank you, both for supporting the move and for pointing out to me Creswell's book. Trying now to get online access. Arminden (talk) 18:17, 14 December 2019 (UTC)[reply]

This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 23 August 2022 and 9 December 2022. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Charlottemeans (article contribs). Peer reviewers: Shakera Patterson, Joe.harkins.richmond.

— Assignment last updated by Shakera Patterson (talk) 04:45, 14 December 2022 (UTC)[reply]

This article is currently the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 16 January 2024 and 14 May 2024. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Sophia MacDonald (article contribs). Peer reviewers: Ekidd04.

— Assignment last updated by Ekidd04 (talk) 14:18, 10 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]