Local varsity digitising old Malay manuscripts in London

Local varsity digitising old Malay manuscripts in London

This follows an MoU signed between Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin and the University of London.

The School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, has valuable Malay manuscripts in its custody. (Youtube pic)
KUALA NERUS:
Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA) has become the first university in Malaysia to digitise Malay manuscripts from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London.

Its vice-chancellor, Prof Fadzli Adam, said this followed a memorandum of understanding signed with SOAS on May 10 this year.

He said UniSZA researchers are currently working on transcribing the contents of these manuscripts.

To date, 20 Malay manuscripts from the SOAS collection have been successfully digitised by UniSZA’s Islamic Malay Product and Civilisation Research Institute (Inspire).

“We are committed to digitising all Malay manuscripts held by SOAS within the agreed timeframe,” Fadzli said in a statement today.

Looking ahead, Fadzli said UniSZA aimed to expand its collaboration in the field of Islamic manuscripts and hopes to become a leading Malay digital reference centre in Malaysia.

“The higher education ministry also expects UniSZA to play a significant role as a national resource for Malay digital manuscripts,” he added.

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