Professor Syed Hasan Askari I About

About

Syed Ahmer Raza

Professor Syed Hasan Askari Historiography Project

Los Angeles, California, USA

Profile

Syed Ahmer Raza launched the Professor Syed Hasan Askari Historiography Project in 2015 and has been managing the associated Official Website and Author Facebook Page to digitally catalogue and preserve the scholarly works of late Prof. Askari. He holds a Masters from Arizona State University and is a graduate of several executive programs from UCLA Anderson School of Management, Stanford Graduate School of Business and Harvard Business School.

Ahmer has digitally catalogued the scholarly works of Prof. Askari. He has been providing complimentary academic assistance to researchers and historians globally since 2018, to access and review Prof. Askari’s papers for their scholarly papers and academic projects. So far, 5 projects have been completed in this regard and more are in the queue. Ahmer is grandson of Late Professor Syed Hasan Askari and youngest son of Sanjida Fatma Raza (daughter of Professor Askari) & Late Air Commodore Syed Abid Raza, Sitara-e-Basalat, PAF (son-in-law / nephew of Professor Askari). Ahmer lives with his wife Sara on the bluffs of Southern California, USA.

For additional information, feedback and comments on this website in addition to "Professor Syed Hasan Askari Historiography Project" and the "Official Facebook Page of Late Professor Syed Hasan Askari", feel free to contact Syed Ahmer Raza at Info.Prof.Askari.Hist.Project@gmail.com.

Project Overview

The Official Website of Late Professor Syed Hasan Askari is an online platform to document "Professor Syed Hasan Askari Historiography Project". This project was initiated in 2015 to digitally catalog the literary works of Professor Askari, complimented by in-depth analysis and review for global audience. As a result of this endeavor, Professor Askari's Official Author Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/professorsyedhasanaskari) was created in 2016 followed by development and launch of this dedicated website in 2019 to provide instantaneous access (in an user friendly format) to academics, scholars, researchers, historians and public. This is work in process project and the website as well as the Facebook page would be updated on a weekly/monthly basis in this regard.

The core objective of "Professor Syed Hasan Askari Historiography Project" is digital compilation and documentation of the chronological biography, professional career, illustrious presidential awards of Professor Askari in addition to cataloging and reviewing his literary works for global access and scholarly reference. This website is utilized to digitally catalog two hundred plus articles, research papers, forewords, prefaces, book reviews (which were authored by Professor Askari from 1936 till his death in 1990) and published in multiple journals, books, newspapers and proceedings etc. Professor Askari also edited and translated historical documents, books and manuscripts respectively which were later published in book format.

Project References

Heartfelt gratitude on the following honorable mentions of the Prof. Askari Historiography Project by eminent academics, historians and scholars in their respective articles.

1. Prof. Askari's Biography: "Prof. Syed Hasan Askari" by Prof. Shubhneet Kaushik, published on the FB page of Lost Muslim Heritage Of Bihar, 2022.

Entire article can be read online:
https://www.facebook.com/LMHOBOfficial/photos/2117742931742957
https://www.facebook.com/LMHOBOfficial/posts/pfbid02MVACaMuYj7g6QcfquuJPGteizmpLfVJGHqRCydpf7hRMF2i5pWLeWjyMrE9vW8D9l

Excerpt: Check out Syed Hassan Askari's history writing, Syed Hassan Askari's creations and life-journey, excellent website focused on his overall work.

https://www.professorsyedhasanaskari.com (Website is cited.)

2. Prof. Askari Historiography Project: इतिहासकार की स्मृतियाँ : सैयद हसन अस्करी Memories of a historian: Syed Hasan Askari, by Prof. Shubhneet Kaushik, published on the FB page, 2023.

Entire article can be read online:
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid0a1DtJVpPHRXvhu3S1b46wGCV33tq327amNd3h9Wz4jH2cTwSTco8fTzwVKijGdYml&id=1474115937&sfnsn=wiwspwa&mibextid=VhDh1V

Excerpts: The credit goes to his grandson Syed Ahmer Raza for making Askari's works available online. He heard about all of his grandfather's accomplishments in the family, and was delighted to hear stories related to them. But he would be disappointed when no one could tell them about the contributions of Askari sir and the importance of his historical works. That's why he raised the issue of locating the overall writing of his Nana i.e. Askari sir. Some books of Mr. Askari were found from the Oriental Library, but all the books were unavailable. Submitting articles printed in various newspapers from the forty years ago was also a big challenge. There was a shortage of resources too. Also keep in mind that Syed Ahmer Raza is not even professional historian. Rather, he had nothing to do with history far and far. (Translated from Hindi)

3. Historian’s Craft: Syed Hasan Askari and the Idea of History, by Prof. Shubhneet Kaushik, published online at Medium, 2024.

Entire article can be read online:
https://medium.com/@kaushikshubhneet/historians-craft-syed-hasan-askari-and-the-idea-of-history-74dfe2901823

3.1 Hindi Version सैयद हसन असकरी और उनका इतिहासलेखन

Entire article can be read online:

https://samalochan.com/syed-hasan-askari/

Excerpts:

Preserving a Historian’s Legacy:

The Syed Hasan Askari Historiography Project

Historians, the guardians of society’s memory, preserve collective identity for future generations. Yet, ironically, the historian’s own legacy often fades into obscurity. Only a select few remain remembered for their ideas, their names carried forward by fellow scholars or, in rarer cases, devoted family members.

Such has been the case with Syed Hasan Askari, whose family has taken a singularly ambitious step to ensure his contributions endure. His grandson, Syed Ahmer Raza, has created an expansive digital archive of Askari’s life and work, offering an unprecedented trove of his writings in both English and Urdu. This online collection is a testament not only to Askari’s scholarship but also to the resolve of his family to keep his memory alive.

For Raza, the task began as a personal journey. Raised on stories of his grandfather’s achievements, he was stirred by the sense that few could truly convey the impact of Askari Sahib’s contributions to Indian historiography. This gap inspired Raza, now based in California, to embark on an exhaustive quest to collect his grandfather’s writings, a project that began in 2015. He soon realized the scope of the endeavor: many of Askari’s books had gone out of print, including those published by institutions like the Khuda Bakhsh Oriental Library, while articles dating back to the 1940s lay buried in hard-to-access journals and periodicals. Raza navigated archives across the United States and Europe, mining sources such as the Indian Historical Records Commission, Indian History Congress, Bengal Past and Present, Encyclopaedia Iranica, and rare Urdu journals.

After four years of meticulous work and collaboration with scholars worldwide, Raza launched the Syed Hasan Askari website in 2019. The site not only have complete bibliography of Askari’s writings but also includes summaries of books and articles, and links to accessible digital copies of essays. Even a brief look at the website reveals the depth of Raza’s dedication and serves as a reminder of the immense effort it took to secure his grandfather’s legacy — a project of such ambition that it has become an inspiration for others seeking to preserve the work of departed scholars.

Raza’s commitment to honoring Askari’s work is not only an act of familial devotion; it’s a clarion call for society to safeguard the contributions of scholars whose voices might otherwise be forgotten. Through this digital archive, the memory of Syed Hasan Askari continues to educate, inspire, and, crucially, endure.

4. "Syed Hasan Askari’s Contribution to South Asian Medieval Studies as a Historian: An Assessment" by Tanvir Anjum (Tenured Professor, Department of History, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad) & Dilawar Hussain, Lecturer, Department of Pakistan Studies, National University of Modern Languages, Islamabad), published in the "Journal of the Punjab University Historical Society Volume: 36, No. 01, January– June 2023".

Entire article can be read online: https://pu.edu.pk/images/journal/HistoryPStudies/PDF_Files/01-v36_1_2023.pdf

Syed Hasan Askari’s Contribution to South Asian Medieval Studies as a Historian: An Assessment, by Tanvir Anjum, Dilawar Hussain
Link: https://pu.edu.pk/images/journal/HistoryPStudies/PDF_Files/01-v36_1_2023.pdf

Current Issue (Vol. 36, No. 1, January– June, 2023) OF Journal of the Punjab University Historical Society
Link: https://pu.edu.pk/home/journal/40/Current-Issue.html

Journal of the Punjab University Historical Society
Link: https://pu.edu.pk/home/journal/40/

Excerpts:

Page 1 (Footnotes)

The authors wish to express their heartfelt gratitude to Prof. Askari’s grandson, Syed Ahmer Raza, (Los Angeles, California, USA) who provided very important information on the life and works of his grandfather. Without his help and support, undertaking this research project would not have been possible.

Page 4 (Text)

To preserve and promote his academic legacy, Professor Askari’s family launched the Professor Syed Hasan Askari Historiography Project. Spearheaded by his grandson, Syed Ahmer Raza, based in Los Angeles, California, the project features a meticulously developed digital archive of Professor Askari’s life and writings in both English and Urdu. This online collection, a remarkable academic service, serves not only as a tribute to Professor Askari’s scholarship but also as an invaluable resource for researchers and students of history. The Historiography Project, initiated in 2015, involved years of dedicated effort and collaboration with scholars worldwide. In 2019, the website was officially launched, offering comprehensive details about his biography, a complete bibliography of his writings, and summaries (descriptive and informative abstracts) of his works.

Page 18 (Notes & References)

For details on his biography see, Prof. Dr. Hannah Lord Archambault (Ashfield, Oregon, USA) and Syed Ahmer Raza, “Professor Syed Hasan Askari Historiography Project,” Los Angeles, California, USA. https://www.professorsyedhasanaskari.com/biography.

5. “Unravelling the Ethos of Literary Imagination in the Basātin al-Ons of Akhsetān Dehlavi,” by Pranav Prakash (Junior Research Fellow, Christ Church, University of Oxford, Director of Studies for Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, Christ Church, University of Oxford, Senior Mellon Fellow, Rare Book School, University of Virginia, Trustee, American Printing History Association), published in the "Journal of Persianate Studies, vol. 17, issue 1–2, pp. 12–41. 2024 DOI:

Entire article can be read online.
https://brill.com/view/journals/jps/17/1-2/article-p12_2.xml

Excerpts:

Page 17 (Footnotes)

To gauge this essay’s influence on contemporary scholarship, consider references to it in Jha (2019), Sarmadee (2003), Jackson (2003), Sinha (1983), among others. For a more comprehensive documentation of the reception of Askari’s work, see Raza.

Page 40 (Bibliography)

S. A. Raza, Professor Syed Hasan Askari Historiography Project, online: https://www.professorsyedhasanaskari.com (accessed 30 April 2024).