Prince Faisal bin Salman Sponsors First Symposium on Saudi Historical Writing
His Royal Highness Prince Faisal bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Special Advisor to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and Chairman of the Board of the King Abdulaziz Foundation (Darah), sponsored the first Symposium on Saudi Historical Writing, titled “Saudi Historical Writing: Methodology, Trends, and the Future.” King Saud University organized the symposium at the Sheikh Hamad Al-Jasser Hall.
His Royal Highness toured the exhibition held alongside the symposium, which featured a collection of rare manuscripts, books, and historical documents, with participation from several institutions.
Acting President of King Saud University Dr. Ali Mohammed Masmali said the symposium came at a time when the Kingdom was witnessing rapid scientific and research growth, alongside comprehensive development under the leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, may God protect them, and the wide-ranging transformations achieved under Saudi Vision 2030 across scientific, intellectual, and cultural fields.
He expressed his gratitude to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and the Crown Prince for their commitment to upholding national values and safeguarding the country’s historical heritage. He also thanked Prince Faisal bin Salman for honoring the symposium with his presence and sponsorship.
For his part, Dr. Fares Al-Mushrafi, Head of the Department of History at KSU and Chair of the symposium’s preparatory committee, said that the sponsorship reflected the Kingdom’s continued interest in history as a form of knowledge that preserves the memory of the country and its society, helps explain the nation’s transformations, and shapes younger generations’ awareness of their history and heritage.
He added that the symposium’s main objective is not merely to showcase the achievements of Saudi historians, but also to turn these achievements into a subject of study and critical examination. This includes examining how Saudi historical writing has evolved, how its tools and methodologies have developed, which topics have received the greatest attention, and which sources historians have relied upon. It also explores how historical research is changing in response to digitization, artificial intelligence, and the growing diversity of knowledge sources.
The symposium reflected the leadership’s commitment to scholarly research and historical studies, in line with Vision 2030’s goals of strengthening national identity and preserving the nation’s heritage and history.
The symposium featured 13 scholarly papers covering a range of themes, including “Dr. Abdullah Al-Uthaymeen’s Contribution to Writing Saudi National History,” “Archaeology as a Source for Historical Writing,” “Historical Writing in the Digital Age,” “Integrating History and the Humanities,” “Oral History and Its Relationship to Documents,” “The Future of Historical Studies,” and case studies of Saudi historians and their methodologies.
