On Monday, August 12, 2024, the Master of Middle Eastern Cultural Studies Study Program has carried out the activity “Welcoming New KBTT Students for the Even Period of 2023/2024”. This activity was attended by lecturers in the Master of Middle Eastern Cultural Studies Program, namely Prof. Dr. Lasiyo, M.A., Prof. Dr. Fadlil Munawwar Manshur, M.S., Dr. Hindun, M.Hum., Dr. Nur Saktiningrum, M.Hum., Dr. Zulfa Purnamawati, M.A., Dr. Mahmudah, M.Hum., Dr. Arief Ma’nawi, M.Hum., and Dr. Imam Wicaksono, M.Hum. The event was opened by the Head of the Department of Intercultural Studies, Prof. Dr. Sangidu, M.Hum. Prof. Sangidu emphasized that the admission of new students for the odd period is a concrete effort made by the Faculty of Cultural Sciences to provide opportunities for scholars to deepen their knowledge in the realm of the Middle East.

Acara dilanjutkan dengan pemaparan kurikulum oleh Sekretaris Departemen Antarbudaya FIB UGM, Dr. Mahmudah, M.Hum. Kurikulum merumuskan bahwa profil Alumni KBTT memiliki kesempatan besar dalam pekerjaan, mulai dari akademisi, peneliti, dan diplomat. Demi mencapai profil lulusan yang berkualitas, dibutuhkan kerja keras dari mahasiswa untuk mengembangkan keilmuan dengan riset dan menarasikannya dalam publikasi karya Ilmiah. Dr. Mahmudah mengatakan “Magister Kajian Budaya Timur Tengah merupakan prodi kajian antarbudaya yang cakupannya luas. Penelitian dengan objek antar negara, baik dalam ranah sastra, bahasa, dan sosial, dapat dilakukan dengan catatan menjadikan ketiganya sebagai “jendela”. Penelitian ini diharapkan dapat dikembangkan dan dipublikasikan dalam jurnal bereputasi agar bisa dimanfaatkan oleh masyarakat”.

Back again from Friday Ceria FIB Sehat, this routine activity is back to realize a healthier and happier balanced life routine. This activity was attended by lecturers, teaching staff, and academic community of Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM. Various types of sports were held in this activity, including healthy gymnastics, line dance, fitness/gym, badminton, table tennis, and healthy walking. Today’s special event was a new sport, Volleyball.

Photo 1: The staff are having fun playing volleyball.

Together with the academic community and educators, FIB UGM filled this activity with excitement. Each participant can choose sports according to their interests and habits. Not only providing physical benefits, apparently this activity also builds togetherness, enthusiasm, and maintains the mental health of each participant. This is part of the Faculty of Cultural Sciences’ commitment to promoting health and well-being among the academic community.

Photo 2: Gym Room Faculty of Humanities

The Department of Anthropology at Universitas Gadjah Mada organized a departmental workshop for lecturers and departmental support staff. This activity was held on Thursday-Friday, August 8-9, 2024, at Sambi Resort, Pakembinangun, Pakem, Sleman. The purpose of this activity is to evaluate the work achievements and work plans of the department. This is the realization of the 4th SDG’s target, namely Quality Education.

This activity consists of several sessions which are divided into two days. The first session on the first day was the preparation of the 2024/2025 Odd Semester Course Schedule. This session was presented by Dr. Realisa D. Masardi. The preparation of this schedule is intended to synchronize the schedule and the division of the person in charge of the course. The next session was the 2025-2030 Curriculum Plan presented by Dr. Elan A. Lazuardi. In this session, anthropological issues that are relevant to current world conditions and forecasts of future world conditions were presented. This shows that the Department of Anthropology will produce graduates who are relevant to the times. The last session on the first day was the Empowerment Anthropology Curriculum and Final Project. This session was presented by Dr. Gaffari Rahmadian and Dr. Muhammad Zamzam Fauzanafi.

The second day of the event focused on upgrading the staff and faculty of the Department of Anthropology. It was divided into three sessions. The first session was on staff promotion strategies and staff rank presented by Prof. Pujo Semedi. The next session was the staff recruitment plan which was also presented by Prof. Pujo Semedi. And the last session on this activity was secretarial by Fajrul, Head of Staff of the Anthropology Department.

The new academic year 2024/2025 has begun, which means there are new students who will pursue their education at the university level. This is also the case at the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada. This time the good news came from the Anthropology department. This year the Anthropology Department accepted 105 new students. Then the department together with the departmental association, Kemant, held an orientation period for new students of the Cultural Anthropology Bachelor Program.

The orientation period was held in a series of events that were packaged creatively and innovatively. The first activity was Meet the New Students, this activity was held on August 11, 2024. This activity is a gateway to introduce new students to anthropology. Through this activity, the committee and Kemant gave an overview of the Anthropology Department by socializing what activities are in the department, such as field research, exchange programs, tandem research, and many more. Then the new students were also divided into several groups that would be accompanied by a guide. The purpose of forming this group is to get to know each other and for various things that will be faced in the world of lectures. “Sharing is caring…”, said Deta as the public relations committee. This activity was closed with a jamming session.

Furthermore, students will get to know more about cultural anthropology in the activities in the coming week, some of which are: (a) group discussions that will be divided into several topics; (b) Rembukant, a talkshow type activity that will present speakers; (c) Writing Workshop; (d) Puncak Berkawant. So, let’s look forward to a series of other activities.

The Javanese Language, Literature, and Culture Study Program, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada (FIB UGM), held another Macapatan Jumat Legen event on Thursday, June 27th, 2024. This event took place at the Javanese Studies Center (Pusaka Jawa) and raised a popular Javanese literary work, namely Serat Wedhatama.

Serat Wedhatama, a literary work written by Kanjeng Gusti Pangeran Arya Adipati (KGPAA) Mangkunagara IV, is a work full of piwulang about the concept of divinity and moral teachings in life and society. The manuscript of Serat Wedhatama kept at the Mangkunegaran Palace Library in Surakarta consists of 100 stanzas and is divided into several pupuhs, namely:

1. Pupuh Pangkur: 14 pada (stanzas)
2. Pupuh Sinom: 18 pada (stanzas)
3. Pupuh Pocung: 15 pada (stanzas)
4. Pupuh Gambuh: 35 pada (stanzas)
5. Pupuh Kinanthi: 18 pada (stanzas)

The event presented Prof. Dr. Hendrokumoro, M.Hum., as the speaker, and was attended by participants from various circles. In addition, Dr. Rudy Wiratama, S.I.P., M.A., participated in developing Serat Wedhatama in the opening ceremony and several students of the Javanese Language, Literature and Culture Study Program participated in playing gamelan, adding to the solemn atmosphere of the event. The liveliness of the participants in reading and developing Serat Wedhatama created an atmosphere full of beauty.

Prof. Dr. Hendrokumoro, M.Hum, on the occasion, emphasized that Serat Wedhatama, with its philosophical values and moral messages, can be applied in daily life. However, the actualization needs to be considered so that it can be relevant to the current conditions.

Macapatan Jumat Legen aims to revive the Macapatan tradition and preserve this tradition for the younger generation. Preserving this tradition and extracting information from literary works such as Serat Wedhatama is an important step in improving the quality of public education. The collaboration of various parties, such as between the Javanese Language, Literature and Culture Study Program and the Pusaka Jawa UGM, is an effort to maximize these preservation efforts. Thus, the organization of Macapatan Jumat Legen is in line with the 4th and 17th points in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s).

Author : Haryo Untoro