Yogyakarta, October 25, 2025 – The annual English Days 2025 event made its return, organized by students of the English Literature Study Program, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada (FIB UGM). This year’s series of activities features a stage play titled “Deserved It,” an English-language drama filled with tension and secrets within the dynamics of friendship.

The play “Deserved It” tells the story of Mickey, a mysterious new student whose arrival brings major changes to the circle of friends—Chloe, Valerie, Anders, Dash, Jennifer, and Jason. One by one, their hidden secrets begin to unravel, drawing the audience into a gripping, emotional, and unpredictable atmosphere. With sharp dialogues, a suspenseful storyline, and energetic performances, “Deserved It” promises an immersive and memorable theatrical experience.

Beyond the theater performance, English Days 2025 also offers a variety of other exciting activities. From October 25–31, visitors can enjoy a 2000s nostalgia exhibition displayed along the first-floor corridor of the Soegondo Building, FIB UGM. On October 30, 2025, a Movie Screening Workshop will be held, inviting participants to watch and discuss “The Lovely Bones,” a cinematic masterpiece rich with themes of loss, hope, and justice. The workshop is open to students and the general public who wish to deepen their appreciation of film while honing their critical analysis skills in English.

As the grand finale, on October 31, 2025, English Days will host its annual Halloween Party, a much-anticipated event where students can express themselves, socialize, and celebrate creativity in the spirit of Halloween costumes and decorations.

Carrying this year’s central theme, English Days 2025 aims to provide a platform for students to express ideas, strengthen togetherness, and showcase their English proficiency through art and popular culture. The organizing committee hopes that this annual event will continue to serve as a collaborative space where students can practice English in real contexts while exploring their interests in performing arts and global culture.

All English Days 2025 activities are open to the public and will take place within the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, UGM. For more information, visit the official Instagram account @englishdays_ugm and TikTok @englishdays.ugm.

[English Literature, IMAJI]

Yogyakarta, October 28, 2025 – The Arabic Study Program, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), once again celebrates a proud achievement through one of its students, Sultan Amirul Muttaqin, who successfully earned three prestigious awards in both national and regional rounds of the Musabaqah Syarhil Qur’an (MSQ) competition. Sultan’s outstanding ability to interpret and eloquently convey the messages of the Qur’an earned him recognition for his clarity, expressiveness, and emotional depth.

Sultan’s first major accomplishment came at the National MSQ Competition organized by the Qur’anic Studies Program of UIN Walisongo Semarang, where he and his team achieved 2nd Place Nationally. The UGM team delivered a powerful collaboration between the qāriʾ (reciter), the translator, and the syāriḥ (commentator), impressing the judges with their harmonious performance, strong arguments, and deep spiritual expression.

His second achievement followed at the Festival Santri Multitalent 2025, hosted by the Khaulabenazir National Community of Female Students, where Sultan once again secured 2nd Place Nationally in the Musabaqah Syarhil Qur’an category. Serving as the translator, he showcased exceptional linguistic precision and rhetorical beauty in rendering the meaning of the Qur’anic verses.

Not stopping there, Sultan also triumphed at the regional level, earning 2nd Place in the Yogyakarta and Central Java MSQ Competition, organized by the Al-Qur’an Education Institute (LPQ) Masjid As-Syuhada Yogyakarta. The event brought together participants from educational institutions, universities, and Islamic boarding schools committed to promoting Qur’anic-based da’wah.

In his reflections, Sultan emphasized that the role of the translator in the Musabaqah Syarhil Qur’an is not merely about linguistic conversion, but about reviving the soul and message of the verses so that audiences can truly feel their meaning. “Alhamdulillah, every competition is a valuable experience to deliver da’wah in a scholarly and beautiful way. This proves that students can be meaningful bridges of da’wah through intellect and language,” he shared.

These achievements not only bring honor to the UGM Arabic Study Program but also embody the spirit of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 4 (Quality Education) and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions). The Study Program hopes Sultan’s accomplishments will inspire other students to continue striving for excellence, spreading the values of Islam through language, and contributing to Islamic scholarship both nationally and internationally.

Author: Sultan Amirul Muttaqin

Yogyakarta, October 22, 2025 — The Head of the History Study Program, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada (FIB UGM), Dr. Mutiah Amini, M.Hum, officially opened the History Week 2025, which carries the theme “Industry in the Flow of History.” The opening ceremony took place at the Auditorium of Soegondo Building, 7th Floor, on Wednesday (22/10), attended by students from the Faculty of Cultural Sciences as well as representatives from various student organizations within and beyond FIB UGM.

History Week is an annual event organized by the Undergraduate History Study Program of FIB UGM as part of its efforts to enhance historical learning through both academic and non-academic approaches. The program serves as a platform for students to broaden their insights, channel their creativity, and foster awareness of historical and social issues relevant to today’s society.

The implementation of History Week 2025 is the result of collaboration and initiative by the Badan Keluarga Mahasiswa Sejarah (BKMS), the student association that oversees various activities of History students within FIB UGM. As one of BKMS’s largest programs, this event is not only intended for students of the History Study Program but is also open to the public, including academics from various universities across Indonesia. Through this event, students are encouraged to actively participate in developing historical studies oriented toward contemporary issues.

One of the main series of activities in History Week 2025 is the National Student History Seminar (SSMN), which adopts the overarching theme “Industry in the Flow of Indonesian History.” The seminar is designed to provide opportunities for students from diverse disciplines who have an interest in history to develop their academic writing and discussion skills. Several selected students will present their papers directly before the seminar participants in two panel sessions. Prior to these presentations, the event will begin with an introductory lecture delivered by a keynote speaker who is an expert in industrial history.

The discussions in this seminar cover a wide range of important topics related to the development of industry in Indonesia, including the historical evolution of industry, the dynamics of local industries, the impacts of industrialization on the environment and society, the history of social movements within industry, as well as the roles of local economic figures and women in the industrialization process. Through a historical perspective, this event seeks to foster a deeper understanding of how industry has become an integral part of Indonesia’s social, economic, and cultural development.

Overall, History Week 2025 aims to encourage students to understand industrial issues from a historical perspective while raising awareness of the importance of studying national industrial history as a key to comprehending today’s industrial dynamics. Moreover, the event aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Goal 4 (Quality Education) through the strengthening of historical literacy and academic research, Goal 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) by exploring the historical development of the industrial sector, and Goal 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure) which emphasizes the importance of history as the foundation for future innovation and development. Thus, History Week 2025 stands not only as an academic platform but also as a tangible contribution from UGM History students to the global agenda of sustainable development.

[Public Relations of FIB UGM, Candra Solihin]

Yogyakarta, September 10, 2025 – The Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada (FIB UGM), has once again produced significant research in the field of linguistics. Dini Maulia, a doctoral student in Linguistics under the Graduate Program of Humanities, successfully defended her dissertation entitled “A Contrastive Analysis of Negation in Japanese and Indonesian.”

In her dissertation, Dini was supervised by Dr. Tatang Hariri, M.A. as the main advisor, and Dr. Y. Tri Mastoyo, M.Hum. as the co-advisor. The study aimed to compare the negation systems in Japanese and Indonesian using a theoretical contrastive analysis framework, drawing on the works of Fisiak (1980), Ke (2019), Krzeszowski (1990), and Zabrocki (1980).

The findings revealed that negation markers can be classified into two types: affixal negation and sentential negation. Furthermore, based on X-bar theory, it was found that affixal negation in both Japanese and Indonesian occupies the modifier node that describes a noun.

Through contrastive analysis, the study also identified four main factors influencing the similarities and differences in the negation systems of the two languages, namely:

1. Negation as a universal grammatical feature,

2. Language typology,

3. Categories of sentential negation, and

4. Tense systems.

This research not only contributes to theoretical linguistic studies but also aligns with the goals of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 4 (Quality Education), through the advancement of cross-cultural linguistic knowledge, and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), by fostering intercultural and interlingual understanding.

With these findings, the study is expected to build a more comprehensive model of contrastive language analysis, enriching linguistic scholarship while strengthening UGM’s role in producing world-class academics.

[Public Relations Office, FIB UGM – Alma Syahwalani]

Yogyakarta, 15/8/2025 – Two lecturers from the Master’s Program in Literature at Universitas Gadjah Mada, Prof. Faruk Tripoli, S.U., and Dr. phil. Ramayda Akmal, S.S., M.A., launched their latest book Naratologi Klasik through a discussion event held at SaRang Art, Books & Coffee on Friday, August 15, 2025. The event was part of the Forum Bakal Buku program, which provides a platform for authors and publishers to present their upcoming works.

In a discussion moderated by Heru, the authors emphasized the importance of narratology as one of the pillars of literary studies. Prof. Faruk likened narratology to a camera capable of “shooting” and “zooming,” helping readers to grasp a story in its entirety. “No matter how much we analyze the content through various approaches, narratology allows us to better understand the story,” he remarked.

Moderator Heru added that narratology makes readers more attentive to narrative techniques rather than merely the content of a story. He illustrated this by showing how the 1998 events could be understood differently through direct testimony compared to a novel addressing the same events. “One of the greatest mistakes literature students make is to immediately focus on the content, while narratology actually explains how the story is conveyed,” he explained.

Meanwhile, Dr. Ramayda Akmal stressed that the way a story is told often carries ideological weight. “The foundation of narratology lies in two things: first, studying the content of the story in literary works, and second, examining how the story is presented. It is in this mode of presentation that political elements often emerge,” she noted.

The discussion was interactive, with an enthusiastic audience engaging directly with the authors. The presence of Naratologi Klasik is expected to make a significant contribution to enriching literary theory in Indonesia, while also reinforcing the position of narratology as a critical tool for reading literary texts within their social, cultural, and political contexts.

Author: Marsya Kamila/Public/Public Relations, Master’s Program in Literature