Project description
Redefining human dignity in Islamic thought
Dignity is a fundamental principle in modern human rights discourse and has been the subject of extensive analysis in Western philosophy. However, its philosophical status within Islamic traditions remains under-examined. This gap hinders intercultural dialogue. Supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, the KARAMA project aims to reconstruct the idea of dignity (karamah) through mapping classical and modern texts, performing normative philosophical analysis and applying these findings to gender justice debates. Using digital humanities and philology, the project will deliver open-access datasets and policy resources. Ultimately, KARAMA enriches global ethics by demonstrating how Islamic thought contributes to universal values, strengthening European commitments to equality, inclusion and human rights.
Objective
KARAMA reconstructs the idea of human dignity (karamah) in Islamic thought and its role in ethics and law. While dignity is central to modern human rights and has been extensively debated in Western philosophy since Kant, its philosophical status in Islamic traditions has not been systematically examined. The project addresses this gap by clarifying whether dignity should be understood as intrinsic, relational, or conditional, and whether it can serve as a reason-giving principle for rights and duties. The research proceeds in three stages: first, a bilingual study of Qur’anic, classical, and modern reformist texts will systematically map the uses of dignity and related terms; second, a philosophical analysis will reconstruct its normative status and distinguish it from neighbouring ideas such as honour and sanctity; third, the framework will be applied to current debates on gender justice and the justification of human rights. By combining philology, philosophy, law, and digital humanities, the project develops both new knowledge and practical tools. Open science practices include an open-access semantic map, a bilingual dataset, peer-reviewed articles, a policy paper, and a monograph proposal. KARAMA contributes to global ethics by showing how Islamic traditions can enrich universal discussions of dignity, strengthening debates on equality, non-discrimination, and human rights, and providing lasting resources for scholars, NGOs, and policymakers. The project will also support intercultural dialogue by demonstrating how concepts rooted in Islamic sources can contribute to shared human values. It will reinforce European commitments to gender equality, inclusion, and democratic resilience by supplying conceptual tools for human rights debates in both academic and policy arenas.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- social sciences political sciences political policies civil society civil society organisations nongovernmental organizations
- humanities philosophy, ethics and religion religions islam
- humanities languages and literature literature studies history of literature
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
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Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2025-PF
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
22100 Lund
Sweden
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.