The queens of ancient Egypt (i.e., the kings’ wives and kings’ mothers) were distinguished by a set of specific titles and insignia that characterized them as the earthly embodiment of the divine feminine principle. By ensuring the continued renewal of kingship, they played an important role in the ideology of kingship. As the highest-ranking female members of the royal household, queens occupied a central position at court, as well. However, only in individual cases did they hold substantial political power.

In Egyptological research, the term “harem” (harim) comprises a conglomerate of phenomena, which can be distinguished as: 1) the community of women and children who belonged to the royalhousehold; 2) related institutions, including administrative organizations and personnel; and 3) associated localities and places, like palaces and royal apartments, as well as agricultural land and manufacturing workshops. Key functions of this so-called royal harem can be identified as the residence and stage for the court of the royal women, the place for the upbringing and education of the royal children and favored non-royal children as the future ruling class, the provision of musical performance in courtly life and cult, as well as the supply and provisioning of the royal family. Related Egyptian terms include ipet (from Dynasty 1 onwards), khenere(t) (from the Old Kingdom), and per kheneret (New Kingdom). The compounds ipet nesut and kheneret (en) nesut, commonly “royalharem,” are attested as early as the Old Kingdom. Only a few sources testify to the existence of the royal harem after the 20th Dynasty.

Ausgehend vom Begriff des Schwarms fragt der Beitrag nach dem Schreiben über Asyl und Migration in Elfriede Jelineks Theatertext Die Schutzbefohlenen (2013). Basierend auf der Beobachtung, dass Jelinek den Begriff des Schwarms aus Aischylos’ Tragödie Die Schutzflehenden entlehnt (konkret handelt es sich um den „Vogelschwarm“ und den „Barbarenschwarm“), widmet sich der Beitrag den vielfältigen Ebenen, die der Begriff in diesem Kontext eröffnet. Der Schwarm als Kollektiv ohne Zentrum und hierarchische Struktur stellt vorhandene Kategorien wie Eigenes und Fremdes, Innen und Außen in Frage und eröffnet ein anderes Denken von Gemeinschaft. In seinen Eigenschaften kann der Schwarm als ein Phänomen der Schwelle beschrieben werden, als Grenzen überschreitende und auflösende Formation. Neben dieser Lesart wird der Begriff gegenwärtig verstärkt als Metapher für Bedrohungsszenarien herangezogen. Als Formation der anderen Ordnung bzw. der Unordnung bündelt er diverse Angstfantasien, die aktuell auf politischer bzw. medialer Ebene mit Asyl und Migration verbunden werden. Die Beschreibung von „Flüchtlingsströmen“ ähnelt jenem des Schwarms: Es wird das Eindringen einer unkontrollierbaren Formation suggeriert, gegen die ausschließlich gewaltsam vorgegangen werden kann.

This paper discusses two processes of production of space and how historiography of architecture relates to them. The first one is based on professional design of extraordinary spaces (monuments) and is widespread during the 20th century, even in the design of ordinary buildings. We understand it through Henri Lefebvre’s ‘conceived space’: the architect’s intellectual work dominates the builder’s manual work by means of abstract concepts, tools and codes. Its products are the objects of prevailing histories of architecture reinforcing the very concepts used before. In contrast, the second process relates to Lefebvre’s ‘lived space’. It is collective and cooperative, characterized by people’s engagement and negotiation on nonhierarchical building-sites, in which design, building and use are simultaneous. It creates everyday spaces in constant change, such as Brazilian favelas. Prevailing histories of architecture do not include this second process, because there are no concepts, schools, authors or finished products to be reified, while alternative approaches, also called ‘new history’ (School of Annales, ‘history from below’, microhistory, Alltagsgeschichte), have not yet reached the academic field of architecture. Our question is how to include the production of lived space in this field, as the way of making history is crucial to define the understanding of students and professionals about their role in society.

Globally, one in seven infants is born with low birth weight while 3 to 7% of infants are both with high birth weight, with the greatest burden noted in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). An unhealthy birth weight is associated with developmental difficulties and health problems both in early-life and throughout the life span. One aspect of a healthy pregnancy is maternal glucose regulation. Despite global disparities, the majority of research has been conducted in high-income countries, with most participants identifying as Caucasian or White. To address this gap in the literature, this study investigated whether average maternal glucose regulation during pregnancy (assessed via HbA1c) is associated with birth weight and whether fetal sex moderated this association. The analytic samples were comprised of adult healthy pregnant women in Pakistan (N = 111) and Kenya (N = 34). It was hypothesized that higher maternal glucose regulation during pregnancy would be associated with higher infant birth weight and that this association would be stronger for women carrying male versus female fetuses. Regression analyses suggested that higher glucose regulation was associated with higher birth weight infants in Pakistani women (b = 198.82, t[101] = 2.6, p = .01, 95% CI [49.35, 348.28]) and with lower birth weight infants in Kenyan women (b = 328.7, t[26] = -2.4, p = .02, 95% CI [-608.94, -48.48]), but only after adjusting for key covariates. Fetal sex did not significantly moderate these findings. These results suggest the importance of considering relevant cofounding variables, such as gestational age at birth, ethnicity, and pregnancy weight. Moreover, findings point to a need to study sociocultural factors, which could help explain the different direction of results for Pakistani and Kenyan women.