Description

Like other world religions, Islam exists as a belief system.  But it is also frequently treated as an artistic genre (“Islamic art” or “Islamic architecture”), as a culture (“Islamic culture”), and perhaps most controversially as a conceptual unit (“the Islamic world”).  This series explores the concept of "Islam” with particular emphasis on its edges.  It compares Islam in Muslim minority states, non-Muslims in Islamic majority states, and the multiplicity of forms that Islamic societies can take, as well as the multiplicity of practices within Islamic societies.  In this way the study of Islam is inherently global, bringing together scholars working on nearly every region of the world.  It is also multidisciplinary, with deep roots in History, History of Art & Architecture, Law, Anthropology, Literature, and other fields.  This series explores the contours of global Islam and the perspectives that it can open for us on the world, on its history, and on the concepts and methods that we use in our respective disciplines. 

Past Events

Muslims in Muslim Minority States: A roundtable discussion with Peng Hai (History), Yasmine Flodin-Ali (Religious Studies), and Amara Lakhous (Yale University). March 17, 2026, 3:30pm-5pm. 3703 Posvar Hall.