What do we gain from conceptualizing the vast Indian ocean as a “Muslim Sea”? This course explores how Islam spread and was shaped by intimate connections between East Africa and Southeast Asia via maritime routes.
For more information, see here.
BA Course
The return of the Taliban in 2021 seems to have lent truth to an old cliché of Afghanistan as a far away, isolated land that operates according to its own timeless rules and has proven itself repeatedly as a “graveyard of empires.” This course will instead shed light on the strong entanglements of the country with the Middle East, South- and Central Asia in order to de-exceptionalize modern Afghanistan.
MA Course
Pakistan is one of the most intriguing projects of founding a new state in the 20th century. Was it intended to be a “Muslim Zion”? A laboratory of Islam? Or rather a progressive, secular state? What has happened since 1947?
For more information, see here.
MA Course
What impact does the digital transformation have on Islam? This course looks in particular at evolving global debates on religious authority, how to understand and interpret the religious tradition, and shifting gender roles.
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BA Course
What caused the widespread sectarian enmity between Sunnis and Shi‘is in the modern period? Why have efforts at ecumenism in the 20th century failed? How is all of this connected to politics and internal changes within the Shi‘i community?
For more information, see here.
