Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies (IMES) PhD

A PhD in Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies (IMES) is an opportunity to expand upon your interests and expertise in a community that really values research, and to make a definite and original contribution to the field. <br/><br/>**Why Edinburgh**<br/><br/>With over 260 years of history in teaching and research, we are globally recognised as a leading centre for postgraduate study in Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies. <br/><br/>Our research resources and facilities are outstanding, and we have excellent links with a number of centres and networks, including the Alwaleed Centre and the Centre for Medieval & Renaissance Studies.<br/><br/>**Research excellence**<br/><br/>In the latest Research Excellence Framework (REF 2021), our research was submitted in the categories of:<br/><br/><br/>* Modern Languages<br/><br/><br/>* Politics<br/><br/><br/>* Sociology<br/><br/><br/>* History <br/><br/><br/>* Theology<br/><br/><br/>The results reaffirm Edinburgh’s position as one of the UK’s leading research universities - third in the UK based on the quality and breadth of its research in Modern Languages alone, according to Times Higher Educations REF power ratings.<br/><br/>**Research areas**<br/><br/>We are able to supervise research in a wide range of specialist and interdisciplinary areas.<br/><br/>Our expertise includes:<br/><br/><br/>* Language and literature: classical and modern Arabic literature, classical and modern Persian literature, cultural transmission and translation between Arabic and Persian cultures<br/><br/><br/>* History and historiography: pre-Islamic to modern Iran, early Islamic history, Ottoman history, Safavid history, modern history, in particular Iraq, Iran and Egypt; the Middle Eastern prison, the Middle Eastern press<br/><br/><br/>* Religion: early and classical Islam, Qur’an and Qur’anic exegesis, Hadith, the biography of Muhammad, Sufism, Islam in the Ottoman Empire, contemporary religious authority, Shii Islam<br/><br/><br/>* Contemporary Muslim politics: Islamism, sectarianism, social movements, comparative social and political change in the Muslim world<br/><br/><br/>* Arts and cultures of the Middle East, and of Muslim societies: particularly visual arts, cinema<br/><br/><br/>* Gender and sexuality in the Middle East and North Africa, contemporary Arab media<br/><br/><br/>* Shi’i Islam: Shi’i history and contemporary Shi’ism in local and transnationalist perspective<br/><br/><br/>* Islam and Muslims in Europe<br/><br/><br/>* Diasporas and ethnic minorities of the Middle East<br/><br/><br/>In addition, you have the opportunity to undertake interdisciplinary research in areas such as:<br/><br/><br/>* comparative literature<br/><br/><br/>* film studies<br/><br/><br/>* translation studies<br/><br/><br/>**Go beyond the books**<br/><br/>Beyond the Books is a podcast from the School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures (LLC) that gives you a behind-the-scenes look at research and the people who make it happen. <br/><br/>Listen to a mix of PhD, early career and established researchers talk about their journey to and through academia and about their current and recent research. Guests include Bahar Fayeghi (Series 2 - Episode 5), a PhD student in Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies who is researching the experience of Afghan women refugees in Iran.