Spring 2026

Instructor: Mark Elliott This course seeks to provide a comprehensive introduction to the study of Mongol Eurasia, anchored by the theme of globalization. The Mongol empire has variously been credited with the inaugural establishment of a globalized world...

Instructor: Jessica Marglin Jerusalem is considered one of the world’s holiest cities and is shared by three faiths; Jews, Christians, and Muslims all believe Jerusalem to be sacred, albeit for different reasons. While in some ways the common sacrality...

Instructor: Tarek Masoud

Instructor: Ann Blair This course meets every other week across fall and spring semesters. The fall will provide an introduction to recent work in the book history from antiquity to 1800, with an emphasis on Europe and some comparison with Islamic and...

Instructor: Sean Gilsdorf This class explores the relationships of passion, love, and obligation that bound men and women over the course of nearly two millennia, from Rome in the first century B.C.E. to sixteenth-century Italy. In particular, it focuses...

Instructor: Jacob Olupona Exploring the meaning of religion and its impact of on African culture and society broadly, this course will highlight both religious traditions and innovations. Instead of treating each of the religions of Africa, the triple...

Instructor: Zahra Moballegh Amid the vast corpus of biographical writings, poetry, and historical accounts on Sufis and Muslim mystics, appear tales of masters who, after a lifetime of study, teaching, and spiritual discipline, chose to throw all their...

Instructor: Payam Mohseni Throughout historical and contemporary periods, Persia (Iran) has occupied a central role in global religious thought and spirituality. The ancient Persian religions, including Zoroastrianism (Mazdayasna) and Manicheanism, had...

Instructor: Havva Guney-Ruebenacker This reading group will explore key issues in marriage, divorce, and property law across American, Islamic and Jewish legal systems. It will also examine how Jewish and Islamic law of marriage contracts and divorce...

Instructor: Khalil Abdur-Rashid This course is a survey of the sources and development of Islamic law through an exploration and analysis of the essential topics of what is known as the Sharia. The objective of this course is to provide students with an...