Postgraduate research programmes in Middle Eastern Studies
Research Programmes in Middle Eastern Studies
Middle Eastern Studies at Manchester offers exceptionally wide-ranging opportunities for research and advanced training in the history, languages, religious traditions and politics of the Middle East. Training and research supervision in all major cultures and periods of the region are delivered by experts whose publications contribute to their subject on the international level. In the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise a total of 60% of research in the Department was deemed to be in the two top quality categories of 4* (world-leading) and 3* (internationally excellent).
Research embraces the historical-literary study of classical periods, as well as current approaches in the exploration of the social, cultural, literary or religious characteristics of the contemporary Middle East. Staff research interests include modern Islamic thought, the role of women in the Muslim world, translation studies, Israeli culture, modern Jewish thought, 20th century relations between Europe and the Arab Middle East as well as Iran, alongside classical Islamic history, Shiism, rabbinic Judaism, Turkic linguistics and the pre-Islamic and Christian history of the Middle East.
The University of Manchester has excellent facilities and support for the study of the Middle East. In particular, the John Rylands University Library is one of the best in Europe, with a large Middle Eastern collection including one of the finest collections of manuscripts and early printed books in the U.K. Its holdings include numerous Arabic, Persian, Ottoman Turkish, Hebrew and Syriac works. The Bulletin of the John Rylands Library, often contains articles related to the Middle Eastern collections. The University Museum and the Whitworth Art Gallery both contain extensive collections of material related to the Middle East.
Midle Eastern Studies Recent Thesis Titles
- 'Palestinian and Irish Women in War Literature'
- 'The Masoretic Work of Rabbi Yedidyah Shelomoh Refa'el Norzi Minhat Shai'
- 'Oman and the Islamic Caliphate 11-442/632-1050: The Military Struggle'
- 'The Nabatean Economy in the Light of Archaelogical Evidence'
- 'Ottoman Education Policy during the Tanzimat Period (1839 - 1876)'
- 'Creating the Uzbek Nation: Ethnie, Identity and Politics'
- 'Translation in the Service of Advocacy in the Context of the Middle East Conflict: Images of Palestinian Women'
- 'Discourse Functions of Questions in the Mishnah'
- 'The Economic Decline of the Circassian Mamluks in Egypt (872-922/1468-1517)'
- 'Women's Novel in Saudia Arabia: Its Emergence and Development in a Changing Culture'
- 'The Meaning of Purity in Classical Exegesis of the Qur'an'
- 'The Application of Modern Critical Theories to the Study of the Qur'an, with a particular Focus on Qur'anic Studies in Turkey between 1980-2002'
- 'Women and Power in Ancient North Arabia'
- 'Rome and Nabataea: Post-colonialism and the writing of history'
- 'A Narratological Approach to the Pentateuch Targums'
- 'Gostivar Turkish of Macedonia'
Programmes
- Arab World Studies PhD
- Middle Eastern Studies MPhil
- Middle Eastern Studies PhD
- Translation and Intercultural Studies PhD
- Translation and Intercultural Studies MPhil
Further Information
For information on how to apply, fees and funding, and postgraduate study in the School of Languages, Linguistics and Cultures, please visit the: