RELST-210 Minorities in the Middle East: History, Religion, and Relations with Political Powers
This course explores how minority communities in the Middle East—Druze, ʿAlawites, Kurds, Yezidis, Armenians, Maronites, Copts, Assyrians, and others—have been formed and transformed from the late Ottoman era to the present. Beginning with the shift from imperial pluralism to nation-state “minorities,” it examines how religion, identity, nationalism, and political power shape communal identity and minority–state relations. Case studies span Lebanon, Syria, Israel, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Egypt, addressing genocide, displacement, nationalism, citizenship, security, and diaspora. Drawing on history, anthropology, religious studies, and political science, students examine how communities negotiate identity, power, and recognition in a plural Middle East. This course examines historical and contemporary experiences of minority communities in the Middle East. Some course materials address difficult subjects, including genocide, mass violence, persecution, forced displacement, sexual violence, religious and ethnic discrimination, and war. These topics are approached in their historical and scholarly contexts and are essential to understanding the experiences of the communities studied in the course.
Standard Course (40)
Credits
1
Cross Listed Courses
ARABC-210,
MEIWS-210