Cambridge University Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies

Cambridge University Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies
Name	Cambridge University Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies
Established	2004 (as successor to Oriental Studies)
Type	Faculty
City	Cambridge
Country	United Kingdom
Parent	University of Cambridge

Cambridge University Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies is the University of Cambridge faculty responsible for teaching and research in languages, literatures, histories, religions, and cultures of Asia and the Middle East. The faculty brings together specialists in Persian, Arabic, Turkish, Hebrew, Sanskrit, Hindi, Urdu, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and other languages, and maintains partnerships with colleges, libraries and research institutes. It occupies a central role in British and international scholarship on Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, China, Japan, Korea (Korea), India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and the wider Levant.

History

The faculty traces institutional roots to the University of Cambridge's long-standing study of Oriental languages, with precedents in the 19th-century work on Sanskrit linked to scholars engaged with texts such as the Rigveda and contacts with the British Raj. During the 20th century Cambridge scholars contributed to analyses of Ottoman Empire records, Safavid dynasty studies, and translations of classical Chinese texts associated with figures like James Legge at Oxford University and collaborative enterprises involving the British Museum. Postwar expansions reflected geopolitical shifts following the Cold War and decolonisation, prompting new appointments in modern Arabic, Persian and East Asian studies influenced by events such as the Suez Crisis and the Partition of India. Formal reorganisation culminated in the modern faculty formation in the early 21st century, aligning with comparative initiatives at institutions including SOAS University of London and the School of Oriental and African Studies.

Academic Departments and Language Programmes

The faculty comprises departmental groupings and language programmes covering classical and modern tongues. Core provision includes programmes in Arabic language, Hebrew language, Persian language, Turkish language, Sanskrit language, Pali language, Hindi language, Urdu language, Bengali language, Gujarati language, Punjabi language, Tamil language, Telugu language, Kannada language, Malayalam language, Chinese language, Japanese language, Korean language and less commonly taught languages linked to regions such as Tibet and Mongolia (Mongolia). The faculty coordinates comparative modules on literature with ties to study of works like the Shahnameh, The Tale of Genji, The Pillow Book, The Analects, translations of Koran, and commentaries on texts associated with Rabindranath Tagore, Rumi, and Ibn Khaldun. Cross-departmental links extend to college-based supervision and joint teaching with departments such as Faculty of History (University of Cambridge), Faculty of Medieval and Modern Languages, University of Oxford-style collaborations, and area studies networks connected to the European Association of Middle Eastern Studies.

Research and Centres

Research strengths span premodern philology, manuscript studies, modern political history, religious studies, and sociolinguistics. The faculty hosts and collaborates with centres and projects focused on issues ranging from manuscript cataloguing of collections comparable to holdings at the Bodleian Library and the British Library to contemporary fieldwork on urban change in Tehran, Istanbul, Beijing, Mumbai, and Jerusalem. Major research initiatives have engaged with archival materials linked to the Ottoman Archives, the East India Company records, and digitisation projects akin to those at the Persepolis Fortification Archive. Grants and fellowships have been awarded in competition with schemes from funders such as the Leverhulme Trust, the British Academy, and the European Research Council.

Teaching and Degree Programmes

The faculty offers undergraduate courses including single- and joint-honours Tripos options in languages and regional studies, MPhil programmes, and PhD supervision. Undergraduate curricula integrate language tuition, textual analysis, and region-specific history with options comparable to joint degrees that align with research in History of Art, Archaeology, and Politics and International Studies. Postgraduate taught degrees emphasise dissertation work and may include placements or exchange arrangements with partner institutions such as University of Tokyo, Peking University, King's College London, and regional universities across South Asia and the Middle East. Examination regulations follow University of Cambridge statutes and collegiate supervision practices dating to the medieval period exemplified by colleges like King's College, Cambridge and Trinity College, Cambridge.

Faculty, Staff, and Notable Alumni

Academic staff comprise professors, lecturers, fellows, and research associates, many of whom have published with academic presses and contributed to edited volumes alongside scholars from Harvard University, Princeton University, Yale University, École pratique des hautes études, and Leiden University. Visiting scholars and emeriti include specialists in medieval Persian literature, modern Arabic poetry, classical Chinese philology, and South Asian historiography. Alumni have gone on to roles in diplomacy (embassies to Turkey, Iran, Japan), journalism at outlets such as The Times and BBC, academia at institutions including Columbia University and University of California, Berkeley, and cultural leadership in museums like the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Facilities and Libraries

The faculty benefits from proximity to Cambridge college libraries, the central Cambridge University Library, and subject-specialist collections including Middle Eastern manuscripts, South Asian pamphlets, and East Asian printed books. Teaching rooms, language laboratories, and a dedicated staff room support instruction in oral and written skills. Manuscript and epigraphy seminars draw on holdings comparable to the papyri at Oxyrhynchus and codices conserved at the Bodleian Library. Collaborative storage and digitisation projects have improved access to rare items and facilitated interdisciplinary seminars with curators from institutions like the Ashmolean Museum.

Outreach, Collaborations, and Public Engagement

The faculty engages in public lectures, partnerships with broadcasters such as BBC Radio 4, public exhibitions coordinated with galleries like the Fitzwilliam Museum, and policy briefings for governmental bodies and NGOs working on crises in regions including Syria, Yemen, and Afghanistan. Collaborative research networks include links to the Modern Language Association and area studies associations, and the faculty participates in exchange schemes with universities across East Asia, South Asia, and the Middle East to support visiting scholars, joint workshops, and summer schools. Category:Departments of the University of Cambridge