SOAS University of London Department of Religions and Philosophies

SOAS University of London Department of Religions and Philosophies is an academic department within SOAS University of London focusing on the historical, textual, and social study of religious traditions and philosophical systems across Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. The department situates studies of Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and East Asian religions alongside scholarship on Sikhism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism, and indigenous belief systems, engaging with comparative philosophy and critical theory. It combines philological training in languages such as Arabic, Sanskrit, Pali, Chinese, Hebrew, and Persian with interdisciplinary approaches drawn from area studies and global intellectual history.

History

The department traces intellectual lineages to the foundation of School of Oriental and African Studies in 1916 and the earlier legacies of Orientalist scholarship represented by figures associated with institutions like British Museum and University of London. Its development intersects with postwar shifts in decolonization and area studies exemplified by engagements with Indian Independence Movement, Chinese Revolution, and Egyptian nationalist debates around Gamal Abdel Nasser. Scholars linked to the department participated in major scholarly networks including the Royal Asiatic Society, the British Academy, and collaborations with archives such as the India Office Records. Over the late 20th century the department expanded curricular offerings in response to intellectual currents from postcolonial theory, Phenomenology, and comparative work influenced by interlocutors at institutions like Harvard University, University of Cambridge, and University of Oxford.

Academic Programs and Research

The department offers undergraduate and postgraduate degrees including Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts, and doctoral supervision situated within programs that align with regional studies of South Asia, East Asia, West Asia and North Africa, and Africa. Coursework integrates language training in Urdu, Burmese, Tibetan, Malay, and Turkish with seminars on canonical texts such as the Bhagavad Gita, Dhammapada, Qur'an, Tanakh, and the New Testament. Research areas encompass textual philology, critical editions, manuscript studies tied to repositories like the Bodleian Library and the Bibliothèque nationale de France, hermeneutics influenced by figures such as Wilhelm Dilthey, and contemporary fieldwork in contexts related to Indian Constitution, Iranian Revolution, and diasporic communities in London. The department engages methodological frameworks shaped by scholars associated with Michel Foucault, Edward Said, Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, and Jacques Derrida while supervising doctoral projects that interface with debates from Gender Studies, Migration Studies, and comparative legal histories such as the Napoleonic Code and Ottoman Tanzimat reforms.

Faculty and Notable Alumni

Faculty have included specialists in Sanskrit philology, Islamic studies, Buddhist studies, and comparative philosophy with professional links to the British Academy, the Academy of Social Sciences, and the Royal Asiatic Society. Visiting scholars and past faculty have come from or moved on to posts at Columbia University, Princeton University, University of Chicago, Australian National University, and National University of Singapore. Alumni occupy positions across academia, cultural institutions, and public life, with graduates contributing to collections at the Victoria and Albert Museum, policy research at think tanks like Chatham House, and media production at outlets such as the BBC. Notable academic interlocutors and alumni have engaged in projects connected to figures and events like Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Rabindranath Tagore, Sun Yat-sen, and contemporary dialogues involving Amartya Sen and Partha Chatterjee.

Research Centres and Collaborations

The department hosts and collaborates with research centres and initiatives linked to area-specialized institutes such as the Centre for African Studies, the Centre of Islamic Studies, and networks with the Max Weber Stiftung, the Terracotta Army Research Centre partnerships, and digitization projects alongside the British Library. Collaborative projects address manuscript preservation, comparative liturgies, and digital humanities work with partners at King's College London, University College London, and international partners like University of Tokyo and Jawaharlal Nehru University. Funding and collaborative grants have been associated with agencies including the Arts and Humanities Research Council, the European Research Council, and UNESCO cultural heritage programmes tied to sites such as Ajanta Caves and Persepolis.

Publications and Conferences

Faculty and postgraduate researchers contribute to journals and monographs published by presses like Routledge, Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, Brill, and Bloomsbury. The department organizes and co-sponsors conferences and lecture series that have hosted speakers associated with institutions such as Princeton University, University of Oxford, Harvard University, and the School of Oriental and African Studies umbrella events. Annual symposia cover themes linking classical philology to contemporary debates involving interlocutors from UNESCO, the European Union, and thematic conferences addressing intersections with Human Rights dialogues and cultural heritage concerns around sites like Borobudur and Angkor Wat.

Category:SOAS University of London