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Akbar Salahuddin Ahmed

アクバル・サラフッディン・アフメド

Akbar Salahuddin Ahmed

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1943-01-15 （Allahabad, British India）
Nationality
Pakistani, Pakistani-American
Languages
English, Urdu
Religion
Islam
Residence History
Pakistan (various locations, civil service) → United Kingdom (Cambridge, research/residence) → United States (Washington, D.C., academic positions)

Career

Occupations
academic, author, poet, playwright, filmmaker, former diplomat
Active Years
1966-
Affiliations
American University (School of International Service), Princeton University (visiting professor / research), Harvard University (visiting scholar), Brookings Institution (Nonresident Senior Fellow), Woodrow Wilson Center (Global Fellow), U.S. Naval Academy (First Chair of Middle East and Islamic Studies)
Memberships
Council member, Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (first Pakistani to serve)

Education

Army Burn Hall College (formerly Burn Hall School)
Period: 1954-1959
Country: Pakistan
Primary/secondary education; founded as a missionary school
University of the Punjab
Country: Pakistan
Undergraduate studies
University of Birmingham
Country: United Kingdom
Further studies/research (details not specified)
University of Cambridge (Selwyn College)
Degree: MA
Period: 在学期間の詳細不明
Country: United Kingdom
Held positions such as Allama Iqbal Fellow
School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (SOAS)
Anthropology
Degree: PhD
Year of Graduation: 1978
Country: United Kingdom
PhD in Anthropology (1978)

Awards

Tamgha-i-Imtiaz (Medal of Excellence)
Organization: Government of Pakistan
Result: 受賞
Sitara-i-Imtiaz (Star of Excellence)
Organization: Government of Pakistan
Result: 受賞
Sir Percy Sykes Memorial Medal
Organization: Royal Society for Asian Affairs
Result: 受賞
Purpose Prize (inaugural)
2006
Organization: Interfaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington (associated award)
Result: 受賞（Judea Pearlと共同）
American Book Award (for Journey into America)
2010
Work: Journey into America: The Challenge of Islam
Organization: American Book Award
Result: 受賞
District of Columbia Professor of the Year
2004
Organization: Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching / CASE
Result: 受賞
Free Speech Award
2002
Organization: Muslim Public Affairs Council
Result: 受賞
Global Thought Leader (The World Post / Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute)
2015
Organization: The World Post / Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute
Result: 選出

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Journey into America: The Challenge of Islam

2010 Non-fiction / Political sociology

Fieldwork-based study of Muslim experiences and challenges in America, exploring possibilities for dialogue and integration.

immigrationidentitydialogue

The Thistle and the Drone: How America's War on Terror Became a Global War on Tribal Islam

2013 Non-fiction / Political science & Ethnography

Analyzes the impact of U.S. drone operations on tribal societies through multi-regional case studies.

military interventiontribal societiesinternational politics

Living Islam: From Samarkand and Stornoway

1993 Non-fiction / Religious history & Ethnography

Companion to a six-part BBC series, presenting the diversity and everyday life of Muslim societies.

religion and daily lifecross-cultural comparison
Adaptations
  • [TV series] Living Islam (BBC six-part series) (1993)

Jinnah, Pakistan and Islamic Identity: The Search for Saladin

1997 Biography / History / Political studies

Biographical study of Muhammad Ali Jinnah and reflections on Islamic identity in Pakistan.

biographynation-buildingreligion and politics
Adaptations
  • [Feature film] Jinnah / Jamil Dehlavi (1998)
  • [Documentary] Mr. Jinnah: The Making of Pakistan (1997)

Bibliography

  • The Flying Man, Aristotle, and the Philosophers of the Golden Age of Islam: Their Relevance Today (2021)
  • Journey into Europe: Islam, Immigration, and Identity (2018)
  • The Thistle and the Drone (2013)
  • Suspended Somewhere Between: A Book of Verse (2011)
  • Journey into America: The Challenge of Islam (2010)
  • Living Islam: From Samarkand and Stornoway (1993)
  • Discovering Islam: Making Sense of Muslim History and Society (1988)
  • Millennium and Charisma Among Pathans (1976)

Adaptations

  • Jinnah (feature film, 1998)
  • Mr. Jinnah: The Making of Pakistan (documentary, 1997)
  • Living Islam (BBC six-part series, 1993)
  • Journey into America (documentary, 2009)
  • Journey into Europe (documentary, 2015)

Translations of Works

  • Translated into Indonesian
  • Translated into Chinese

Style & Themes

Literary Style
academic and explanatorycombines ethnographic description with policy analysis
Recurring Motifs
the relationship between Islam and modernityinterface of tribal societies and the statedialogue and cross-cultural understanding

Legacy

Akbar Ahmed is recognized as a scholar and public intellectual who has promoted dialogue between the Muslim world and the West, known for combining anthropological insight with policy-relevant writing.

Academic Societies

  • Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland (served on council)

In Popular Culture

  • Known through the film 'Jinnah' (1998) and the BBC series 'Living Islam'

Quotes

  • the world's leading authority on contemporary Islam
    Source: BBC

Trivia

  • Served as Pakistan's High Commissioner to the UK and Ireland.
  • One of the first Pakistanis to serve on the council of the Royal Anthropological Institute.
  • Winner of an American Book Award for 'Journey into America'.