Matthew Melvin-Koushki (PhD Yale) is Associate Professor and McCausland Fellow of History at the University of South Carolina. He specializes in early modern Islamicate intellectual and imperial history, with a philological focus on the theory and practice of the occult sciences in Timurid-Safavid Iran and the broader Persianate world to the nineteenth century, and a disciplinary focus on history of science, history of philosophy and history of the book.
Yes
(Arabic (reading fluency in classical and modern Arabic, speaking competence in Levantine and Moroccan colloquial);
Persian (reading fluency in classical and modern Persian, speaking competence);
Ottoman and Modern Turkish (beginning reading);
German, French, Sanskrit, Hebrew, Anglo-Saxon, Gothic (reading competence))
Interest Background
Do you include students in your research?
None
Interest Keywords
Early Modern Islamic Intellectual, Religious and Cultural History, Occult Sciences, Iran
Institutional Focus Areas
Arts and Humanities
Professional Preparation(Education & Training)
Dates
Institution
Location
Degree
Field of Study
05/2012
Yale University
New Haven, CT
Ph.D., with distinction
Islamic Studies
12/2009
Yale University
New Haven, CT
M.Phil., with distinction
Islamic Studies
05/2008
Yale University
New Haven, CT
M.A.
Islamic Studies
05/2004
University of Virginia
Charlottesville, VA
B.A., summa cum laude
Middle Eastern Languages and Literatures
2002
University of Jordan
Amman, Jordan
Arabic
Memberships & Professional Activities
Dates
Type
Description
Institution/Entity
Present
Membership
Member
Middle East Studies Association
Present
Membership
Member
International Society for Iranian Studies
Present
Membership
Member
American Historical Association
Present
Membership
Member
American Academy of Religion
Present
Membership
Member
Association for the Study of Persianate Societies
2008 - 2009
Professional Activity
Cataloger, Islamic Fundamentalist Audiocassette Collection, Special Collections/Near Eastern Collection
Yale University Library
2007
Professional Activity
Software tester, Arabic and Middle Eastern Electronic Library
Yale University Library
Positions & Appointments
Dates
Description
Institution/Entity
2012 - 2013
Postdoctoral Research Assistant, Oriental Institute/Junior Research 2012-2013 Fellow
Pembroke College, University of Oxford
2013 - 2014
Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Near Eastern Studies
Princeton University (Study of Iran and the Persianate World)
2014 - 2020
Assistant Professor, Department of History
University of South Carolina
Recognition Awards, Honors, & Fellowships
Dates
Type
Description
Foundation/Entity
2009
Award
Pre-Prospectus Fellowship
Beinecke Manuscript Library
2011
Award
Yale University Dissertation Fellowship
Yale University
2011
Award
Dissertation Research Grant Spring 2011
Yale MacMillan Center
2012
Award
Winner, Malcolm H. Kerr Dissertation Award in the Humanities
Middle East Studies Association
2006
Fellowship
Yale Graduate School Fellowship (full tuition and stipend)
Yale University
2013
Honor
Honorable Mention, Dissertation of the Year on a Topic in Iranian Fall 2012 Studies
Foundation for Iranian Studies
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