School of Oriental and African Studies
Encyclopedia
The School of Oriental and African Studies (commonly abbreviated to "SOAS", pronounced ˈsoʊ.æs or ˈsoʊ.æz ) is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college
of the University of London
. Specialising in laws, politics, economics (specifically development economics
), humanities
and languages concerning Asia, Africa and the Middle East, SOAS currently offers over 300 undergraduate Bachelor's degree
combinations, and over 70 one-year intensively taught Master's degrees. MPhil and PhD degrees are also available in every academic department.
Founded in 1916, SOAS has produced several heads of state, government ministers, ambassadors, Supreme Court
judges, a Nobel Peace Prize
Laureate
, and many other notable leaders in emerging markets
, future superpowers
and in the Next Eleven
. Located in central London, SOAS describes itself as the "world's leading centre for the study of a highly diverse range of subjects concerned with Asia, Africa and the Middle East", and is consistently ranked amongst the top universities in the UK.
at 2 Finsbury Circus, London, England, the then premises of the London Institution
. The School received its Royal Charter on 5 June 1916; admitted its first batch of students on 18 January; and was formally inaugurated by King George V
in the presence of the Earl Curzon of Kedleston
among other cabinet officials just a month later on 23 February 1917. Africa was added to the school's name and remit in 1938 and the school permanently shifted to Thornhaugh Street, which runs between Malet Street and Russell Square
.
For sometime in the mid-1930s, the School was located at Vandon House, Vandon Street, London SW1 (with the library located at Clarence House). However, its move was held up by delays in construction and the half-completed building—begun in June 1938—took a hit during the Blitz
in September 1940. The School was, on Government's advice, evacuated to Cambridge
and returned to London to resume work in July 1940. Most colleges of the University of London
were evacuated from London in 1939 and billeted on universities all over the provinces. SOAS was transferred, but without its library, to Christ's College, Cambridge
. When it became apparent that a return to London was possible, the School returned to the city and was temporarily housed for some months in 1940–41 in eleven rooms at Broadway Court, 8 Broadway, London
SW1. From May 1942 SOAS' Japanese department became the centre for training military translators and intelligence officers.
The institution's founding mission was primarily to train British administrators for overseas postings across the empire. Since then the school has grown into one of the world's most notable centres for the exclusive study of Asia, Africa and the Middle East. A college of the University of London
, SOAS fields include Law, Social Sciences, Humanities and Languages with special reference to Asia and Africa. SOAS consistently ranks among the top twenty universities in the UK league tables and in 2004 was ranked 44th in the world, 7th in the UK and 11th overall in Europe according to The Times Higher Education Supplement
. The SOAS Library, housed in Philips Building (designed at the beginning of the 1970s by Sir Denys Lasdun
, and named after the then SOAS Director), is the UK's national resource for materials relating to Asia and Africa and is the largest of its kind in Europe.
The School has grown considerably over the past thirty years, from fewer than 1,000 students in the 1970s to more than 4,500 students today, nearly half of them postgraduates. SOAS is partnered with the Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales
(INALCO) of Paris. INALCO is often considered the French equivalent of SOAS.
, an area at the corner of the West End known to many tourists for its shops, theatres and nightlife. The main campus was moved there in 1938, and has much expanded since then. The closest Underground
station is Russell Square tube station
.
The Vernon Square campus in Islington
, opened in 2001, is close to King's Cross railway station
and only a few hundred yards from Dinwiddy House and Paul Robeson House, exclusive to SOAS students and owned by Sanctuary Management Student Housing.
The school also houses the Brunei Gallery, built as a result of an endowment from the Sultan of Brunei Darussalam
, and inaugurated by the Princess Royal
, as Chancellor of the University of London, on 22 November 1995. Its facilities include exhibition space on three floors, a book shop, a lecture theatre, and conference and teaching facilities. The Gallery stages a comprehensive programme of temporary exhibitions of both historical and contemporary materials which reflect subjects and regions studied at SOAS. On 11 October 2007, the Gallery presented an exhibition drawn from the School's own collections, Objects of Instruction: Treasures of the School of Oriental and African Studies, and a rotating selection from this collection is on permanent display in the Foyle Special Collections Gallery.
The Japanese style roof garden on top of the Brunei Gallery was built during the Japan 2001 celebrations and was officially opened by the sponsor, Haruhisa Handa, an Honorary Fellow of the School, on 13 November 2001. The garden is dedicated to Forgiveness, which is the meaning of the kanji
character engraved on the garden’s granite water basin. Peter Swift, a designer with experience of adapting Japanese garden design principles to the British environment and climate, conceived the garden as a place of quiet contemplation and meditation as well as a functional space complementary to the Gallery and its artistic activities.
The school also hosted the Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art
, one of the foremost collections of Chinese ceramics in Europe. The collection has been loaned to and is now on permanent display in Room 95 of the British Museum
. The present library building (by Sir Denys Lasdun) was added in 1973, the Brunei Gallery in 1995, and an extension to the library building opened in 2004 (the second phase of this expansion was completed in 2006).
The Centenary Masterplan conceives of the development of two new buildings, and a substantial remodelling of existing space to realign and develop the entrance and two areas within the Old Building. The cost estimates for the Centenary Masterplan settle at around £73m for the total project. The full implementation of the School's Centenary Masterplan will deliver approximately 30% additional space, approximately 1,000 sq metres.
SOAS is world famous as a "leading centre for the study of a highly diverse range of subjects concerned with Asia, Africa and the Middle East."
SOAS trains government officials on secondment from around the world in; Asian, African and Middle Eastern languages, especially in Arabic and Mandarin Chinese. It also acts as a consultant to several government departments and to companies such as Accenture
and Deloitte – when they seek to gain specialist knowledge of the matters concerning Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
campus and was built in 1973. It houses more than 1.5 million items and extensive electronic resources for the study of Africa, Asia and the Middle East, and attracts scholars from all over the world. The library is also one of the UK's five National Research Libraries. It is currently undergoing a £12 million modernisation and enlargement programme (known as 'the Library Transformation Project') that aims to increase capacity and create new student study spaces. It will transform the School as it approaches its centenary in 2016 and provide a modern environment for its staff, students and users from around the world.
The Library was designed by the celebrated architect Denys Lasdun
who also designed some of Britain's most famous brutalist buildings such as the National Theatre
and the Institute of Education
.
, known internationally for his original work in phonology and semantics, was Senior Lecturer, Reader and Professor of General Linguistics at the school between 1938 and 1956.
The Times Higher Education world rankings place SOAS 44th in the world, 7th in the United Kingdom, and 11th in Europe. SOAS is also regarded for its focus on small group teaching with a student-staff ratio of only 11:1 and some departments 6:1. SOAS currently features in the world's top 50 Universities for Arts & Humanities, according to the QS World University Rankings.
Paul Webley
is the current Director of SOAS. He was previously Senior Deputy Vice Chancellor and Professor of Economic Psychology at the University of Exeter
.
2001–2006
Colin Bundy
spent five years as Director and Principal of SOAS (and three years as Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of London
). In 2006, he accepted appointment as Warden of Green College, Oxford
.
1996–2000
Professor Bundy's immediate predecessor was Sir Tim Lankester KCB
, was Director and Principal 1996–2000 and left the School to become President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford
.
Paul Robeson House together with James Lighthill House
, another hall of residence for University College London
, are on the site of a former steel-stockbroking depot, owned and operated by Macready's Metal Co. Ltd. The original warehouse, built in 1935, was designed by M. Stanley Blanchfield of Raynes Park
.
Paul Robeson
the African American concert singer, after whom the building is named, made a significant impression at SOAS in the early 20th century. In the autumn of 1998, Paul Robeson House was opened by SOAS in his honour.
Collegiate university
A collegiate university is a university in which governing authority and functions are divided between a central administration and a number of constituent colleges...
of the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
. Specialising in laws, politics, economics (specifically development economics
Development economics
Development Economics is a branch of economics which deals with economic aspects of the development process in low-income countries. Its focus is not only on methods of promoting economic growth and structural change but also on improving the potential for the mass of the population, for example,...
), humanities
Humanities
The humanities are academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural sciences....
and languages concerning Asia, Africa and the Middle East, SOAS currently offers over 300 undergraduate Bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
combinations, and over 70 one-year intensively taught Master's degrees. MPhil and PhD degrees are also available in every academic department.
Founded in 1916, SOAS has produced several heads of state, government ministers, ambassadors, Supreme Court
Supreme court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of many legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, instance court, judgment court, high court, or apex court...
judges, a Nobel Peace Prize
Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
Laureate
Laureate
In English, the word laureate has come to signify eminence or association with literary or military glory. It is also used for winners of the Nobel Prize.-History:...
, and many other notable leaders in emerging markets
Emerging markets
Emerging markets are nations with social or business activity in the process of rapid growth and industrialization. Based on data from 2006, there are around 28 emerging markets in the world . The economies of China and India are considered to be the largest...
, future superpowers
Potential superpowers
A potential superpower is a state or a political and economic entity that is speculated to be, or to be in the process of becoming, a superpower at some point in the 21st century. Previously, it was considered by many sources that only the United States fulfilled the criteria to be considered a...
and in the Next Eleven
Next Eleven
The Next Eleven are eleven countries—Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, Turkey, and Vietnam — identified by Goldman Sachs investment bank and Jim O'Neill as having a high potential of becoming, along with the BRICS, the world's largest...
. Located in central London, SOAS describes itself as the "world's leading centre for the study of a highly diverse range of subjects concerned with Asia, Africa and the Middle East", and is consistently ranked amongst the top universities in the UK.
History
The institution was founded in 1916 as the School of Oriental StudiesOriental studies
Oriental studies is the academic field of study that embraces Near Eastern and Far Eastern societies and cultures, languages, peoples, history and archaeology; in recent years the subject has often been turned into the newer terms of Asian studies and Middle Eastern studies...
at 2 Finsbury Circus, London, England, the then premises of the London Institution
London Institution
The London Institution was an educational institution founded in London in 1806...
. The School received its Royal Charter on 5 June 1916; admitted its first batch of students on 18 January; and was formally inaugurated by King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
in the presence of the Earl Curzon of Kedleston
George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston
George Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, KG, GCSI, GCIE, PC , known as The Lord Curzon of Kedleston between 1898 and 1911 and as The Earl Curzon of Kedleston between 1911 and 1921, was a British Conservative statesman who was Viceroy of India and Foreign Secretary...
among other cabinet officials just a month later on 23 February 1917. Africa was added to the school's name and remit in 1938 and the school permanently shifted to Thornhaugh Street, which runs between Malet Street and Russell Square
Russell Square
Russell Square is a large garden square in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden. It is near the University of London's main buildings and the British Museum. To the north is Woburn Place and to the south-east is Southampton Row...
.
For sometime in the mid-1930s, the School was located at Vandon House, Vandon Street, London SW1 (with the library located at Clarence House). However, its move was held up by delays in construction and the half-completed building—begun in June 1938—took a hit during the Blitz
The Blitz
The Blitz was the sustained strategic bombing of Britain by Nazi Germany between 7 September 1940 and 10 May 1941, during the Second World War. The city of London was bombed by the Luftwaffe for 76 consecutive nights and many towns and cities across the country followed...
in September 1940. The School was, on Government's advice, evacuated to Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
and returned to London to resume work in July 1940. Most colleges of the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
were evacuated from London in 1939 and billeted on universities all over the provinces. SOAS was transferred, but without its library, to Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.With a reputation for high academic standards, Christ's College averaged top place in the Tompkins Table from 1980-2000 . In 2011, Christ's was placed sixth.-College history:...
. When it became apparent that a return to London was possible, the School returned to the city and was temporarily housed for some months in 1940–41 in eleven rooms at Broadway Court, 8 Broadway, London
Broadway, London
Broadway is a street in the City of Westminster, in central London. It runs north from Victoria Street.Buildings include:* Metropolitan Police headquarters at New Scotland Yard...
SW1. From May 1942 SOAS' Japanese department became the centre for training military translators and intelligence officers.
The institution's founding mission was primarily to train British administrators for overseas postings across the empire. Since then the school has grown into one of the world's most notable centres for the exclusive study of Asia, Africa and the Middle East. A college of the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, SOAS fields include Law, Social Sciences, Humanities and Languages with special reference to Asia and Africa. SOAS consistently ranks among the top twenty universities in the UK league tables and in 2004 was ranked 44th in the world, 7th in the UK and 11th overall in Europe according to The Times Higher Education Supplement
The Times Higher Education Supplement
The Times Higher Education , formerly Times Higher Education Supplement , is a weekly British magazine based in London reporting specifically on news and other issues related to higher education...
. The SOAS Library, housed in Philips Building (designed at the beginning of the 1970s by Sir Denys Lasdun
Denys Lasdun
Sir Denys Lasdun CH was an eminent English architect. Probably his best known work is the Royal National Theatre, on London's South Bank of the Thames, which is a Grade II* listed building and one of the most notable examples of Brutalist design in the United Kingdom.Lasdun studied at the...
, and named after the then SOAS Director), is the UK's national resource for materials relating to Asia and Africa and is the largest of its kind in Europe.
The School has grown considerably over the past thirty years, from fewer than 1,000 students in the 1970s to more than 4,500 students today, nearly half of them postgraduates. SOAS is partnered with the Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales
Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales
The Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales is located in Paris, France. It was founded in 1795 after the French Revolution and is now one of the country's Grands établissements with a specialization in African, Asian, East European, Oceanian languages and civilisations...
(INALCO) of Paris. INALCO is often considered the French equivalent of SOAS.
Campuses
SOAS is currently split into two campuses within 20 minutes walk of each other. The Russell Square campus is located in BloomsburyBloomsbury
-Places:* Bloomsbury is an area in central London.* Bloomsbury , related local government unit* Bloomsbury, New Jersey, New Jersey, USA* Bloomsbury , listed on the NRHP in Maryland...
, an area at the corner of the West End known to many tourists for its shops, theatres and nightlife. The main campus was moved there in 1938, and has much expanded since then. The closest Underground
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
station is Russell Square tube station
Russell Square tube station
Russell Square is a London Underground station on Bernard Street, Bloomsbury in the London Borough of Camden. It is a small but busy station, often used by office workers and by tourists who are staying in Bloomsbury's numerous hotels. The station is a Grade II listed building.-History:The station...
.
The Vernon Square campus in Islington
Islington
Islington is a neighbourhood in Greater London, England and forms the central district of the London Borough of Islington. It is a district of Inner London, spanning from Islington High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the area around the busy Upper Street...
, opened in 2001, is close to King's Cross railway station
King's Cross railway station
King's Cross railway station, also known as London King's Cross, is a central London railway terminus opened in 1852. The station is on the northern edge of central London, at the junction of the A501 Euston Road and York Way, in the Kings Cross district and within the London Borough of Camden on...
and only a few hundred yards from Dinwiddy House and Paul Robeson House, exclusive to SOAS students and owned by Sanctuary Management Student Housing.
The school also houses the Brunei Gallery, built as a result of an endowment from the Sultan of Brunei Darussalam
Hassanal Bolkiah
General Haji Sir Hassan al-Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah GCB GCMG is the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, the 29th Sultan of Brunei and the first Prime Minister of Brunei Darussalam...
, and inaugurated by the Princess Royal
Anne, Princess Royal
Princess Anne, Princess Royal , is the only daughter of Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
, as Chancellor of the University of London, on 22 November 1995. Its facilities include exhibition space on three floors, a book shop, a lecture theatre, and conference and teaching facilities. The Gallery stages a comprehensive programme of temporary exhibitions of both historical and contemporary materials which reflect subjects and regions studied at SOAS. On 11 October 2007, the Gallery presented an exhibition drawn from the School's own collections, Objects of Instruction: Treasures of the School of Oriental and African Studies, and a rotating selection from this collection is on permanent display in the Foyle Special Collections Gallery.
The Japanese style roof garden on top of the Brunei Gallery was built during the Japan 2001 celebrations and was officially opened by the sponsor, Haruhisa Handa, an Honorary Fellow of the School, on 13 November 2001. The garden is dedicated to Forgiveness, which is the meaning of the kanji
Kanji
Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...
character engraved on the garden’s granite water basin. Peter Swift, a designer with experience of adapting Japanese garden design principles to the British environment and climate, conceived the garden as a place of quiet contemplation and meditation as well as a functional space complementary to the Gallery and its artistic activities.
The school also hosted the Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art
Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art
The Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art is a collection of Chinese ceramics and related items in London, England. The Foundation's main purpose is to promote the study and teaching of Chinese art and culture. The Collection consists of some 1,700 pieces of Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing porcelain...
, one of the foremost collections of Chinese ceramics in Europe. The collection has been loaned to and is now on permanent display in Room 95 of the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
. The present library building (by Sir Denys Lasdun) was added in 1973, the Brunei Gallery in 1995, and an extension to the library building opened in 2004 (the second phase of this expansion was completed in 2006).
The Centenary Masterplan conceives of the development of two new buildings, and a substantial remodelling of existing space to realign and develop the entrance and two areas within the Old Building. The cost estimates for the Centenary Masterplan settle at around £73m for the total project. The full implementation of the School's Centenary Masterplan will deliver approximately 30% additional space, approximately 1,000 sq metres.
Academics
SOAS trains government officials on secondment from around the world in; Asian, African and Middle Eastern languages, especially in Arabic and Mandarin Chinese. It also acts as a consultant to several government departments and to companies such as Accenture
Accenture
Accenture plc is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company headquartered in Dublin, Republic of Ireland. It is the largest consulting firm in the world and is a Fortune Global 500 company. As of September 2011, the company had more than 236,000 employees across...
and Deloitte – when they seek to gain specialist knowledge of the matters concerning Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
Library
The world-renowned SOAS library is housed in the Philips Building on the Russell SquareRussell Square
Russell Square is a large garden square in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden. It is near the University of London's main buildings and the British Museum. To the north is Woburn Place and to the south-east is Southampton Row...
campus and was built in 1973. It houses more than 1.5 million items and extensive electronic resources for the study of Africa, Asia and the Middle East, and attracts scholars from all over the world. The library is also one of the UK's five National Research Libraries. It is currently undergoing a £12 million modernisation and enlargement programme (known as 'the Library Transformation Project') that aims to increase capacity and create new student study spaces. It will transform the School as it approaches its centenary in 2016 and provide a modern environment for its staff, students and users from around the world.
The Library was designed by the celebrated architect Denys Lasdun
Denys Lasdun
Sir Denys Lasdun CH was an eminent English architect. Probably his best known work is the Royal National Theatre, on London's South Bank of the Thames, which is a Grade II* listed building and one of the most notable examples of Brutalist design in the United Kingdom.Lasdun studied at the...
who also designed some of Britain's most famous brutalist buildings such as the National Theatre
National Theatre
National Theatre may refer to: -in Africa:*Kenya National Theatre in Nairobi, Kenya*National Theatre in Accra, Ghana-in Asia:*National Theater and Concert Hall, Republic of China in Taipei, Taiwan*National Theatre of Japan in Tokyo, Japan...
and the Institute of Education
Institute of Education
The Institute of Education is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom specialised in postgraduate study and research in the field of education and a constituent college of the federal University of London. It is the largest education research body in the United Kingdom, with...
.
Department of Linguistics
The SOAS Department of Linguistics was the first ever linguistics department in United Kingdom, founded in 1932 as a centre for research and study in Oriental and African languages. J. R. FirthJ. R. Firth
John Rupert Firth , commonly known as J. R. Firth, was an English linguist. He was Professor of English at the University of the Punjab from 1919-1928...
, known internationally for his original work in phonology and semantics, was Senior Lecturer, Reader and Professor of General Linguistics at the school between 1938 and 1956.
Rankings
Although it is debatable whether University League Tables can accurately compare the quality of small specialised research institutions such as SOAS to general universities with tens of thousands of students and departments in nearly every academic discipline, or even to other specialised institutes with completely different kinds of focuses, in 2005, SOAS placed 4th among United Kingdom universities in a Guardian poll. In the subject tables of this poll, SOAS was placed 3rd for Anthropology, 4th for Economics, 3rd for History and History of Art, 6th for Law, 5th for Music, 3rd for Politics, and 3rd for Theology and Religious Studies. The History Department obtained a rare 6 research rating in the last government assessment, placing it as only one of three departments in the country to achieve such a status.The Times Higher Education world rankings place SOAS 44th in the world, 7th in the United Kingdom, and 11th in Europe. SOAS is also regarded for its focus on small group teaching with a student-staff ratio of only 11:1 and some departments 6:1. SOAS currently features in the world's top 50 Universities for Arts & Humanities, according to the QS World University Rankings.
| 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Times Good University Guide | 23 | 27th | 33rd | 24th | 18th | 18th | 15th | 19th | 22nd | 27th | 23rd= | 14th | 14th | 6th | |
| Guardian University Guide | 13th | 11th | 12th | 8th | 11th | 6th | 6th | 4th | 4th | 4th | |||||
| Sunday Times University Guide | 32nd | 33rd | 24th | 21st | 21st | 18th | 29th | 14th | 38th | 25th | 13th | 11th | |||
| Daily Telegraph | 24th | 10th= | 12th | ||||||||||||
| FT | 17th | 13th | 6th | 13th | 6th | ||||||||||
| Independent / Complete | 18th | 15th | 15th | 9th | 24th | 15th |
Management
2006–presentPaul Webley
Paul Webley
Professor Paul Webley is Director and Principal of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. He is a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Economic Psychology and former President of the International Association for Research in Economic Psychology.He received his...
is the current Director of SOAS. He was previously Senior Deputy Vice Chancellor and Professor of Economic Psychology at the University of Exeter
University of Exeter
The University of Exeter is a public university in South West England. It belongs to the 1994 Group, an association of 19 of the United Kingdom's smaller research-intensive universities....
.
2001–2006
Colin Bundy
Colin Bundy
Professor Colin James Bundy is a South African historian and former Principal of Green Templeton College, Oxford.Professor Bundy was an influential member of a generation of historians who substantially revised understanding of South African history...
spent five years as Director and Principal of SOAS (and three years as Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
). In 2006, he accepted appointment as Warden of Green College, Oxford
Green College, Oxford
Green College was a graduate college of the University of Oxford in England. It was centred around an architecturally appealing 18th century building: the Radcliffe Observatory, which is modelled after the ancient "Tower of the Winds" in Athens....
.
1996–2000
Professor Bundy's immediate predecessor was Sir Tim Lankester KCB
Tim Lankester
Sir Tim Lankester, KCB was President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, England.Tim Lankester was born in 1942 and educated at Monkton Combe School....
, was Director and Principal 1996–2000 and left the School to become President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Corpus Christi College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom...
.
Paul Robeson House
Paul Robeson House is student housing for SOAS on the Pentonville Road in London, England, and is owned by Shaftesbury Student Housing. The address is 1 Penton Rise. The nearest train and tube station is King's Cross. The accommodation is used for international SOAS summer schools.Paul Robeson House together with James Lighthill House
James Lighthill House
James Lighthill House is one of the halls that acts as student accommodation for University College London in central London, England.It is located on Penton Rise near the Pentonville Road intersection. It contains 209 single en suite rooms across a large main block and a smaller 'lodge' in the...
, another hall of residence for University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
, are on the site of a former steel-stockbroking depot, owned and operated by Macready's Metal Co. Ltd. The original warehouse, built in 1935, was designed by M. Stanley Blanchfield of Raynes Park
Raynes Park
Raynes Park is a suburb within the London Borough of Merton south-west London, centred around Raynes Park station and situated between Wimbledon and New Malden. It is 8.2 miles south-west of Charing Cross. The area is effectively divided into two by the Waterloo - Southampton mainline railway...
.
Paul Robeson
Paul Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson was an American concert singer , recording artist, actor, athlete, scholar who was an advocate for the Civil Rights Movement in the first half of the twentieth century...
the African American concert singer, after whom the building is named, made a significant impression at SOAS in the early 20th century. In the autumn of 1998, Paul Robeson House was opened by SOAS in his honour.
Dinwiddy House
Dinwiddy House is another SOAS hall of residence close to Paul Robeson House primarily inhabited by undergraduate students of the university during the academic year.Notable alumni
SOAS has many notable alumni in positions of authority around the world, reflecting its status and its international remit. They include:Royalty
- Sultan Salahuddin, King of Malaysia 1999–2001
- Mette-MaritMette-Marit, Crown Princess of NorwayMette-Marit, Crown Princess of Norway , is the wife of Crown Prince Haakon of Norway.-Background and education:...
, Crown Princess of Norway - Anthony Brooke, Rajah Muda of SarawakAnthony Walter Dayrell BrookeAnthony Walter Dayrell Brooke, , was appointed His Highness the Rajah Muda of Sarawak on 25 August 1937, and succeeded to the title of Rajah in 1963 on the death of his uncle, Rajah Vyner of Sarawak the third and last of the ruling White Rajahs.Brooke was the son of Bertram,...
- Princess Maria Laura of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este
Government and politics
- John Atta Mills, Current President of Ghana
- Luisa DiogoLuisa DiogoLuísa Dias Diogo was Prime Minister of Mozambique from February 2004 to January 2010. She replaced Pascoal Mocumbi, who had been Prime Minister for the previous nine years. Before becoming Prime Minister, she was Minister of Planning and Finance, and she continued to hold that post until February...
, Former Prime Minister of Mozambique - Bülent EcevitBülent EcevitMustafa Bülent Ecevit was a Turkish politician, poet, writer and journalist, who was the leader of Republican People's Party , later of the Democratic Left Party and four-time Prime Minister of Turkey.- Personal life :...
, Former Prime Minister of Turkey - Lord Wilson of TillyornDavid Wilson, Baron Wilson of TillyornDavid Clive Wilson, Baron Wilson of Tillyorn, is a retired British administrator, diplomat and Sinologist. Lord Wilson of Tillyorn was the penultimate Commander-in-Chief and 27th Governor of Hong Kong...
, 27th Governor of Hong Kong - Sir Edward YoudeEdward YoudeSir Edward Youde GCMG, GCVO, MBE was a British administrator, diplomat and Sinologist. He served as Governor of Hong Kong between 20 May 1982 and 5 December 1986.-Early years:...
, 26th Governor of Hong Kong - Aung San Suu KyiAung San Suu KyiAung San Suu Kyi, AC is a Burmese opposition politician and the General Secretary of the National League for Democracy. In the 1990 general election, her National League for Democracy party won 59% of the national votes and 81% of the seats in Parliament. She had, however, already been detained...
, Nobel Peace Prize laureate - Idris Kutigi, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria
- Sylvester Umaru OnuSylvester Umaru OnuSylvester Umaru Onu is a Nigerian judge. He has been an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court since June 1993.Onu is from Egume, in what is now Kogi State. He attended Government College, Keffi, Ahmadu Bello University, Gibson and Weldon College of Law, and the School of Oriental and African...
, Judge of the Supreme Court of Nigeria - David LammyDavid LammyDavid Lindon Lammy is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Tottenham since 2000.Lammy has commented on Britain's history of slavery.-Early life and Education:...
, Member of the British Parliament and Former Minister - Hüseyin ÇelikHüseyin ÇelikHüseyin Çelik is a former Minister of National Education of Turkey and member of parliament for Van for the ruling Justice and Development Party....
, Turkish Minister of Education and Member of Parliament - Aaron Mike OquayeAaron Mike OquayeAaron Mike Oquaye is a Ghanaian politician who has been the Second Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of Ghana since 2009. A member of the New Patriotic Party, he was Ghana's High Commissioner to India from 2001 to 2004, then Minister of Energy from 2005 to 2006 and Minister of Communications from...
, Minister of Communication in Ghana - Amal PeppleAmal PeppleMs Amal Iyingiala Pepple, CFR,is the Minister of Housing, Land and Urban Development. she was until June 2009 the Head of the Civil Service of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Prior to joining the Government, Ms. Pepple started her career as a Lecturer in Political Science at Rivers State College...
, Minister of Housing, Lands and Urban Development in Nigeria and Former Head of the Nigerian Civil Service - Femi Fani-KayodeFemi Fani-KayodeDavid Oluwafemi Adewunmi Abdulateef Fani-Kayode is a Nigerian politician, essayist, poet and lawyer. He is a member of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party . He was born in Lagos, Nigeria, on 16 October 1960 to Chief Victor Babaremilekun Adetokunboh Fani-Kayode and to Chief Adia Adunni...
, Former Minister of Culture and Tourism and Former Minister of Aviation in Nigeria - Francis K. ButagiraFrancis K. ButagiraFrancis K. Butagira is a Ugandan diplomat. As of 2010, he was Uganda's ambassador to Germany.-Education:...
, Ambassador and Permanent Representative, Mission of the Republic of Uganda to the United Nations - David WarrenDavid Warren (diplomat)Ambassador David Warren was educated at Epsom College, is a British diplomat and currently serves as the UK Ambassador to Japan, since July 2008.Warren joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1975...
, UK Ambassador to Japan - Quinton QuayleQuinton QuayleQuinton Mark Quayle is a British diplomat. Educated at Bromsgrove School and University of Bristol, he entered the Foreign Office in 1977 and studied Thai at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London....
, UK Ambassador to the Kingdom of Thailand and to Lao People's Democratic Republic - Sir Michael WeirMichael Scott WeirSir Michael Scott Weir, KCMG was a British diplomat. Born in Dunfermline, Fife, he went on a state scholarship to study oriental languages at the School of Oriental and African Studies in 1942. A year later he joined the Royal Air Force, which sent him to London University to learn Persian...
, former UK ambassador to Egypt - Johnnie Carson, US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs and Former US Ambassador to Kenya, Zimbabwe and Uganda
- Jemima KhanJemima KhanJemima Marcelle Khan is a British writer and campaigner. She is associate editor of the New Statesman and European editor-at-large for Vanity Fair. She has worked as a charity fundraiser, human rights campaigner and contributing writer for British newspapers and magazines...
, UK Ambassador to UNICEF - Kraisak ChoonhavanKraisak ChoonhavanKraisak Choonhavan is a Thai politician. He was a member of the Senate for Nakhon Ratchasima Province from 2000 till 2006.Born as son of former prime minister General Chatichai Choonhavan and Than Phu Ying Bunruen Choonhavan, Kraisak received a Bachelor Degree in International Relations at the...
, Former Senator in the Senate of Thailand - Samia NkrumahSamia NkrumahSamia Yaba Christina Nkrumah is a Ghanaian politician and Chairwoman of the Convention People's Party. In the 2008 parliamentary election, she won the Jomoro constituency seat at her first attempt and recently became the first female to chair a major political party in the country...
, Ghanaian Member of Parliament - Hassan Taqizadeh, Member of Iranian Parliament and Diplomat
- Ivor StanbrookIvor StanbrookIvor Robert Stanbrook was a British Conservative party politician and barrister. He represented Orpington as its Member of Parliament from 1970 to 1992.-Biography and early life:...
, Member of the British Parliament and Diplomat - Emma McCuneEmma McCuneEmma McCune was an expatriate British foreign aid worker in Sudan who married guerrilla leader Riek Machar. She was killed in a car accident in Kenya....
, British foreign aid worker - Herbert ChitepoHerbert ChitepoHerbert Wiltshire Chitepo led the Zimbabwe African National Union until he was assassinated on March 1975. Although his murderer remains unidentified, the Rhodesian author Peter Stiff says that a former British SAS soldier, Hugh Hind was responsible.Chitepo became the first black citizen of...
First Black Rhodesian Barrister - Maajid NawazMaajid NawazMaajid Nawaz is a British Pakistani and former member of the Islamic political group Hizb ut-Tahrir. He holds a B.A. from London University's School of Oriental and African Studies and a M.Sc. in Political Theory from the London School of Economics...
, co-founder and Executive Director of Quilliam (think tank), the world's first counter-extremism think tank. - Enoch PowellEnoch PowellJohn Enoch Powell, MBE was a British politician, classical scholar, poet, writer, and soldier. He served as a Conservative Party MP and Minister of Health . He attained most prominence in 1968, when he made the controversial Rivers of Blood speech in opposition to mass immigration from...
, British politician - Walter RodneyWalter RodneyWalter Rodney was a prominent Guyanese historian and political activist, who was assassinated in Guyana in 1980.-Career:...
, historian and Guyanese political activist - Gita Sahgal, writer and journalist, film director, and human rights activist
- Alan SenittAlan SenittAlan Senitt was a British political activist whose murder in Washington, DC garnered media attention. He had just graduated with an MA in International Studies and Diplomacy from the prestigious School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.From Pinner, North London, Senitt was a...
, political activist for homosexual rights - Sir John VinelottJohn VinelottSir John Evelyn Vincent Vinelott was a leading barrister at the Chancery bar and an English High Court judge in the Chancery Division from 1978 to 1994....
, lawyer and judge - Lord Jay of EwelmeMichael Jay, Baron Jay of EwelmeMichael Hastings Jay, Baron Jay of Ewelme, GCMG is a former British diplomat and is currently Chairman of the House of Lords Appointments Commission.-Education:...
, civil servant - Michael C WilliamsMichael C WilliamsMichael Charles Williams, Baron Williams of Baglan is a diplomat and the United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon. He was appointed by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in August 2008...
, UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon
Media/writers
- Zeinab BadawiZeinab BadawiZeinab Badawi is a Sudanese-British television and radio journalist. She was the first presenter of the ITV Morning News , and co-presented Channel 4 News with Jon Snow , before joining BBC News. Badawi is currently the presenter of World News Today broadcast on both BBC Four and BBC World News...
, newsreader - Fatima BhuttoFatima BhuttoFatima Bhutto born, Fatima Murtaza Bhutto on 29 May 1982, is a Pakistani poet and writer. She is granddaughter of former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the niece of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, and daughter of Murtaza Bhutto....
, author and journalist - James BrandonJames BrandonJames Brandon is a British journalist, most recently working in Iraq freelance on assignment from the Sunday Telegraph and The Scotsman, covering the occupation and insurgency...
, newspaper journalist - Martin BrightMartin BrightMartin Bright is a British journalist. He worked for the BBC World Service and The Guardian before becoming The Observer's education correspondent and then home affairs editor...
, journalist, political editor of the Jewish Chronicle - Jung ChangJung ChangJung Chang is a Chinese-born British writer now living in London, best known for her family autobiography Wild Swans, selling over 10 million copies worldwide but banned in the People's Republic of China....
, writer - Chris CrudelliChris CrudelliChris Crudelli is a martial artist, television presenter and author. He is best known as the host of BBC television programmes about the martial arts of far eastern countries, Mind, Body & Kick Ass Moves, Kick Ass Miracles, and Kick Ass in a Crisis all shown on BBC Three...
, Author & BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Television Broadcaster - Hossein DerakhshanHossein DerakhshanHossein Derakhshan , also known as Hoder, is an Iranian blogger. He is credited with starting the blogging revolution in Iran and is called the father of Persian blogging by many journalists. He also helped to promote podcasting in Iran...
, Iranian blogger credited with starting the blogging revolution in Iran, now a political prisoner - Jamal ElshayyalJamal ElshayyalJamal Elshayyal is a British news producer for Al Jazeera English. He was a student at School of Oriental and African Studies.In 2006, he joined Al Jazeera on the Middle East Desk....
, news producer at Al Jazeera English - Ghida FakhryGhida FakhryGhida Fakhry is a Lebanese journalist and is one of the primary broadcasters for the news channel Al Jazeera English at the network's Doha broadcast headquarters. Since January 2010, she has also been the host of Witness, an award-winning documentary program.-Early life and education:Fakhry was...
, journalist and news anchor at Al Jazeera English - Faris GlubbFaris GlubbFaris Glubb born was a British writer, journalist, translator and publisher.-Family and childhood conversion to Islam:...
, son of Glubb Pasha, activist, author and journalist - Aidan HartleyAidan HartleyAidan Hartley is a Kenyan journalist.Hartley was born in Nairobi in 1965. From age 7-12 he attended Ravenswood School, a boarding school near Tiverton in Devon, England...
, author and journalist - Dom JolyDom JolyDominic John Romulus "Dom" Joly is a British television comedian and journalist. He came to note as the star of Trigger Happy TV, a hidden camera show that was sold to over seventy countries worldwide...
, television comedian and journalist - Sabiha Al KhemirSabiha Al KhemirSabiha Al Khemir is a Tunisian writer, illustrator, and expert in Islamic art whose work is concerned with cultural bridging and cultural dialogues. She was the founding director of the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar. She was born in Tunisia and grew up in Korba, Tunisia, where she...
, Tunisian writer and expert in Islamic art - Clive KingClive KingDavid Clive King is an English author best known for his children's book Stig of the Dump . He served in the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve in the last years of World War II and then worked for the British Council in a wide range of overseas postings, from which he later drew inspiration for his...
author - Lindsey HilsumLindsey HilsumLindsey Hilsum is an English television journalist. She is the International Editor for Channel 4 News, and a regular contributor to the Sunday Times, The Observer, The Guardian, The New Statesman, and Granta....
, Channel 4 News correspondent and columnist for the New Statesman. - Khyentse Norbu, film-maker and Tibetan Buddhist Lama
- Taimur RahmanTaimur RahmanTaimur Rahman is an academic, political activist and a musician from Pakistan. He is the band leader and spokesperson for the music group named Laal. His father Rashid Rahman is the editor of Daily Times. He is also the General Secretary of the Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party. He was involved with...
, Member CentComm Communist Mazdoor Kissan PartyCommunist Mazdoor Kissan PartyThe Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party is a political party in Pakistan formed in 1995 through the unification of the Communist Party of Pakistan and the Mazdoor Kissan Party .-History:... - Andrew RobinsonW. Andrew RobinsonW. Andrew Robinson is a British author and former newspaper editor.Andrew Robinson was educated at the Dragon School, Eton College where he was a King's Scholar, University College, Oxford where he read Chemistry and finally the School of Oriental and African Studies in London...
, author and journalist - Saira ShahSaira ShahSaira Shah is an author, reporter and documentary filmmaker. She produces, writes and narrates current affairs films.- Life and work :...
, journalist and film-maker - Freya StarkFreya StarkDame Freya Madeline Stark, Mrs. Perowne, DBE was a British explorer and travel writer. She wrote more than two dozen books on her travels, which were mainly in Arabia, Iran and Afghanistan....
, travel writer - Sufiah YusofSufiah YusofSufiah Yusof is a British mathematics prodigy originally from Malaysia. She is now working as a social worker.- Biography :Sufiah Yusof first made headlines in 1997 when she gained entry into St Hilda's College, Oxford to study mathematics at the age of 13.In 2001, she ran away from her student...
, mathematics prodigy - Sherine TadrosSherine TadrosSherine Tadros is an Arab-British journalist based in the Middle East. She is a correspondent for Al Jazeera English and based in Doha, Qatar....
, al Jazeera English correspondent
Academia
- Mario AguilarMario AguilarMario Ignacio Aguilar is the Chair of Religion and Politics at St. Mary's College of the University of St Andrews. Aguilar is also the director and a founding member of the Centre for the Study of Religion and Politics based within St Mary's.-Other Appointments and Responsibilities:*...
, Oromo scholar and theologian, professor, director of the Centre for the Study of Religion and Politics (CSRP) at the University of St. Andrews. - Ali AnsariAli AnsariAli M. Ansari, PhD, is one of the world's leading experts on Iran and its history. Having obtained his BA and PhD from the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies , he is currently Professor in Modern History with reference to the Middle East at St...
, historian, Iran expert, professor, director of the Centre for Iranian Studies at University of St AndrewsUniversity of St AndrewsThe University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...
. - Issa J. BoullataIssa J. BoullataIssa J. Boullata is a Palestinian scholar, writer, and translator of Arabic literature. He was born in Jerusalem on 25 February 1929 during the British Mandate of Palestine. He obtained a First Class BA in Arabic and Islamic studies in 1964 followed by a PhD in Arabic literature in 1969, both...
, Arabic literature & Qur'anic studies, Emeritus Professor, Institute of Islamic Studies, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. - Urvashi ButaliaUrvashi ButaliaUrvashi Butalia is an Indian feminist and historian. She is the Director and Co-founder of Kali for Women, India's first feminist publishing house....
, historian, feminist, founder and director of Kali for WomenKali for WomenKali for Women was an important start-up feminist publisher in India. Urvashi Butalia and Ritu Menon set up Kali for Women in 1984, arguably the first Indian publishing house dedicated to publishing on and for women. When they decided to take this step, Butalia had worked with Oxford University... - K.N. ChaudhuriKirti N. ChaudhuriKirti Narayan Chaudhuri is a renowned historian, author, creative writer, and a graphic artist. In his early life, he was also a pianist and a general musician. He is the second son of the Indian writer Nirad C. Chaudhuri....
, historian, author, creative writer, and graphic artist - George N. ClementsGeorge N. ClementsGeorge N. Clements was an American theoretical linguist specializing in phonology. Clements was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and educated in New Haven, Paris and London. He received his Ph.D. from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, in 1973, defending a thesis on the...
, linguist, Senior Research Director at the CNRS, Paris, France - Simon DigbySimon Digby (oriental scholar)Professor Simon Everard Digby MA was an English oriental scholar, translator, writer and collector who was awarded the Burton Medal of the Royal Asiatic Society and was a former Fellow of Wolfson College, Oxford, the Honorary Librarian of the Royal Asiatic Society and Assistant Keeper in the...
, oriental scholar - Diana L. EckDiana L. EckDiana L. Eck is Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies, as well as a Master of Lowell House and the Director of The Pluralism Project, at Harvard University...
, Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies at Harvard University - Antony FlewAntony FlewAntony Garrard Newton Flew was a British philosopher. Belonging to the analytic and evidentialist schools of thought, he was notable for his works on the philosophy of religion....
, philosopher - Wang GungwuWang GungwuWang Gungwu, CBE is an academic who has studied and written about the Chinese diaspora, although he has objected to the use of the word diaspora to describe the migration of Chinese from China, because it is inaccurate and has been used to perpetuate fears of a "Chinese threat". He was born in...
, Chinese historian, former Vice Chancellor of University of Hong Kong, Current Chairman of East Asian Institute (National University of SingaporeNational University of SingaporeThe National University of Singapore is Singapore's oldest university. It is the largest university in the country in terms of student enrollment and curriculum offered....
) - Fred HallidayFred HallidayFrederick Halliday, FBA was an Irish writer and academic specialising in International Relations and the Middle East, with particular reference to the Cold War, Iran, and the Arabian peninsula.-Biography:Born in Dublin, Ireland in 1946 to an English father, businessman Arthur Halliday, and an...
, academic, Montague Burton Professor of International RelationsMontague Burton Professor of International RelationsThe Montague Burton Professorship of International Relations at the University of Oxford is one of the two main professorships of International Relations created by the endowment of Montague Burton in UK universities. The Oxford chair was established in 1930 and is associated with a Fellowship of...
at the London School of Economics - Ian HancockIan HancockIan Hancock is a linguist, Romani scholar, and political advocate. He was born and raised in England, and is one of the main contributors in the field of Romani studies....
, linguist and Romani scholar - Anthony HymanAnthony HymanAnthony Hyman was a noted British academic, writer and Islamicist. He died in 1999 and is buried in Brompton Cemetery, London.-Selected publications:* Afghanistan Under Soviet Domination, 1964-83 * Pakistan: Zia and After...
, academic, writer and Islamicist - Robert Graham IrwinRobert Graham IrwinRobert Graham Irwin is a British historian, novelist, and writer on Arabic literature.He read modern history at the University of Oxford, and did graduate research at SOAS. From 1972 he was a lecturer in Medieval History at the University of St. Andrews. He gave up academic life in 1977 in order...
, historian and writer on Arabic literature - Marsden JonesMarsden JonesJohn Marsden Beaumont Jones , known as Marsden Jones, was an emeritus professor and the founder and first director of the Center for Arabic Studies at the American University in Cairo....
, Islamic scholar, Emeritus Professor and founding director of the Centre for Arabic Studies at the American University in CairoAmerican University in CairoThe American University in Cairo is an independent, non-profit, apolitical, secular institution of higher learning located in Cairo, Egypt... - Dr Samten KarmaySamten KarmaySamten Gyeltsen Karmay is a writer and researcher in the field of Tibetan Studies. His work is focused on the study of Tibetan myths, beliefs, Bon religion and religious history.-Life and work:...
, Tibetologist, expert on Bon religion, CNRS - Kusuma KarunaratneKusuma KarunaratneKusuma Karunaratne nee Ediriweera Jayasooriya is a Sri Lankan academic, university administrator, Professor and scholar of Sinhalese language and literature.-Personal life:...
, Sri Lankan academic, university administrator, Professor and scholar of Sinhalese language and literature - Nick KnightNick Knight (professor)Nicholas Knight was, from 1981 to 2008, Professor of Asian Studies at Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia. Knight obtained a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Queensland , and a Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy , both from the School of Oriental and African Studies, at the...
, Professor of Asian Studies at Griffith UniversityGriffith UniversityGriffith University is a public, coeducational, research university located in the southeastern region of the Australian state of Queensland. The university has five satellite campuses located in the Gold Coast, Logan City and in the Brisbane suburbs of Mount Gravatt, Nathan and South Bank. Current... - Gregory B. Lee, Professor of Chinese and Transcultural Studies. Director of the Institute for Transtextual and Transcultural StudiesInstitute for Transtextual and Transcultural StudiesThe Institute for Transtextual and Transcultural Studies...
- Bernard LewisBernard LewisBernard Lewis, FBA is a British-American historian, scholar in Oriental studies, and political commentator. He is the Cleveland E. Dodge Professor Emeritus of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University...
, Islamic scholar and Emeritus Professor at Princeton University, USA - Duncan McCargoDuncan McCargoDuncan McCargo is a professor of Southeast Asian politics at the University of Leeds specializing in Thailand and Asia-related topics. He holds three degrees from the University of London: a First in English ; then an MA in Area Studies , and a PhD in Politics...
, Professor of Southeast Asian Politics at University of LeedsUniversity of LeedsThe University of Leeds is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England... - Farish Noor, academic, historian specialised in Southeast Asian region
- Martin OrwinMartin OrwinMartin Orwin is a British linguist, scholar and writer, specializing in the languages and cultures of the Horn of Africa.-Biography:Orwin studied Arabic and Amharic and has a Ph.D. in the phonology of the Somali language...
, author, scholar, and poet - James R. RussellJames R. RussellJames Robert Russell is a scholar and professor in Ancient Near Eastern, Iranian and Armenian Studies. He has published extensively in journals, and has written several books....
, academic, Mashtots Professor of Armenian Studies at Harvard University - Kamal SalibiKamal SalibiKamal Suleiman Salibi was a prominent Lebanese historian, professor of history at the American University of Beirut and the founding Director of the Royal Institute for Inter-Faith Studies in Amman, Jordan...
, Lebanese historian and professor - Tsering ShakyaTsering ShakyaTsering Wangdu Shakya is a historian and widely cited expert on Tibetan literature and modern Tibet and its relationship with China...
historian and Tibetologist, Professor at University of British Columbia. - Ram Sharan SharmaRam Sharan SharmaRam Sharan Sharma was an eminent historian of Ancient and early Medieval India. He had taught at Patna University, Delhi University and the University of Toronto and was a senior fellow at School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London; University Grants Commission National Fellow...
historian of Ancient IndiaAncient IndiaAncient India may refer to:* The ancient history of India, which generally includes the ancient history of the Asian Subcontinent, including:*Science and technology in ancient India**Indian mathematics**Astronomy**List of Indian inventions...
; Professor Emeritus at University of Patna, founder chairperson of Indian Council of Historical ResearchIndian Council of Historical ResearchThe Indian Council of Historical Research is a Society . The ICHR is registered under Societies registration Act 1860 with the Department of Industries of Delhi Government, Delhi.Role...
. - Alireza Shapour ShahbaziAlireza Shapour ShahbaziAlireza Shapour Shahbazi was a prominent Persian archeologist, Iranologist and a world expert on Achaemenid archeology. Alireza Shahbazi got a BA degree in and an MA degree in East Asian archeology from SOAS. Shahbazi had a doctorate degree in Achaemenid archeology from University of London...
, prominent Persian archaeologist, Iranologist, world expert on Achaemenid archaeology - Patrick SookhdeoPatrick SookhdeoPatrick Sookhdeo is the director of the Institute for the Study of Islam and Christianity and International Director of the Barnabas Fund. Sookhdeo is an outspoken spokesman for persecuted Christian minorities around the world...
, theologian and Anglican canon - Romila ThaparRomila ThaparRomila Thapar is an Indian historian whose principal area of study is ancient India.-Work:After graduating from Panjab University, Thapar earned her doctorate under A. L. Basham at the School of Oriental and African Studies, the University of London in 1958...
, historian, Professor Emerita of Ancient Indian History at the Jawaharlal Nehru University - Thomas TrautmannThomas TrautmannThomas R. Trautmann is an American historian and Professor in the Department of History at the University of Michigan. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of London...
, historian - Konrad TuchschererKonrad TuchschererKonrad Tuchscherer is an educator, scholar, writer, and public intellectual. Tuchscherer currently serves as the Co-Director of the Bamum Scripts and Archives Project in Cameroon and is Associate Professor of History and Director of Africana Studies at St...
, academic, Associate Professor of History and Director of Africana Studies at St. John's University (New York City) - Than TunThan TunDr. Than Tun was an influential Burmese historian as well as an outspoken critic of the military junta of Burma. For his lifelong contributions to the development of worldwide study of Burmese history and culture, Professor Than Tun was awarded the Fukuoka Asian Culture Prize in 2000.-Overview:A...
, historian of Burma - Giles Ji Ungpakorn, former university lecturer at Chulalongkorn UniversityChulalongkorn UniversityChulalongkorn University is the oldest university in Thailand and is the country's highest ranked university. It now has nineteen faculties and institutes. Regarded as the best and most selective university in Thailand, it consistently attracts top students from around the country...
- Ivan van SertimaIvan van SertimaIvan Gladstone Van Sertima was an associate professor of Africana Studies at Rutgers University in the United States....
, historian and anthropologist, professor of African studies at Rutgers University - William Montgomery WattWilliam Montgomery WattWilliam Montgomery Watt was a Scottish historian, an Emeritus Professor in Arabic and Islamic Studies at the University of Edinburgh...
, historian and Islamic scholar - Timothy J. WinterTimothy WinterTimothy John "Tim" Winter , also known as Abdal Hakim Murad, is a British Sufi Muslim researcher, writer and teacher. His profile and work have attracted media coverage both in the Muslim World and the West...
, aka Abdul Hakim Murad, Islamic scholar, author and teacher - Ehsan YarshaterEhsan YarshaterEhsan Yarshater is the founder and director of The Center for Iranian Studies, and Hagop Kevorkian Professor Emeritus of Iranian Studies at Columbia University. He was the first full-time professor of Persian at a U.S. university since World War II....
, academic, Hagop Kevorkian Professor Emeritus of Iranian Studies at Columbia University, USA - Rosemarie Said ZahlanRosemarie Said ZahlanRosemarie Said Zahlan was a Palestinian-US Christian historian and writer on the Persian Gulf states. She was a sister of Edward Said...
, historian, writer on the Persian GulfPersian GulfThe Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
states
Music and the arts
- Khyam AllamiKhyam AllamiKhyam Allami is a British-based musician and musicologist of Iraqi descent. He is best known as a contemporary player of the Arabic oud lute and has also written about and lectured on Arabic music.Allami has studied oud and composition with a...
, musician, oud player - M. K. Asante, Jr.M. K. Asante, Jr.MK Asante is an African-American author, filmmaker, and professor. He has been described by the Philadelphia Inquirer as "a rare, remarkable talent that brings to mind the great artists of the Harlem Renaissance." He was described by CNN as "a master storyteller and major creative force." He is...
, writer and filmmaker - Thurston ClarkeThurston ClarkeThurston Clarke is an American historian, author and journalist.-Education and career:Clarke was educated at Yale University, Columbia University and the School of Oriental and African Studies, London....
, writer - Raman MundairRaman MundairRaman Mundair is a British poet, writer, artist and playwright. She was born in Ludhiana, India and came to live in the UK at the age of five. Her poetry has been featured in Acumen, Poetry Scotland, Kavya Bharati and widely anthologized...
, writer, artist, poet and playwright - Olu OguibeOlu OguibeOlu Oguibe is an artist and public intellectual. Professor of Art and African-American Studies and interim Director of the Institute for African American Studies at the University of Connecticut, Storrs, Oguibe is a senior fellow of the Vera List Center for Art and Politics at the New School, New...
, artist and academic - Derwin PandaGold PandaGold Panda is a musical composer, performer and producer from the United Kingdom.He was born in Peckham, London, in 1980 and hails from Chelmsford, Essex. He lived in Japan and studied at the School of Oriental and African Studies at University of London...
, musician and producer - Paul RobesonPaul RobesonPaul Leroy Robeson was an American concert singer , recording artist, actor, athlete, scholar who was an advocate for the Civil Rights Movement in the first half of the twentieth century...
, musician, writer and civil rights activist - Gareth Williams, musician, member of This HeatThis HeatThis Heat were a British experimental music group formed in early 1976 in Camberwell, London by multi-instrumentalists Charles Bullen , Charles Hayward and Gareth Williams .This Heat were active in the ascendancy of British progressive rock and punk rock, but stood apart...
- Cheng YuCheng Yu (musician)Cheng Yu is a Chinese musician. She is internationally renowned as a performer of the pipa, a Chinese four-stringed lute, but also plays the guqin, a seven-stringed zither, and is a virtuoso, scholar and specialist of Chinese music....
, musician
Business and finance
- Atiur RahmanAtiur RahmanAtiur Rahman is the Governor of Bangladesh Bank, the central bank of the country. A development economist of Bangladesh, he is noted for writing on popular economic issues, and has written a good number of books both in Bengali and English.-Early life:...
, Governor of Bangladesh BankBangladesh BankBangladesh Bank is the Central bank of Bangladesh and is a member of the Asian Clearing Union.-History:After the liberation war, and the eventual independence of Bangladesh, the Government of Bangladesh reorganized the Dhaka branch of the State Bank of Pakistan as the central bank of the country,...
, the central bank of the country. - Sir Dermot de TraffordDermot de TraffordSir Dermot Humphrey de Trafford, 6th Baronet, FRSA, VRD was a British banker, businessman and aristocrat. He was the son of Sir Rudolph de Trafford, 5th Baronet, and June Isabel Chaplin.-Early life and education:...
, banker, businessman and aristocrat - Abdulsalam HaykalAbdulsalam haykalAbdulsalam Haykal is a Syrian technology and media entrepreneur, who lives and works in Damascus, Syria. In 2009, the World Economic Forum named Haykal as a Young Global Leader, the first Syrian to receive this recognition....
, CEO of Transtek Systems, CEO of Haykal Media, publisher of Aliqtisadi, and Forward Magazine - Peter ParkerPeter Parker (British businessman)Sir Peter Parker KBE LVO was a British businessman, best known as chairman of the British Railways Board from 1976 to 1983.-Early life:...
, chairman of the British Railways BoardBritish Railways BoardThe British Railways Board was a nationalised industry in the United Kingdom that existed from 1962 to 2001. From its foundation until 1997, it was responsible for most railway services in Great Britain, trading under the brand names British Railways and, from 1965, British Rail...
Religion
- Maurice Noël Léon Couve de MurvilleMaurice Noël Léon Couve de MurvilleMaurice Noël Léon Couve de Murville was the seventh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Birmingham from 25 March 1982 until his retirement on 12 June 1999, having formerly been a priest of the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton and chaplain of Fisher House, Cambridge.-Early career and priesthood:Maurice...
, Archbishop of Birmingham 1982–99 - Archbishop Michael FitzgeraldMichael FitzgeraldMichael Louis Fitzgerald is a Roman Catholic archbishop. He is the papal nuncio to Egypt and delegate to the Arab League. He was previously the head of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue.-Early life and ordination:...
, President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious DialoguePontifical Council for Interreligious DialogueThe Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue is a dicastery of the Roman Curia, erected by Pope Paul VI on 19 May 1964 as the Secretariat for Non-Christians, and renamed by Pope John Paul II on 28 June 1988....
2002–2006, Apostolic NuncioNuncioNuncio is an ecclesiastical diplomatic title, derived from the ancient Latin word, Nuntius, meaning "envoy." This article addresses this title as well as derived similar titles, all within the structure of the Roman Catholic Church...
to Egypt (from 2006) - Andrew Bertie, Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, and distant relative of Queen Elizabeth IIElizabeth II of the United KingdomElizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
. - David Young, Bishop of Ripon 1977–1999
Notable faculty and staff
Principals
- Sir Cyril Philips (often credited as the creator of modern SOAS)
- Sir Tim Lankester KCBTim LankesterSir Tim Lankester, KCB was President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, England.Tim Lankester was born in 1942 and educated at Monkton Combe School....
, Director and Principal (1996–2000), left the School to become President of Corpus Christi College, OxfordCorpus Christi College, OxfordCorpus Christi College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom... - Colin BundyColin BundyProfessor Colin James Bundy is a South African historian and former Principal of Green Templeton College, Oxford.Professor Bundy was an influential member of a generation of historians who substantially revised understanding of South African history...
, Director and Principal (2001–06), left the School to become President of Green College, OxfordGreen College, OxfordGreen College was a graduate college of the University of Oxford in England. It was centred around an architecturally appealing 18th century building: the Radcliffe Observatory, which is modelled after the ancient "Tower of the Winds" in Athens.... - Paul WebleyPaul WebleyProfessor Paul Webley is Director and Principal of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. He is a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Economic Psychology and former President of the International Association for Research in Economic Psychology.He received his...
Faculty of Law and Social Sciences
- Gilbert AchcarGilbert AchcarGilbert Achcar is a Lebanese academic, writer, socialist and antiwar activist. He lived in Lebanon until moving to France in 1983. He taught politics and international relations at the University of Paris VIII until 2003, when he took up a position at the Marc Bloch Centre in Berlin...
, Globalisation - Malcolm CaldwellMalcolm CaldwellJames Alexander Malcolm Caldwell was a British academic and a prolific Marxist writer. He was a consistent critic of American imperialism, a campaigner for Asian communist liberation and socialist movements, and a strong supporter of Pol Pot...
, Southeast Asian Economic History - Ben FineBen FineFor the New York Times reporter see Benjamin FineBen Fine is Professor of Economics at the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies. He is the author of a number of works in the broad tradition of Marxist economics, and has made contributions on economic imperialism and social...
, Economics - Mushtaq KhanMushtaq Khan (economist)Mushtaq Husain Khan is a heterodox economist and Professor of Economics at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London...
, Economics - Laleh KhaliliLaleh KhaliliDr. Laleh Khalili is an Iranian American and a lecturer in Middle East Politics at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London. She received her PhD from Columbia University. Her main research areas are policing and incarceration, gender, nationalism, political and social...
, Middle East Politics - Michael PalmerMichael PalmerMichael Palmer is an American poet and translator. He attended Harvard University where he earned a BA in French and a MA in Comparative Literature. He has worked extensively with Contemporary dance for over thirty years and has collaborated with many composers and visual artists...
, East Asian Law - Philip StottPhilip StottPhilip Stott is a professor emeritus of biogeography at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, and a former editor of the Journal of Biogeography .-Background:...
, Biogeography - Charles R. H. TrippCharles R. H. TrippProfessor Charles R. H. Tripp, Ph.D., is an academic and author specializing in the politics and history of the Near and Middle East.Tripp's main areas of research include the study of state and society in the Middle East, especially Iraq, and Islamic political thought., he lectures on government...
, Middle East Politics
Faculty of Arts and Humanities
- Nelida FuccaroNelida FuccaroNelida Fuccaro is a historian of the Modern Middle East at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. She has worked and published extensively on the History of the Modern Iraqi State, with a particular focus on the Yazidi, and Kurdish populations of the country...
, Middle Eastern History - Timothy Barrett, East Asian History
- Arthur Llewellyn BashamArthur Llewellyn BashamProfessor Arthur Llewellyn Basham was a noted historian and indologist and author of a number of books. It is perhaps not a mere coincidence that two of the most renowned living historians of early India, Professors R.S...
, Indian History - K.N. ChaudhuriKirti N. ChaudhuriKirti Narayan Chaudhuri is a renowned historian, author, creative writer, and a graphic artist. In his early life, he was also a pianist and a general musician. He is the second son of the Indian writer Nirad C. Chaudhuri....
, Indian History - Michael CookMichael Cook (historian)Michael Allan Cook is an English-Scottish historian and scholar of Islamic history. He has co-authored a book with Patricia Crone, notably Hagarism: The Making of the Islamic World....
, Islamic History - Patricia CronePatricia CronePatricia Crone, Ph.D., is a scholar, author, Orientalist, and historian of early Islamic history working at the Institute for Advanced Study. She established herself as a major challenger to the established narrative of the early history of Islam.- Career :Patricia Crone completed her...
, Islamic History - Lucy DuranLucy DuranLucy Durán is a ethnomusicologist, record producer and radio presenter. In the 1980s, Durán worked as a curator at the National Sound Archive. She is now a lecturer in African music, an undergraduate tutor and an undergraduate admissions tutor in the Department of Music School of Oriental and...
, African Music - Gerald Hawting, History of the Near Middle East
- Jung ChangJung ChangJung Chang is a Chinese-born British writer now living in London, best known for her family autobiography Wild Swans, selling over 10 million copies worldwide but banned in the People's Republic of China....
, writer and historian, author of Wild SwansWild SwansWild Swans: Three Daughters of China is a family history that spans a century, recounting the lives of three female generations in China, by Chinese writer Jung Chang. First published in 1991, Wild Swans contains the biographies of her grandmother and her mother, then finally her own autobiography... - Nasser David KhaliliNasser David KhaliliNasser David Khalili, KCSS, KCFO is a British-Iranian property developer, art collector and philanthropist based in London. He holds [United Kingdom] citizenship....
, Islamic Art - Roland OliverRoland OliverRoland Oliver is Emeritus Professor of African history at the University of London. Throughout a long career he was an eminent researcher, writer, teacher, administrator and organiser, who had a profound effect on the development of African Studies in the United Kingdom and who has made an...
, African History - Alexander PiatigorskyAlexander PiatigorskyAlexander Piatigorsky was a Russian philosopher, scholar of South Asian philosophy and culture, historian, philologist, semiotician, and writer. Well-versed in the study of language, he knew Sanskrit, Tamil, Pali, Tibetan, German, Russian, French, Italian and English...
, History of South Asia - Timon ScreechTimon ScreechTimon Screech is a professor in the history of art at the School of Oriental and African Studies , University of London. He is a specialist in the art and culture of early modern Japan....
, Japanese art, architecture and history - Charles R. H. TrippCharles R. H. TrippProfessor Charles R. H. Tripp, Ph.D., is an academic and author specializing in the politics and history of the Near and Middle East.Tripp's main areas of research include the study of state and society in the Middle East, especially Iraq, and Islamic political thought., he lectures on government...
, Middle East History - John WansbroughJohn WansbroughJohn Edward Wansbrough was an American historian who taught at the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies . Wansbrough's emphasis was on the critique of traditional accounts of the origins of Islam...
, Islamic History
Faculty of Languages and Cultures
- Muhammad Abdel-HaleemMuhammad Abdel-HaleemMuhammad A. S. Abdel Haleem, OBE is Professor of Islamic Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, England; and editor of the Journal of Qur'anic Studies. Born in Egypt, he learned the Qur'an by heart during childhood, and is a hafiz. In 2004, Oxford University Press...
, Islamic Studies - Shirin AkinerShirin AkinerShirin Akiner is a lecturer in Central Asian Studies at London University's School of Oriental and African Studies . She produced many scholarly works, particularly on Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, and is a member of editorial and advisory board of Journal of Central Asian and Caucasian Studies...
, Central Asian Studies - David AppleyardDavid AppleyardDavid Appleyard is a British academic and an expert on Ethiopian languages and linguistics.He is Professor Emeritus of the Languages of the Horn of Africa at the School of Oriental and African Studies in the University of London, where he specialized in Amharic and other Ethiopian Semitic...
, Languages of the Horn of Africa - Charles BawdenCharles BawdenCharles Roskelly Bawden is Emeritus Professor of Mongolian in the University of London.From 1955 to 1984, he was a Lecturer, Reader, and Professor of Mongolian at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London....
, Mongolian Studies - Mary BoyceMary BoyceNora Elisabeth Mary Boyce was a British scholar of Iranian languages, and an authority on Zoroastrianism...
, Iranian Studies - John Rupert Firth, Linguistics
- Sir Hamilton Gibb, Orientalist
- Angus Charles GrahamAngus Charles GrahamAngus Charles Graham , Professor of classical Chinese at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, was a noted sinologist....
, Classical Chinese - Alfred GuillaumeAlfred GuillaumeAlfred Guillaume was an Arabist and Islamic scholar.-Career:Guillaume took up Arabic after studying Theology and Oriental Languages at the University of Oxford. In the First World War he served in France and then in the Arab Bureau in Cairo...
, Islamic Studies - Walter Bruno HenningWalter Bruno HenningWalter Bruno Henning was a scholar of Middle Iranian languages and literature, especially of the corpus discovered by the Turpan expeditions of the early 20th century.-Biography:...
, Iranian Studies - Michel HockxMichel HockxMichel Hockx is a Professor of Chinese at the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies. He is the author of several books, mainly focusing on modern Chinese poetry and literature....
, China and Inner Asia Studies - Reginald JohnstonReginald JohnstonSir Reginald Fleming Johnston, KCMG, CBE, was a Scottish academic, diplomat and tutor to Puyi, the last emperor of China, and later appointed as the last Commissioner of Weihaiwei.-Early:...
, Chinese language and literature - Hugh N. KennedyHugh N. KennedyHugh N. Kennedy MA, PhD is Professor of Arabic in the Faculty of Languages and Cultures at School of Oriental and African Studies, London. He was formerly a professor of history at University of St Andrews, a position he had held since 1972...
, Arabic - Ann LambtonAnn LambtonAnn Katharine Swynford Lambton, usually known as A.K.S. Lambton , PhD, FBA, OBE , was a British historian and leading figure on medieval and early modern Persian history, Persian language, Islamic political theory, and Persian social organisation...
, Iranian Studies - Wendy Doniger O'Flaherty, Indian religion
- Patrick Geoffrey O'NeillPatrick Geoffrey O'NeillP. G. O'Neill is a British academic and writer on Japanese language and Noh drama.P. G. O'Neill was, with Ronald P. Dore, Sir Peter Parker and John McEwan one of the "Dulwich boys", 30 sixth-formers who commenced study of Japanese at SOAS in May 1942.After the war P. G...
, Japanese - Vladimir Minorsky, Iranian Studies
- David Marshall LangDavid Marshall LangDavid Marshall Lang , was a Professor of Caucasian Studies, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. He was one of the most productive British scholars who specialized in Georgian, Armenian and ancient Bulgarian history.David M...
, Caucasian Studies - Bernard LewisBernard LewisBernard Lewis, FBA is a British-American historian, scholar in Oriental studies, and political commentator. He is the Cleveland E. Dodge Professor Emeritus of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University...
, Middle East Studies - Tudor ParfittTudor ParfittTudor Parfitt is a Welsh Professor of Modern Jewish Studies at the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies , where he was the founding director of the Centre for Jewish Studies, historian, writer, traveller, broadcaster and adventurer...
Modern Jewish Studies - Xiao QianXiao QianXiao Qian , alias Nuoping was a famous essayist, editor, journalist and translator from China. His life spanned the country before and after the establishment of the People's Republic of China.-Early years:Xiao was born on 27 January 1910 in Beijing, China...
, China and Inner Asia Studies - William RadiceWilliam RadiceWilliam Radice is a Poet, Writer and Translator.He is the Senior Lecturer in Bengali in the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.His research area is in Bengali language and literature....
, Bengali language and literature - Ralph RussellRalph RussellProfessor Ralph Russell SI was a British scholar of Urdu literature and a Communist. He was educated at St. John's College, Cambridge, UK. He taught Urdu and Urdu literature at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, and also in universities in India and Pakistan...
, Urdu language and literature - Nicholas Sims-WilliamsNicholas Sims-WilliamsNicholas Sims-Williams is a professor of the School of Oriental and African Studies , University of London, where he is the Research Professor of Iranian and Central Asian Studies at the Department of the Languages and Cultures of Near and Middle East. Sims-Williams is a scholar who specializes in...
, Iranian and Central Asian Studies - David SnellgroveDavid SnellgroveDavid Llewellyn Snellgrove is a British Tibetologist noted for his pioneering work on Buddhism in Tibet as well as his many travelogues.-Biography:...
, Tibetan Studies - Arthur Stanley TrittonArthur Stanley TrittonArthur Stanley Tritton, D. Litt. was a British historian and scholar of Islam. He was appointed Professor of Arabic at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London in 1938, and also spent some time teaching at Aligarh University...
, Arabic language and literature - Paul ThompsonPaul Thompson (sinologist)Paul Mulligan Thompson was a British sinologist and pioneer in the field of Chinese computer applications.-Biography:...
, Classical Chinese - Edward UllendorffEdward UllendorffEdward Ullendorff FBA was a British scholar and historian, especially in Semitic languages and Ethiopia.-Biography:...
, Ethiopian Studies and Semitic Languages - Arthur WaleyArthur WaleyArthur David Waley CH, CBE was an English orientalist and sinologist.-Life:Waley was born in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England, as Arthur David Schloss, son of the economist David Frederick Schloss...
, Japan & China Studies - Richard Olaf WinstedtRichard Olaf WinstedtSir Richard Olaf Winstedt , or more commonly R.O. Winstedt, was an English Orientalist and colonial administrator with expertise in British Malaya.-Early life and education:...
, Malay language and literature