Research
As an associate professor of Islamic intellectual and cultural history, I have published on the history of Qur’an commentary, Sufism, Salafism, eschatology, sensory history, history of emotions, and the history of dying. I have a keen interest in locating paradigm shifts within Islamic thought and culture, through longue durée investigation of specific themes. Such analyses of the past help us to understand the genealogies of Islamic modernity. To that end, I work with premodern and modern Arabic sources -in manuscript, print, and with digital methods. These cover a variety of Islamic intellectual disciplines and literary genres, such as Qur’an commentary, law, Hadith, theology, mysticism (Sufism), and biographical literature.
Teaching
I teach Islamic Philosophy, Islamic History (premodern and modern), Advanced Readings in Arabic, Resilience in Secular Age and contribute to courses on Interreligious Hermeneutics and Relations. I have long taught in the Spiritual Care program as well. You can approach me for tailor-made tutorials in Islamic intellectual and cultural history within the track Exploring a Discipline.
I regularly contribute to VU Pre-University College, a program for high school students, with courses on Islamic Philosophy and Qur'an commentary. I am also a a regular tutor in the Program Imams Netherlands (PIN) at VU, where I teach on the history of Qur'an commentary and its consequences for how Muslims understand the Qur'an today.
Awards and Grants
VIDI grant, Dutch Research Council (NWO), 2026-2031
Individual Fellowship Netherlands Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), 2022-23
Syrian Studies Association Prize for Outstanding Article on Syria (Honorable Mention), 2021
VENI grant, Dutch Research Council (NWO), 2019-21
Fulbright scholarship for PhD research at Yale University, 2013
NISIS full scholarship for PhD research, 2011-15
Thomas More scholarship for Philosophy and Theology, 2009
Education
PhD - Islamic Studies - Utrecht University 2011-2015
MA - Arabic Language and Culture - Radboud University Nijmegen 2007-2008 (cum laude)
BA - Arabic Language and Culture - Radboud University Nijmegen 2003-2007 (cum laude)
Academic membership
International
International Qur’anic Studies Association (IQSA)
Union Européen des Arabisants et Islamisants (UEAI)
Association for the Study of Death and Society (ASDS)
National
Dood Onderzoek Nederland (DONE)
Netherlands Interuniversity School of Islamic Studies (NISIS)
KNAW De Jonge Akademie (2023-present)
Local
Amsterdam Young Academy (2018-2022)
Amsterdam Late Antiquity Network (ALAN)
