Profile of Near and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Basel
Near and Middle Eastern Studies in Basel (particularly on the Master level) focus on the teaching in and research on the late Ottoman and "post-Ottoman" worlds, i.e. the Eastern Mediterranean in the recent past and the present. An example of the research agenda of Near and Middle Eastern Studies is the topic "Islam in Southeast Europe": Given the perspective of (predominantly) Muslim countries such as Bosnia, Kosova, Albania, and Turkey to join the European Union within the coming years the phenomenon of Islam in Southeastern Europe will call for more attention. Furthermore, in Switzerland a great part of the Muslims living in this country has migrated from Southeastern European countries. Near and Middle Eastern Studies are connected to many other units within the University of Basel such as the research cluster "Cultural Topographies", but also to the disciplines of East European History, Political Science, Religious Studies, and to other faculties such as the Faculty of Theology.