Join us for a lively discussion and lunch with Professor Jane Hathaway of the Institute for Advanced Study in New Jersey and of Ohio State University. Assistant Professor Hossein Kamaly of Barnard College Columbia University will provide introductory remarks.

Dr. Hathaway is the author of the book on the Chief Eunuch of the Ottoman Imperial Harem from the origins of the office in the late ­sixteenth century through the beginnings of westernizing reform in the late eighteenth century, with an epilogue following the story to the end of the Ottoman Empire. Her work specializes in the Ottoman Empire before 1800, with a particular focus on the Arab provinces. Until recently, her research focused on Egypt and, to a lesser extent, Yemen. She earned a Ph.D. from Princeton's Near Eastern Studies department in 1992.

Dr. Hossein Kamaly, Assistant Professor in the Asian and Middle Eastern Cultures Department, specializes in Middle Eastern history and Islamic Studies. After years of working as an electrical engineer, computer programmer, mathematical analyst, and simultaneous interpreter, he obtained a Ph.D. in history from Columbia University in 2004. His research interests focus on intellectual history, and the broad field of Perso-Islamic studies. He is committed to close reading of classical texts, and teaches courses in which important themes are traced across texts and societies.

Lunch will be served. 

For more information on this event, please contact Professor Hossein Kamaly via email: hkamaly@columbia.edu.