Heather Sharkey

Heather Sharkey is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at the University of Pennsylvania. Her work focuses on the modern Middle East and North Africa, integrating historical and anthropological perspectives.

• Specializations: Modern Middle East/North Africa history, religious intercommunal relations, colonialism/postcolonialism, migration, food studies
• Key Publications: Living with Colonialism (2003), American Evangelicals in Egypt (2008), A History of Muslims, Christians, and Jews in the Middle East (2017)

Her edited works include Cultural Conversions (2013) and The Changing Terrain of Religious Freedom (2021), exploring themes like missionary encounters, religious freedom, and cultural transformations. Since 2021, she has hosted the Bite-Sized Talks series on Middle Eastern food history.