Manja Stephan

Prof. Dr. Manja Stephan is a Professor for Transregional Central Asian Studies with a focus on Islam and Migration at the Institute of Asian and African Studies (IAAW) at Humboldt University of Berlin since May 2020. She also serves as Project Director of the Berlin Graduate School Muslim Cultures and Societies (BGSMCS) since 2011. Previously, she was a Junior Professor for Cross-Sectional Issues of Islam in Asian and African Societies at the same institution from 2010 to 2020.

Her educational background includes a Doctorate from Martin Luther University Halle/Wittenberg (2009), preceded by doctoral studies at the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology (2007-2003) and Ruhr University Bochum (2005-2002). She earned her MA in Ethnology and Central Asian Studies from Humboldt University, Free University of Berlin, and University of Leipzig in 2002.

Prof. Stephan's research focuses on the anthropology of transregional Islam, Muslim mobilities and religious geographies, and transregional Central Asia and Gulf Studies (particularly Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and the United Arab Emirates). Her work also examines Muslim professionalism, religious economies, material religion, and cultural heritage policies. Her current research projects include 'Women's Pathways to Professionalization in Muslim Asia' (funded by DFG) and 'De:Link // Re:Link' (funded by BMBF), which explore gender, religious knowledge, and transregional connections in Muslim Asia.

Her scholarly work demonstrates a consistent focus on translocal Muslim networks connecting Central Asia and the Gulf region, particularly examining how Tajik migrants navigate religious, economic, and social landscapes across these regions. A significant strand of her research investigates women's professionalization within Muslim contexts, highlighting how religious knowledge intersects with gender and economic mobility.

• Principal Investigator at the Berlin Graduate School for Muslim Cultures and Societies (BGSMCS)
• Member of the European Association of Social Anthropologists (EASA)
• Member of the American Association of Anthropologists (AAA)
• Member of the Central and West Asia and Diasporas Research Network (CWADRN)
• Member of the German University Association (DHV)

Prof. Stephan has supervised numerous theses and dissertations, with a particular focus on transregional Central Asian studies and Muslim cultures. Her current research projects, funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF), support graduate students and early-career researchers working on Muslim Asia and transregional connections. She has organized multiple academic events including workshops, lecture series, and summer schools focused on Muslim women's professionalization, cultural heritage in Central Asia, and transregional studies.

She leads the ANOR Central Asian Studies Book Series published by DeGruyter and has organized numerous academic events including the Berlin Transregional Talks lecture series and workshops on museums as cultural infrastructures in Central Eurasia.