Ahmet T. Karamustafa

Professor Ahmet T. Karamustafa serves as Professor and Department Chair of History at the University of Maryland, College Park, and holds affiliations with the Roshan Institute for Persian Studies and the School of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures. He also serves as Senior Advisor to PersDig@UMD. His research focuses on medieval and early modern Islamic intellectual history, Sufism, and Ottoman Turkish religious texts. Key works include Sufism: The Formative Period (2007) and God’s Unruly Friends (1994), exploring ascetic movements and mystical literature. Current projects include The Flowering of Sufism and Vernacular Islam.

His academic contributions span editorial roles in major publications like Cartography in the Traditional Islamic and South Asian Societies (1992). Research expertise bridges religious studies theory, Ottoman manuscript analysis, and medieval Anatolian religious dynamics. Administrative experience includes directing Washington University's Religious Studies Program and co-chairing the American Academy of Religion’s Study of Islam Section (2008–2011).

Research interests emphasize comparative religious frameworks, Sufi textual traditions, and the interplay between Islamic intellectual history and regional cultural contexts. His work critically engages Western models of religion through Islamic conceptual frameworks like 'din,' offering new methodologies for studying premodern Muslim thought.