معرفی
Babak Rahimi is an Associate Professor of Communication, Culture, and Religion at the University of California, San Diego. He also serves as Director of the Program for the Study of Religion and the Middle East Studies Program. His research focuses on intersections of culture, religion, and technology in early modern Islamicate societies and the Global South. Rahimi holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from the European University Institute (2004) and an M.A. in Ancient and Medieval Philosophy from the University of Nottingham (1997). He has held visiting fellowships at the London School of Economics (2000–2001) and the University of Pennsylvania (2011–2012).
His research interests include Shi’i Islam, sensory religion, medieval and early modern Iranian history, and theories of modernity. He has authored monographs such as Theater-State and the Formation of the Early Modern Public Sphere in Iran (2011) and an upcoming book on Moharram rituals (2026). His work bridges historical sociology, cultural studies, and religious anthropology.
Rahimi has been recognized as a UCSD Hellman Fellow. His scholarship spans edited volumes on Middle Eastern theater, Muslim pilgrimage, and social media dynamics in Iran. His articles appear in journals like Thesis Eleven, Critical Research on Religion, and International Journal of Middle East Studies.
He advises students in literature, communication, and religious studies programs. His research often explores performative rituals, sensory dimensions of religious practices, and technological mediation in historical and contemporary contexts.
