Cheikh Babou

Cheikh Babou is a Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Arts & Sciences, Department of History, since 2002. His research focuses on the history of Islam, the modern West African Muslim diaspora, and Sufi brotherhoods like the Muridiyya. He holds a Ph.D. from Michigan State University (2002) and degrees from Université Cheikh Anta Diop in Dakar, including a B.A. (1990) and M.A. (1991).

• Education:
• Ph.D., Michigan State University, 2002
• M.Sc., École Normale Supérieure, Dakar, 1994
• D.E.A., Université Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar, 1992
• M.A., Université Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar, 1991
• B.A., Université Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar, 1990

His scholarship includes seminal works such as Fighting the Greater Jihad: Amadu Bamba and the Founding of the Muridiyya of Senegal (2007), its French translation Le Jihad de l’Âme (2011), and The Muridiyya on the Move (2021), which examines migration and place-making. He co-authored Territoriality and Hospitality: Christian and Muslim Perspectives (2024) and contributed to edited volumes on Islamic education, Senegalese politics, and the African diaspora. His research intersects colonial history, decolonization, and religious-political dynamics in Africa.

Dr. Babou taught at the University of Pennsylvania across undergraduate and graduate levels, offering courses on ancient African history, colonial rule, Islam in Africa, migration, and the African diaspora. He served as an editor of the Journal of African History (2011–2016) and remains active in academic publishing.

• Awards:
• Finalist for the Fage-Oliver Prize (ASA/UK, 2021) for The Muridiyya on the Move

No advising or grant details are explicitly mentioned in the text. His work bridges historical analysis with contemporary issues in Islamic studies and African diaspora communities.