Daud Ali

Daud Ali is an Associate Professor and Chair of the South Asian Studies Department at the University of Pennsylvania. His research focuses on the cultural, social, and political history of South Asia, with a particular emphasis on medieval court society, political practices, conceptions of landscapes and gardens, sexuality, pedagogy in colonial India, and the usage of history. He employs epigraphical and literary sources alongside innovative theoretical approaches to analyze these themes.

Ali has authored two groundbreaking books: Querying the Medieval: The History of Practice in South Asia (co-edited with Ronald Inden and Jonathan Walters, 2000) and Courtly Culture and Political Life in Early Medieval India (2004). His scholarly contributions include exploring how royal and courtly technologies were appropriated by local actors during political recessions in medieval India, and he has presented lectures on figures like Bhoja Paramāra and their transformation into legendary roles.