Eric Stickley Calderwood

Eric Stickley Calderwood is a Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, affiliated with the Department of Comparative & World Literature, History, Spanish and Portuguese, Medieval Studies, and the Unit for Criticism and Interpretive Theory. He also serves as Director of the Center for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies and is affiliated with the Center for African Studies and European Union Center.

• Ph.D., Harvard University (2011)
• B.A., Brown University (2003)

His research spans postcolonial studies, critical theory, and transnational analysis, focusing on North African literature and film, Al-Andalus (Medieval Muslim Iberia), modern Spanish cultural production, and Mediterranean studies. A specialist in Arabic literature and travel writing, his work examines historical memory and cross-cultural interactions.

Recent publications explore translating cultures, Moroccan literature, and the contested legacy of al-Andalus. His scholarship engages with environmental humanities through analyses of hydrological systems and cultural geography.

• Conrad Humanities Scholar (2018-2023)
• Lincoln Excellence for Assistant Professors (LEAP) Award (2017-18)
• National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship (2016-17)

As director of the Center for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, he leads interdisciplinary initiatives connecting regional studies with global critical frameworks.