Josh Gedacht

Dr. Josh Gedacht serves as a Visiting Assistant Professor of History at Rowan University's College of Humanities & Social Sciences. He specializes in the Modern Middle East, South Asia, and the Indian Ocean world, with a focus on colonial-era war-making, Muslim networks, and trans-regional religious connections.

Education:

• B.A. in History from McGill University (Canada)
• Ph.D. in Southeast Asian History from the University of Wisconsin-Madison

Research Interests:

Dr. Gedacht examines how imperial conquest reshaped religious and cultural connections across Asia. His current book project, Coercive Cosmopolitanism: War and Islam in Colonial Southeast Asia, 1800-1940, explores paradoxical dynamics of exclusion and inclusion under colonial rule. He has published in journals like Muslim World, Itinerario, and the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Asian History, and co-edited Challenging Cosmopolitanism: Coercion, Mobility, and Displacement in Islamic Asia (2018).

Professional Affiliations:

• Member, Association of Asian Studies (AAS)
• Member, New York Southeast Asia Network (NYSEAN)

Prior Experience:

• Postdoctoral Fellow at the Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore
• Assistant Professor at the Institute of Asian Studies, Universiti Brunei Darussalam