معرفی
Kathinka Frøystad is a Professor of Modern South Asian Studies at the University of Oslo, affiliated with the Department of Culture, Religion, Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (IKOS). She specializes in religious complexity, ethnographic fieldwork, and the interplay between religion, politics, and social change in India. Her research spans religious pluralism, Hindu nationalism, and boundary-crossing religious practices.
Education:
- Dr. Polit. (PhD) in Social Anthropology, University of Oslo, 2000
- PhD Research Fellow, International Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO), 1995–2000
Her research interests include religious change, religious-political friction, and religious border-crossing in plural societies. Frøystad examines how individuals navigate religious identities amid political upheavals, particularly in the context of rising Hindu nationalism. She is interested in practices that foster social cohesion despite polarization, such as cross-religious appeals for divine intervention. Her ethnographic approach emphasizes mobility and immersive fieldwork across multi-religious landscapes.
The recent articles highlight a consistent focus on religious offence, digital religion, and the paradoxes of Hindu nationalism. Themes include "love jihad" conspiracies, digital images of Shiva in the Kaaba, temple inclusivity in Kanpur, and the politics of cow veneration. Her work reveals how personal religious pragmatism often contradicts ideological nationalism, suggesting a form of "involuntary cosmopolitanism."
Scientific Awards:
None listed in the provided text.
Frøystad has extensive teaching experience in Hinduism (REL2220), South Asian studies, and anthropology at both the University of Oslo and the University of Bergen. She currently serves as PhD leader in her department and previously held an adjunct professorship at the University of Bergen (2017–2019). She has also contributed to academic service as co-editor of the Norwegian Anthropological Journal (2022–2024). Her ethnographic films, A Kali Temple Inside Out (2018) and An Indian Love Story (2023), visually complement her scholarly output.
Research Groups and Projects:
- Centre for South Asian Democracy (CSAD)
- Indian Cosmopolitan Alternatives
- Religious Festivals in Asia: Power, Aspirations and Play
