Nadia Yaqub

Dr. Nadia Yaqub is a Professor in the Department of English and Comparative Literature at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and serves as Coordinator of the Arabic Program. She also holds an adjunct appointment as Adjunct Associate Professor in the same department. Her research focuses on Arab cultural texts spanning medieval literature to contemporary visual culture, with a particular emphasis on Palestinian cinema and media from the Gaza Strip. Yaqub's recent publications include Gaza on Screen (2023), Palestinian Cinema in the Days of Revolution (2018), and Bad Girls of the Arab World (2017, co-edited with Rula Quawas).

Her academic leadership includes roles as Associate Editor for Film and Theater at the Review of Middle East Studies, and Editorial Collective Member of the Journal of Middle East Women’s Studies. She has held prestigious fellowships such as the NYU Abu Dhabi Senior Humanities Research Fellow (2021/22) and the UNC James Moeser Award for Distinguished Research (2008). Yaqub’s teaching spans courses like Arabic Literature through the Ages and Visual Culture of the Middle East.

Her research interests intersect with oral poetry traditions, Palestinian visual media, and the cultural politics of borders and identity. Notable works include studies on Palestinian oral poetry dueling and the representation of catastrophe in cinema. Awards highlight her contributions to Middle Eastern studies, including recognition from the Palestine Book Award and the Institute for the Arts and Humanities.

Yaqub’s academic career includes Fulbright Fellowships (1986–87 in Syria and 1991–92 in Egypt), and she remains active in editorial roles and digital humanities projects focusing on Palestinian cultural memory and grassroots initiatives.