Reza Taher-Kermani

Reza Taher-Kermani is an Assistant Professor at Concordia University in the Department of English. His work focuses on the intersection of nineteenth-century English literature and medieval Persian poetry, examining themes of empire and colonialism, Sufism and mystical traditions in Islam, and translation studies through a postcolonial and comparative lens.

• University of Sheffield (BA, MA)
• University of Bristol (PhD)

His research explores the imaginative geography of Persia in Victorian poetry, tracing how historical and intellectual exchanges shaped British engagements with Persian texts. He analyzes figures like Firdausi, Hafiz, Edward FitzGerald, and Matthew Arnold, addressing contexts such as the cultural politics of the Great Game and Anglo-Iranian relations. The critical edition of FitzGerald’s Bird-Parliament (OUP, 2026) and publications in journals like Essays in Criticism and Translation and Literature highlight his transnational literary scholarship.

His teaching includes courses such as ENGL 665: Studies in Postcolonial Literature, ENGL 333: Studies in 19th-Century British Poetry, and ENGL 262: British Literature from 1660 to 1900, emphasizing postcolonial theory, Victorian fiction, and 19th-century British prose.