Smoki Musaraj

Smoki Musaraj is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Ohio University's College of Arts and Sciences. She is also affiliated with the Center for Law, Justice & Culture and International Studies. Her research spans economic anthropology, legal anthropology, and the socio-cultural transformations of postsocialist Southeast Europe, particularly Albania.

• Ph.D. in Anthropology, New School for Social Research, 2012
• M.A. in Political Science, New School for Social Research, 2004
• B.A. in Cultural Studies and Political Studies, Trent University, 2001

Her research focuses on economic practices at the margins, including informal economies, pyramid schemes, remittances, digital money, and housing speculation. She explores how value, trust, and credibility are constructed in contexts of rapid political and economic change. Her ethnographic work in Albania examines ponzi logics, corruption, and financialization, while her newer projects investigate mass tourism and migration in Mediterranean cities like Marseille and Barcelona.

Her publications include the award-winning book Tales from Albarado and co-edited volumes on money and Albanian reconstruction. Her recent articles, published in American Anthropologist, Ethnos, and Current Anthropology, reflect a strong trend toward analyzing financialization, informal economies, and the social life of indicators in postsocialist and Mediterranean contexts.

She has received numerous accolades, including:

• Stavro Skëndi Book Prize (2020)
• Germaine Tillion Chair at IMERA (2023)
• New York Public Library Fellowship (2020)
• Ohio University Distinguished Mentor and Tutor Awards

Musaraj has advised students in the Honors Tutorial College and received funding from the National Science Foundation, Social Science Research Council, and Ohio University Research Committee. She is currently book review co-editor for PoLAR: Political and Legal Anthropology Review and continues to lead innovative ethnographic research on urban and financial transformations.

Her work is conducted through long-term ethnographic fieldwork, including participant observation, interviews, and media analysis, often in multi-sited settings. She leads research on housing practices like klering in Albania and urban change in the Mediterranean, contributing to broader debates on global capitalism, inequality, and the right to the city.