University of Oxford Middle East Centre

ectorship was assumed the following year by the modern historian Albert Hourani, who was to play a dominant role in establishing Middle Eastern studies in Oxford. One of the first Fellows recruited to the Centre was Elizabeth Monroe who played an important role in establishing the Middle East Centre Archive in 1961. They were joined in 1961 by Geoffrey Lewis as Lecturer in Islamic studies and Turkish. The 1960s witnessed the introduction of a new postgraduate course in modern Middle Eastern studies (the B.Phil. in 1961, the precursor of the current M.Phil.) and the creation of a raft of new posts with British government funding. Roger Owen was appointed in Economic and Social History, Robert Mabro in Economics, Peter Lienhardt in Sociology, Mustafa Badawi in Modern Arabic, John Gurney in Persian History. Derek Hopwood was appointed Bibliographer and subsequently Lecturer in Middle Eastern studies. Under Albert Hourani’s guidance, Oxford emerged as one of the leading centres for the study of the Middle East in the English-speaking world. The original fellowship of the Middle East Centre has proved remarkably enduring, though new members have joined over the years. Mr Hourani was succeeded by Hamid Enayat following his retirement in 1979. Avi Shlaim, Professor in International Relations, was attached to the Centre given his research interests in the Middle East. Celia Kerslake succeeded Professor Lewis as fellow in Turkish. Eugene Rogan was appointed to the lectureship in modern Middle Eastern history. Philip Robins was elected to a new post in the politics of the Middle East. Walter Armbrust was appointed to the Albert Hourani Fellowship and succeeded Derek Hopwood as University Lecturer in Modern Middle Eastern Studies. New endowments have enabled the Centre to expand its fellowship in recent years. Dr Michael Willis was appointed to the H.M. King Mohammad VI Chair in Moroccan and Mediterranean Studies through a most generous benefaction from the Moroccan British Society. Professor Tariq Ramadan was appointed to the H.H. Shaykh Hamad bin Khalifa Chair in Contemporary Islamic Thought through a magnanimous benefaction from the Qatar Foundation. In 2011, the Centre welcomes its newest fellow when Dr Laurent Mignon joins us as Fellow in Turkish, following the retirement of Celia Kerslake. Originally based in a Victorian house on the Banbury Road, the Centre has been housed in the former Rectory of the Church of SS. Philip and James (built 1887) at 68 Woodstock Road since 1978. Limited parking is available for visitors. The Centre Library is open in Term time Monday to Thursday from 9:15 am to 5 pm and Friday from 9:15 am to 4:30 pm and in Vacation time Monday to Friday from 9:15am to 1pm (1-2pm closed) and 2pm to 5pm. The Centre Archive is open by appointment only, with opening hours of 9.45 am to 1:00 pm and 2:00 pm to 5.15 pm.