Mary Elston

I am a historian and ethnographer of the modern Muslim world, with a focus on the Middle East and Arabic-speaking regions. My research and teaching explore the intersection of religion and politics, Islamic knowledge and education, and religious authority in the modern Middle East.

My current book project, Above Time: Reviving Tradition in Modern Egypt, examines a traditionalist educational revival at al-Azhar—the preeminent institution of Sunnī learning—launched in the late twentieth century to counter competing Islamic movements and reassert the authority of al-Azhar and its scholars. This project builds on my dissertation, which was awarded the Alwaleed Bin Talal Prize for Best Dissertation in Islamic Studies at Harvard University in 2020. 

As a teacher, my goal is not only to help students become more familiar with the histories, cultures, and languages of the Middle East and modern Muslim world, but also to encourage personal transformation—deepening a capacity for empathy, deep listening, and embodied presence.