Islamic Studies Minor Courses
Spring 2026 Islamic Studies Minor Courses
Below you will find our Islamic Studies-specific courses for Spring 2026. Please also view our broader RELS course offerings, many of which are incredibly relevant for the study of Islam. For course planning, use Schedule Builder, OneStop, or email Nathanael Homewood ([email protected]).
From the “Age of Discovery” and the African slave trade to Malcolm X and the War on Terror, Islam has long been an integral part of the American landscape. In this course, students will examine the history of Islam and the social formation of Muslim communities in the United States. We will approach this history in the plural: as histories of Islam in America, paying particular attention to the different local and global dynamics that led to the migration of this racially, ethnically, and class variegated community.
This course will explore how racial, national, cultural, and sectarian differences within and between Muslim communities shape and challenge the notion of a singular Islam or Muslim community. We will ask how and why Islam and Muslims have been characterized - both historically and today - as a "problem" in/for America. What does the emergence of terminology like “American Muslim” and “American Islam” tell us about these historical tensions, conceptions of good/bad citizenship, and identity politics more broadly, in the United States today?