Riza Yildirim completed his first Ph.D. in Ottoman history at Bilkent University in 2008 and is currently writing his second doctoral dissertation in Religious Studies at Emory University. In his first dissertation and subsequent research, he studied the history of Qizilbash-Alevi and Bektashi communities in the region stretching from Iran to the Balkans. His second doctoral project focuses on shari'a-inattentive Muslim pieties (so-called “Ghulat”) in Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. He has published five books and several research papers on the history and religion of Qizilbash-Alevis and Bektashis.
Discipline
Religious Studies/Theology
Sub Areas
Ottoman Studies
Iranian Studies
Islamic Studies
Minorities
Turkish Studies
Mysticism/Sufi Studies
Geographic Areas of Interest
Anatolia
Azerbaijan
Balkans
Iran
Ottoman Empire
Turkey
Specialties
Alevi-Bektashi History, Belief, And Culture
Qizilbash History And Religion
Ghulat Shi'ism And Antinomian Sufism
Languages
Turkish (native)
French (advanced)
German (intermediate)
Arabic (advanced)
Persian (advanced)
Education
PhD
| 2024
| Graduate Division of Religion
| Emory University
