Emory University
Graduate Division of Religion
201 Dowman Dr.
Atlanta
GA
30322
United States
ABOUT
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.