Languages & Global Studies

History

Of the Middle East and North Africa

This page provides resources for understanding the history of the Middle East and North Africa. It addresses the misconception, common among American college students, that “there is no change, no progress” in the region.

Quicklinks

Four people sit in a row on the outdoor porch of a wooden house. Three of them are looking at the camera and smiling, the last person in the row is looking down. There are several other people in the background of the photo, facing away from the camera

Lecture and Class Activities

MENA History Lesson Plans:

  • Deconstructing Orientalism
  • History and Ourselves

On Day 5 of the 2018 Bimson Seminar, Dr. Andrea Duffy provided an introduction to key concepts in the history of the Middle East and North Africa. Review her lecture here.

Lecture Slides
Woman riding a camel in front of Pyramids

Resources

This list provides resources for U.S. educators and students seeking to better understand politics and societies in the Middle East and North Africa. It is far from exhaustive and is intended as a starting point only. Many of these resources should be viewed and used critically and with care.

  1. Middle East since 1945 Internet Sourcebook
  2. Islamic History Internet Sourcebook
  3. Sample Syllabus: The Islamic World since 1500
  4. Aramco World Classroom Guides
  5. Teach Mideast Website
  6. BBC Documentary – The Birth of Israel
  7. Crash Course World History Presents: “Islam, the Quran, and the Five Pillars”
Flags from around the world displayed outside the United Nations

Further Reading

Countless books treat the history of the Middle East and North Africa, but these works vary in quality and coverage. This list provides a sampling of literature on MENA history that may help to explore and elucidate these issues in the classroom. Resources are linked to online documents as available.

  1. Findley, C. (2011). Turkey, Islam, Nationalism, and Modernity: A History. Yale University Press.
  2. Finkel, C. (2007). Osman’s Dream: The History of the Ottoman Empire Paperback. Basic Books.
  3. Goldschmidt, A. and I. Al-Marashi (2019). A Concise History of the Middle East, Twelfth Edition. Routledge.
  4. Duffy, A. (2019). Nomad’s Land: Pastoralism and French Environmental Policy in the Nineteenth-Century Mediterranean World. University of Nebraska Press.
  5. Duffy, A. (as A. Williams) (2017). Syria’s Forgotten Pluralism and Why It Matters Today. The Conversation.
  6. Said, E. (1979). Orientalism. Vintage.
  7. Jabarti, A. (2004). Napoleon in Egypt: Al-Jabarti’s Chronicle of the French Occupation, 1798. Expanded Edition. Markus Wiener Publishers.
  8. Mernissi, F. (1997) The Forgotten Queens of Islam. University of Minnesota Press.
  9. Ansari, T. (2010). Destiny Disrupted: A History of the World through Muslim Eyes. Public Affairs.