Sectarianism in the Gulf

I recently learned about a volume on sectarianism in the Arab Gulf region (forthcoming, exact date of publication TBD). It will be based on a series of meetings and round-table discussions, which took place at the Center for International and Regional Studies at Georgetown University last October.

Some of the main goals of this “Sectarian Politics in the Gulf” research initiative included “an overall comprehensive look at sectarianism in the Gulf,” while at the same time unpacking the term, based on the idea that “any form of identity, whether sectarian or otherwise, is always fluid, negotiated, and changes from one area to another and one historical period to another.”

Above: a national unity slogan from last year's protests (courtesy AP - Hasan Jamal via Al-Akhbar English). 

Other topics included:

• Sunnism and State-Building in the Arabian Peninsula
• Rentier Politics and Sectarian Identity in the Persian Gulf
• Shīʿa Politics in Iraq
• Iraqi Kurds
• Ethnic Politics in Iran
• The Shīʿa in Kuwait
• The Kuwaiti Badu
• Shīʿa Identity and Politics in Bahrain
• The Saudi Shīʿa
• The Political Consequences of Yemen’s Ethnic Mosaic

I look forward to reading the “Sectarianism in the Gulf” anthology.