Scholar to discuss Islamic mystics

Author Carl Ernst, a well-known scholar of Islam, will speak at the University of Louisville Feb. 8 about “Sufis and Globalization.”

The free, public talk will begin at 5 p.m. in Room 139, Shumaker Research Building. Ernst is editor of “Islamophobia in America” and author of several books including “How to Read the Qur’an: A New Guide with Select Translations.” He also is the William R. Kenan Jr. distinguished professor of religious studies at University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and co-director of the Carolina Center for the Study of the Middle East and Muslim Civilizations. Ernst’s research focuses on West and South Asia mainly in the areas of Islamic studies, Sufism and Indo-Muslim culture. His Sufism studies have centered on the literary, historical and contemporary aspects of Islamic mysticism. Ernst has done extensive research in India, Pakistan and Turkey. The College of Arts and Sciences’ Middle East and Islamic studies program is sponsoring the lecture. For more information, contact Julie Peteet at 502-852-6864 or julie.peteet@louisville.edu.