@annikaschmeding.bsky.social
Anthropologist. Senior Researcher at Netherlands Academy of Science and Lecturer at University of Amsterdam
Author: Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan & Frontier Ethnographies: Deconstructing Research Experiences
Author: Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan & Frontier Ethnographies: Deconstructing Research Experiences
Pinned
Frontier Ethnographies: Deconstructing Research Experiences in Afghanistan and Pakistan | Berghahn Books
Independent Publishing since 1994
www.berghahnbooks.com
Our new Book ✨“Frontier Ethnographies: Deconstructing Research Experiences in #Afghanistan and #Pakistan” (Berghahn) is out & 50%off with the promo code 👉🏽 CHOU7595 until 31.December. Pls Ask your library to order! The introduction is open access available here: www.berghahnbooks.com/title/Choudh...
Looking forward to to tomorrow’s lecture at @oxford-anthro.bsky.social department on rethinking the margin through #Afghanistan’s grassroots histories. Come join if you’re in #Oxford - open and free talk
Don't miss 'Meaning in the margins: understanding grassroots histories in Afghanistan', this Friday's seminar with @annikaschmeding.bsky.social(Senior Researcher @knaw-nl.bsky.social)
📆 Fri 7 Nov, 3pm
📍St Antony's College
Find out more: www.anthro.ox.ac.uk/event/meanin...
📆 Fri 7 Nov, 3pm
📍St Antony's College
Find out more: www.anthro.ox.ac.uk/event/meanin...
November 6, 2025 at 6:31 AM
Looking forward to to tomorrow’s lecture at @oxford-anthro.bsky.social department on rethinking the margin through #Afghanistan’s grassroots histories. Come join if you’re in #Oxford - open and free talk
Looking forward to today’s workshop on #ethnographic research at GCU in Lahore.
September 19, 2025 at 3:45 AM
Looking forward to today’s workshop on #ethnographic research at GCU in Lahore.
Afghan #mutualAid networks have rapidly emerged in recent weeks to support deportees dropped at the border, amid a mass deportation drive that has expelled half a million #Afghans from #Iran. I explore the past&present of these grassroots solidarity networks for @ajammc.bsky.social
Ajam's latest article explores how Afghan mutual aid networks have activated across the country to support deportees - serving a crucial role in the unfolding humanitarian crisis:
ajammc.com/2025/07/22/a...
ajammc.com/2025/07/22/a...
Solidarity at the Border: Afghan Mutual Aid Networks Mobilize Amid Mass Deportation - Ajam Media Collective
Amid the wave of expulsions from Iran, Afghans have mobilized mutual aid to support deportees. These networks fill a crucial need and highlight the foundational role that grassroots solidarity plays i...
ajammc.com
July 23, 2025 at 7:38 PM
Afghan #mutualAid networks have rapidly emerged in recent weeks to support deportees dropped at the border, amid a mass deportation drive that has expelled half a million #Afghans from #Iran. I explore the past&present of these grassroots solidarity networks for @ajammc.bsky.social
Looking forward Monday’s “Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority&Political Change in #Afghanistan” (@stanfordpress.bsky.social) Book Talk at Berlin’s Humboldt University‘s “Transregionale Gespräche”, 14. July 6pm.
free&open to the public. Please join us.
#Berlin #Sufism #CivilSociety #Afghanistan
free&open to the public. Please join us.
#Berlin #Sufism #CivilSociety #Afghanistan
July 11, 2025 at 10:03 AM
Looking forward Monday’s “Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority&Political Change in #Afghanistan” (@stanfordpress.bsky.social) Book Talk at Berlin’s Humboldt University‘s “Transregionale Gespräche”, 14. July 6pm.
free&open to the public. Please join us.
#Berlin #Sufism #CivilSociety #Afghanistan
free&open to the public. Please join us.
#Berlin #Sufism #CivilSociety #Afghanistan
I look forward to today‘s talk at the @royalasiaticsoc.bsky.social in #London celebrating the Norchi Prize for my book “Sufi Civilities”. It’s free, so please join us in person or online! @stanfordpress.bsky.social
June 12, 2025 at 9:36 AM
I look forward to today‘s talk at the @royalasiaticsoc.bsky.social in #London celebrating the Norchi Prize for my book “Sufi Civilities”. It’s free, so please join us in person or online! @stanfordpress.bsky.social
Looking forward to next week‘s @lorentzcenter.bsky.social / @niodamsterdam.bsky.social workshop on the impact of war on the environment, offering a combined social and natural scientific engagement with comparative cases from #Vietnam, #Afghanistan, #Iraq, and #Ukraine.
May 30, 2025 at 10:21 AM
Looking forward to next week‘s @lorentzcenter.bsky.social / @niodamsterdam.bsky.social workshop on the impact of war on the environment, offering a combined social and natural scientific engagement with comparative cases from #Vietnam, #Afghanistan, #Iraq, and #Ukraine.
I look forward to my upcoming talk celebrating the Norchi Prize in #London. Please mark your calendar and join us if you’re around! @stanfordpress.bsky.social #sufism #afghanistan #anthropology #civilsociety
Our upcoming Norchi Prize ceremony on Thursday 12 June will feature a talk by the winner Dr Annika Schmeding on Afghanistan's Sufis and civil society. Join us in celebrating Dr Schmeding's achievements and hear more about her research!
May 29, 2025 at 3:00 PM
I look forward to my upcoming talk celebrating the Norchi Prize in #London. Please mark your calendar and join us if you’re around! @stanfordpress.bsky.social #sufism #afghanistan #anthropology #civilsociety
Reposted
#AWARD| NIOD researcher @annikaschmeding.bsky.social
has won The Royal Asiatic Society's Charles H. Norchi Award for her book "Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan".
Congratulations! Read more about the Charles H. Norchi Award. ⤵️
has won The Royal Asiatic Society's Charles H. Norchi Award for her book "Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan".
Congratulations! Read more about the Charles H. Norchi Award. ⤵️
Professor Charles H. Norchi Afghanistan Book Prize
Winner announcement
royalasiaticsociety.org
March 31, 2025 at 1:22 PM
#AWARD| NIOD researcher @annikaschmeding.bsky.social
has won The Royal Asiatic Society's Charles H. Norchi Award for her book "Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan".
Congratulations! Read more about the Charles H. Norchi Award. ⤵️
has won The Royal Asiatic Society's Charles H. Norchi Award for her book "Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan".
Congratulations! Read more about the Charles H. Norchi Award. ⤵️
Reposted
This is a fantastic opportunity - until March 31, second monographs after the PhD as well as PhD dissertations can be nominated for the Islamic Studies Research Award of the Annemarie Schimmel-Foundation. Both Awards come with a prize money of €5000! For details ⤵️
March 25, 2025 at 9:17 PM
This is a fantastic opportunity - until March 31, second monographs after the PhD as well as PhD dissertations can be nominated for the Islamic Studies Research Award of the Annemarie Schimmel-Foundation. Both Awards come with a prize money of €5000! For details ⤵️
What a quote! Hard to watch what’s happening but @adnanrkhan.bsky.social aptly analyzes recent developments in #Turkey
“Democracy is like a tram," Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said in the 1990s. "You ride it until you arrive at your destination, then you step off.” Last week, he finally decided to step off.
My latest in @theglobeandmail.com.
www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...
My latest in @theglobeandmail.com.
www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/arti...
Opinion: Turkey has descended into authoritarianism, gradually and then all at once
The arrest of a political rival to Recep Tayyip Erdogan is the final step in his evolution from illiberal democrat to autocrat
www.theglobeandmail.com
March 25, 2025 at 5:14 PM
What a quote! Hard to watch what’s happening but @adnanrkhan.bsky.social aptly analyzes recent developments in #Turkey
It was a great pleasure to talk w/Sahil Warsi&Maureen Pritchard at the Society of Reluctant Anthropologists (#SORAPod) - also, what a great name! - about embodied knowledge, the question of communities whom we research with, questions of care, hope, mental health…
open.spotify.com/episode/7c83...
open.spotify.com/episode/7c83...
Summer Will Come w/ Annika Schmeding
SORAPOD · Episode
open.spotify.com
March 25, 2025 at 1:37 PM
It was a great pleasure to talk w/Sahil Warsi&Maureen Pritchard at the Society of Reluctant Anthropologists (#SORAPod) - also, what a great name! - about embodied knowledge, the question of communities whom we research with, questions of care, hope, mental health…
open.spotify.com/episode/7c83...
open.spotify.com/episode/7c83...
💫 ✨ I am thrilled to announce that my book "Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in #Afghanistan" @Stanfordpress.bsky.social has received the Charles H. Norchi Award by @royalasiaticsoc.bsky.social
Grateful to all Ustads who taught me&to all who supported the research&writing.
Grateful to all Ustads who taught me&to all who supported the research&writing.
We are pleased to award the inaugural Professor Charles H. Norchi Afghanistan Book Prize to Dr Annika Schmeding for her publication on the Sufi communities in Afghanistan. The prize honours the distinguished career of Prof. Charles Norchi (pictured below).
March 25, 2025 at 12:46 PM
💫 ✨ I am thrilled to announce that my book "Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in #Afghanistan" @Stanfordpress.bsky.social has received the Charles H. Norchi Award by @royalasiaticsoc.bsky.social
Grateful to all Ustads who taught me&to all who supported the research&writing.
Grateful to all Ustads who taught me&to all who supported the research&writing.
Grateful for the generous&generative review of my book Sufi Civilities (@stanfordpress.blsky.social ) by FatimaMojaddedi (in IJMES), who engages with what the book offers and where it shows new directions for further theorising and research
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan. Annika Schmeding (Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2023). Pp. 348. $130.00 cloth, $32.00 paper. ISBN 9781503637535 | I...
Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan. Annika Schmeding (Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2023). Pp. 348. 32.00 paper. ISBN 9781503637535
www.cambridge.org
March 10, 2025 at 1:41 PM
Grateful for the generous&generative review of my book Sufi Civilities (@stanfordpress.blsky.social ) by FatimaMojaddedi (in IJMES), who engages with what the book offers and where it shows new directions for further theorising and research
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
Reposted
A great anthro podcast episode where Dr. Annika Schmeding talks about "how contemporary urban Sufi communities in Afghanistan deal with violence & transition...and demonstrate resilience by creatively responding to & navigating historic shifts". 👏🎙️
*Podcast Alert* I had the extraordinary pleasure to discuss my book Sufi Civilities (@stanfordpress.bsky.social ) with the delightful @bcheves.bsky.social for @ajammc.bsky.social find our conversation on their website or Spotify #afghanistan #anthropology #sufism
***new podcast alert!***
@bcheves.bsky.social interviews @annikaschmeding.bsky.social about her first book, Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan (@stanfordpress.bsky.social, 2023). Listen here: ajammc.com/2025/03/03/a...
@bcheves.bsky.social interviews @annikaschmeding.bsky.social about her first book, Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan (@stanfordpress.bsky.social, 2023). Listen here: ajammc.com/2025/03/03/a...
March 6, 2025 at 3:10 AM
A great anthro podcast episode where Dr. Annika Schmeding talks about "how contemporary urban Sufi communities in Afghanistan deal with violence & transition...and demonstrate resilience by creatively responding to & navigating historic shifts". 👏🎙️
Reposted
this was such a wonderful interview to do!! I adored chatting with the extraordinarily brilliant and eloquent @annikaschmeding.bsky.social about her work -- listen (and read the book!!) to learn so much about the nuances of leadership and authority in Afghanistan's Sufi communities
***new podcast alert!***
@bcheves.bsky.social interviews @annikaschmeding.bsky.social about her first book, Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan (@stanfordpress.bsky.social, 2023). Listen here: ajammc.com/2025/03/03/a...
@bcheves.bsky.social interviews @annikaschmeding.bsky.social about her first book, Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan (@stanfordpress.bsky.social, 2023). Listen here: ajammc.com/2025/03/03/a...
March 5, 2025 at 3:27 PM
this was such a wonderful interview to do!! I adored chatting with the extraordinarily brilliant and eloquent @annikaschmeding.bsky.social about her work -- listen (and read the book!!) to learn so much about the nuances of leadership and authority in Afghanistan's Sufi communities
*Podcast Alert* I had the extraordinary pleasure to discuss my book Sufi Civilities (@stanfordpress.bsky.social ) with the delightful @bcheves.bsky.social for @ajammc.bsky.social find our conversation on their website or Spotify #afghanistan #anthropology #sufism
***new podcast alert!***
@bcheves.bsky.social interviews @annikaschmeding.bsky.social about her first book, Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan (@stanfordpress.bsky.social, 2023). Listen here: ajammc.com/2025/03/03/a...
@bcheves.bsky.social interviews @annikaschmeding.bsky.social about her first book, Sufi Civilities: Religious Authority and Political Change in Afghanistan (@stanfordpress.bsky.social, 2023). Listen here: ajammc.com/2025/03/03/a...
March 5, 2025 at 4:09 PM
*Podcast Alert* I had the extraordinary pleasure to discuss my book Sufi Civilities (@stanfordpress.bsky.social ) with the delightful @bcheves.bsky.social for @ajammc.bsky.social find our conversation on their website or Spotify #afghanistan #anthropology #sufism
Over 1,000 documents digitized and made available to researchers. Many openly readable for the first time in over 800 years since first written, in Persian in #Afghanistan, with quite a few translated into English by the Invisible East Team. Such as this relatable story:
We’ve all been given tasks by our seniors that weren’t quite in our job description 😩 Well, next time you're wading through your boss’s paperwork, just be grateful that the problem they dumped on your desk doesn’t also need feeding, cleaning and exercising... 🐎🧵
February 26, 2025 at 11:28 AM
Over 1,000 documents digitized and made available to researchers. Many openly readable for the first time in over 800 years since first written, in Persian in #Afghanistan, with quite a few translated into English by the Invisible East Team. Such as this relatable story:
Tomorrow! Looking forward to tomorrow's “Sufi Civilities” Book Talk at the Abu Sulayman Center for Global Islamic Studies at @georgemasonu.bsky.social . It's a Hybrid Event and Open to all. So, please join us!
#afghanistan #sufism #civilsociety
islamicstudiescenter.gmu.edu/events/16721
#afghanistan #sufism #civilsociety
islamicstudiescenter.gmu.edu/events/16721
February 19, 2025 at 5:41 PM
Tomorrow! Looking forward to tomorrow's “Sufi Civilities” Book Talk at the Abu Sulayman Center for Global Islamic Studies at @georgemasonu.bsky.social . It's a Hybrid Event and Open to all. So, please join us!
#afghanistan #sufism #civilsociety
islamicstudiescenter.gmu.edu/events/16721
#afghanistan #sufism #civilsociety
islamicstudiescenter.gmu.edu/events/16721
When people praise Canada as an immigration destination, this is the side they don’t see. Adnan Khan spent several years delving into the dark world of immigration consultants and their victims. #migration #canada #exploitation
thewalrus.ca/immigration-...
thewalrus.ca/immigration-...
“Guaranteed Jobs” That Don’t Exist: The Dark World of Immigration Consultants | The Walrus
Canada has an insatiable demand for cheap labour. Workers are being lured here with schemes and lies
thewalrus.ca
February 18, 2025 at 2:08 PM
When people praise Canada as an immigration destination, this is the side they don’t see. Adnan Khan spent several years delving into the dark world of immigration consultants and their victims. #migration #canada #exploitation
thewalrus.ca/immigration-...
thewalrus.ca/immigration-...
New #openaccess publication: “Where do nomads bury their dead? Necro-ostracism, statelessness, and the pastoral/peripatetic divide in #Afghanistan” Many thanks to the editors and interviewees who discussed the issues with me over the last decade. A short thread 🧵
February 17, 2025 at 5:21 PM
New #openaccess publication: “Where do nomads bury their dead? Necro-ostracism, statelessness, and the pastoral/peripatetic divide in #Afghanistan” Many thanks to the editors and interviewees who discussed the issues with me over the last decade. A short thread 🧵
This looks promising! Conference on Colonial Encounters and challenges of religious minorities between #Afghanistan, Central Asia and #Iran
Deadline 14.March
orient.cas.cz/en/news/Call...
Deadline 14.March
orient.cas.cz/en/news/Call...
February 7, 2025 at 9:03 PM
This looks promising! Conference on Colonial Encounters and challenges of religious minorities between #Afghanistan, Central Asia and #Iran
Deadline 14.March
orient.cas.cz/en/news/Call...
Deadline 14.March
orient.cas.cz/en/news/Call...
Reposted
‼️Fancy doing #Afghanistan-related research in beautiful Paris? 2 new job opps for PhD scholarships (Persian pre-modern mss) post-docs (open field). Historical #Khurasan included! bit.ly/42Mh9EB & bit.ly/3CAD86B. Deadlines: Mar & Apr 25 @Inalco @invisible_east
Contrat Post-doctoral/ Assistant de projet sur la thématique "Art, histoire et patrimoine de l'Afghanistan et de sa région" | Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales
bit.ly
February 4, 2025 at 1:11 PM
‼️Fancy doing #Afghanistan-related research in beautiful Paris? 2 new job opps for PhD scholarships (Persian pre-modern mss) post-docs (open field). Historical #Khurasan included! bit.ly/42Mh9EB & bit.ly/3CAD86B. Deadlines: Mar & Apr 25 @Inalco @invisible_east
Join us for the Workshop next week “Politics of Manhood: Martyrs, mystics and merchants" at ISS of Erasmus University Rotterdam organised by Dr. Saad Ali to explore the construction of masculinities at the intersection of religion, violence, commerce, politics and power.
www.iss.nl/en/events/po...
www.iss.nl/en/events/po...
February 3, 2025 at 4:39 PM
Join us for the Workshop next week “Politics of Manhood: Martyrs, mystics and merchants" at ISS of Erasmus University Rotterdam organised by Dr. Saad Ali to explore the construction of masculinities at the intersection of religion, violence, commerce, politics and power.
www.iss.nl/en/events/po...
www.iss.nl/en/events/po...
Thanks @aanafgh.bsky.social for reviewing "Sufi Civilities" @stanfordpress.bsky.social. Christian Bleuer concluded that "Sufi Civilities will remain for decades a mandatory (English-language) text for understanding the role of Islam in Afghanistan."
www.afghanistan-analysts.org/en/reports/c...
www.afghanistan-analysts.org/en/reports/c...
Recommended Reads from AAN Writers: The poetry of peace, magical realism in Logar, class in Nuristan, Sufis
We thought we would start 2025 by asking AAN writers and friends to recommend books about Afghanistan. Their choices are eclectic, ranging across the academic and journalistic, memoirs and fiction, bo...
www.afghanistan-analysts.org
January 26, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Thanks @aanafgh.bsky.social for reviewing "Sufi Civilities" @stanfordpress.bsky.social. Christian Bleuer concluded that "Sufi Civilities will remain for decades a mandatory (English-language) text for understanding the role of Islam in Afghanistan."
www.afghanistan-analysts.org/en/reports/c...
www.afghanistan-analysts.org/en/reports/c...
Reposted
⭐ Call for Submissions! ⭐
Anthropology That Breaks Your Heart
Due Feb 14, 2025
An invitation to reflect on the challenges & insights of contending w/mental illness, disability, chronic illness, & neurodivergence as an anthropologist #AnthroSky #anthropology
americanethnologist.org/news/call-fo...
Anthropology That Breaks Your Heart
Due Feb 14, 2025
An invitation to reflect on the challenges & insights of contending w/mental illness, disability, chronic illness, & neurodivergence as an anthropologist #AnthroSky #anthropology
americanethnologist.org/news/call-fo...
Call for Proposals: Anthropology That Breaks Your Heart - American Ethnological Society
In The Vulnerable Observer, anthropologist Ruth Behar notes “anthropology that doesn't break your heart just isn't worth doing anymore.” The theoretical
americanethnologist.org
January 13, 2025 at 3:45 PM
⭐ Call for Submissions! ⭐
Anthropology That Breaks Your Heart
Due Feb 14, 2025
An invitation to reflect on the challenges & insights of contending w/mental illness, disability, chronic illness, & neurodivergence as an anthropologist #AnthroSky #anthropology
americanethnologist.org/news/call-fo...
Anthropology That Breaks Your Heart
Due Feb 14, 2025
An invitation to reflect on the challenges & insights of contending w/mental illness, disability, chronic illness, & neurodivergence as an anthropologist #AnthroSky #anthropology
americanethnologist.org/news/call-fo...