A man walking in Kashgar, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China. Photo: Bruno Vanbesien, Flickr.
A core choice faced by scholars in their methodological approach to studying the Middle East is whether to adopt a micro or macro approach. As with all methodological choices, each approach can be understood as a lens through which to observe a single reality, where a macro approach highlights large-scale systemic processes while a micro approach reveals small-scale local processes.
This project aimed to develop a multidisciplinary relational methodology to studying the Middle East, which bridges the divide between macro and micro approaches. This relational methodology was applied to two in-depth case studies, one historical and one contemporary. The project was not completed.
Case Study 1: Imperial State Formation in Iraq (1914–1926)
This case study examined imperial state formation in Iraq between 1914–1926. It sought to elucidate the imperial process through which the Iraqi state was established by Britain in Iraq. Specifically, this case study examined the relationship between Britain’s attempts to suppress anti-colonial struggles in Iraq and the type of state that was established.
Case Study 2: The Domestic and Transnational Migratory Routes of Chinese Muslims into the Arabian Gulf
Over the last decade, China has become the second largest trading partner of the UAE and an increasingly important strategic player in the MENA region. While these macro politico-economic shifts are vitally important to understanding China–UAE bilateral relations, they tell us little about the rich flows of Chinese migrants between China and the UAE, and how these migrants facilitate these macro changes whilst navigating between these two spaces. This project examined the global rise of China in the Arabian Gulf through studying of the role of a transnational network of Chinese Muslim entrepreneurs in the UAE. Adopting a relational approach, this study examined how Chinese Muslim transnationals negotiate multiple identities through their involvements in various entrepreneurial and professional networks between China and the UAE.
This project formed part of the Academic Collaboration with Arab Universities Programme, funded by the Emirates Foundation.
Project Outputs
Research Team
Aula Hariri | Principal Investigator
Aula was a Research Officer working on the Historical Sociology of the Middle East, building on her thesis which examined the role of the Iraqi Independence Movement on state formation in Iraq.
Yuting Wang | Co-Principal Investigator
Yuting is Associate Professor at the American University of Sharjah. Her research mainly focuses on immigrant Muslims in the United States, Chinese Muslims, and the changing worldviews and values among young adults in the UAE.