Shiʿism and Myth: Terminology and its Burdens

11 May 2026 • 09:00 PDT / 12:00 EDT / 17:00 BST / 18:00 CEST

The Shiʿi Studies Network is excited to announce a new lecture series, Reflections on Shiʿi Studies. The series aims to act as a forum for scholars working on the academic study of Shiʿi Islam to reflect on the state and fate of the field. Over the past few decades, scholarship on Shiʿism has grown significantly, with major contributions reshaping our understanding of the history and development of Shiʿi Islam from its emergence until the present day. However, dominant analytical frameworks still often reflect reductive assumptions, shaped by sectarian or minority-status framings. This series brings together leading scholars to critically reflect on these dynamics, share insights from their respective areas of focus, and propose new methodological and conceptual approaches to move the field forward.

Join us for the next instalment of this ongoing lecture series where we will be joined by George Warner, Research Fellow at the Institute of Ismaili Studies.

The lecture will be held online over Zoom. To join, please register here and you will receive a link to join. You will need to register to attend the lecture. For those having difficulty registering with their institutional accounts, please use your personal email address to register instead. If you are still having difficulties, please get in touch.

George Warner

George Warner

Research Fellow
Institute of Ismaili Studies

George Warner studied Assyriology, Arabic and Islamic studies at the University of Cambridge before completing his PhD at SOAS in 2017. He has published peer-reviewed articles on topics including Sunni-Shiʿi relations, hadith, ritual, and devotional literature in Arabic and Persian, and his first book, ‘The Words of the Imams: al-Shaykh al-Saduq and the Development of Twelver Shi’i Hadith Literature’, was published in 2021 by I. B. Tauris. Prior to arriving at the IIS, he held positions at SOAS, Exeter, and Ruhr-Universität Bochum in Germany.

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