Faculty/Department: Humanities/Asien-Afrika-Institut
Seminar/Institute: Vorderer Orient/Islamic Studies
Pending approval of external funding, Universität Hamburg invites applications for a Research Associate for the project “The Early Islamic Empire at Work – The View from the Regions Toward the Center” in accordance with section 28 subsection 3 of the Hamburg Higher Education Act (Hamburgisches Hochschulgesetz, HmbHG). The position commences on July 1, 2016.
It is remunerated at the salary level TV-L 13 and calls for 50 % of standard work hours per week (Full-time positions currently comprise 39 hours per week).
The fixed-term nature of this contract is based upon section 2 of the Academic Fixed-Term Labor Contract Act (Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz, WissZeitVG). The term is fixed for a period of two-years, terminating on April 30, 2018, with the possibility of an extension until March 31, 2019.
The university aims to increase the number of women in research and teaching and explicitly encourages women to apply. Equally qualified female applicants will receive preference in accordance with the Hamburg Equality Act (Hamburgisches Gleichstellungsgesetz, HmbGleiG).
Responsibilities: Duties include academic services in the project named above. Research associates can also pursue independent research and further academic qualifications.
Specific Duties: The project studies the political and economic workings of the Islamic Empire (660 – 940 CE), which stretches over almost the entire Hellenistic-Roman world from the Atlantic to the Hindukush. It is the first systematic attempt to explain the functioning of the empire from its regions and the brokering and management abilities of the caliphate and its various elites in order to understand the empire’s rise and failure. The project looks at five key regions, North Africa, Syria, Jazira, Fars, and Khurasan. The project has four phases: establishing political chronologies, regional and imperial elites, regional economies; finally, these layers will be connected.
The successful applicant will concentrate on the key region Ifriqiya – focusing on its elite structure and economic resources – within the project team, using the same methodological approaches.
Requirements: A university degree in a relevant field of Middle Eastern history and culture. Excellent knowledge of Arabic, English, and French. The knowledge of further languages relevant for the study of North Africa, such as Spanish, is advantageous. Experience in working with archaeological, numismatic, material, and geographical sources is welcome but not a requirement. The applicant should be willing to conduct doctoral studies in a field relevant to the region and the ERC project.
Severely disabled applicants will receive preference over equally qualified non-disabled applicants.
For further information, please contact Prof. Stefan Heidemann, Tel. +49 (40) 42838 3181, stefan.heidemann@uni-hamburg.de, or consult our website at https://www.islamicempire.uni-hamburg.de/.
Applications should include a cover letter, curriculum vitae, and copies of degree certificate(s), publication list, and two references. The application deadline is May 15, 2016. Please send applications to: Stefan.heidemann@uni-hamburg.de
