Phone: (626) 815-6000, Ext. 3369
Email: kwerthmuller@apu.edu
Office Location: Ronald Building 118
Office Hours: By appointment
Kurt Werthmuller, M.A.
Assistant Professor, Department of History and Political Science
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Profile
Kurt Werthmuller, M.A., is an assistant professor of History at APU and a historian of the Middle East, with a specialization in medieval Islam as well as a variety of interests in the modern Middle East (Israel/Palestine, Egypt, Syria/Lebanon, Arabic language and literature). His current research is focusing on Coptic identity Ayyubid Egypt, for which he was a Fulbright-Hays fellow in Egypt in 2004-05.
Werthmuller has lived and traveled extensively in the Middle East, including nearly four years in Egypt for academic and humanitarian pursuits, a number of academic visits to Syria, and most recently, three weeks in Israel and the Palestinian West Bank for a local workshop and personal travel related to the Arab-Israeli conflict. He has a passion for promoting understanding and respect between Western and Middle Eastern peoples, and for the peaceful, just resolution of regional tensions which respect the rights and traditions of all communities involved.
Outside of his research interests in the medieval and contemporary Middle East, Werthmuller is a film buff, a connoisseur of spicy foods, and a proud father to his daughter, Sophia Lily, with his wife, Florence.
Werthmuller has lived and traveled extensively in the Middle East, including nearly four years in Egypt for academic and humanitarian pursuits, a number of academic visits to Syria, and most recently, three weeks in Israel and the Palestinian West Bank for a local workshop and personal travel related to the Arab-Israeli conflict. He has a passion for promoting understanding and respect between Western and Middle Eastern peoples, and for the peaceful, just resolution of regional tensions which respect the rights and traditions of all communities involved.
Outside of his research interests in the medieval and contemporary Middle East, Werthmuller is a film buff, a connoisseur of spicy foods, and a proud father to his daughter, Sophia Lily, with his wife, Florence.
Education
M.A. - Harvard University, 2002
B.A. - Messiah College, 1995
B.A. - Messiah College, 1995
Professional/Scholarly Presentations
Presentations
Werthmuller, Kurt. "The Many Faces of Egypt: Humor, Folktales, and Music," presented at "Egypt: Intersection of East and West," for the Pittsburgh-area Consortium of Educational Resources on Islamic Studies (CERIS) and the Global Studies Program, University of Pittsburgh, 2007
Werthmuller, Kurt. "Converts as Mediators of Medieval Coptic Identity, 969-1250 C.E." paper presented for the Faith and History Conference at Gordon College, Boston, 2006
Werthmuller, Kurt. "Bridging the Divide Between Arab and American Cultures," Cross-cultural workshop given for the Arabic Evangelical Church of Boston, 2004
Werthmuller, Kurt. "Beards, Belly Dancers, and Ballot Boxes: Why Egypt Remains the Place to Watch," lecture for public lecture series at Pennsulvania State, McKeesport, 2006
Publications
Werthmuller, Kurt. "The Extraordinary Ordinariness of Ibn Khaldun: The Great Medieval Islamic Historian in Context." Historically Speaking, Vol. 8, 3, (2007): 22-24.
Werthmuller, Kurt. Review of Napoleon in Egypt. Middle East Studies Association Bulletin, Vol. 39, 2, (2005).
Werthmuller, Kurt. Review of A Troubled History and Whose Land? Whose Promise? What Christians Are Not Being Told about Israel and the Palestinians. Christian Reflection, April, (2005): 84-88.
Werthmuller, Kurt. Review of "Challenges Facing Muslim-Christian Relations in Central Asia." Routledge Asian Studies, April, (2007).
Werthmuller, Kurt. "In-Between Spaces: Coptic Identity in Medieval Egypt," lecture given for the History of Comparative Religions Lecture Series, American University in Cairo, 2005
Werthmuller, Kurt. "The Many Faces of Egypt: Humor, Folktales, and Music," presented at "Egypt: Intersection of East and West," for the Pittsburgh-area Consortium of Educational Resources on Islamic Studies (CERIS) and the Global Studies Program, University of Pittsburgh, 2007
Werthmuller, Kurt. "Converts as Mediators of Medieval Coptic Identity, 969-1250 C.E." paper presented for the Faith and History Conference at Gordon College, Boston, 2006
Werthmuller, Kurt. "Bridging the Divide Between Arab and American Cultures," Cross-cultural workshop given for the Arabic Evangelical Church of Boston, 2004
Werthmuller, Kurt. "Beards, Belly Dancers, and Ballot Boxes: Why Egypt Remains the Place to Watch," lecture for public lecture series at Pennsulvania State, McKeesport, 2006
Publications
Werthmuller, Kurt. "The Extraordinary Ordinariness of Ibn Khaldun: The Great Medieval Islamic Historian in Context." Historically Speaking, Vol. 8, 3, (2007): 22-24.
Werthmuller, Kurt. Review of Napoleon in Egypt. Middle East Studies Association Bulletin, Vol. 39, 2, (2005).
Werthmuller, Kurt. Review of A Troubled History and Whose Land? Whose Promise? What Christians Are Not Being Told about Israel and the Palestinians. Christian Reflection, April, (2005): 84-88.
Werthmuller, Kurt. Review of "Challenges Facing Muslim-Christian Relations in Central Asia." Routledge Asian Studies, April, (2007).
Werthmuller, Kurt. "In-Between Spaces: Coptic Identity in Medieval Egypt," lecture given for the History of Comparative Religions Lecture Series, American University in Cairo, 2005
Professional Experience
Consulting Engagements
Member, search committee for the visiting professorship in Contemporary International Issues (Middle East), Global Studies Program, University of Pittsburgh, 2007
Member, institutional representative, and advisor to the Pittsburgh-area Consortium for Educational Resources in Islamic Studies/CERIS, 2007.
Member, search committee for the visiting professorship in Contemporary International Issues (Middle East), Global Studies Program, University of Pittsburgh, 2007
Member, institutional representative, and advisor to the Pittsburgh-area Consortium for Educational Resources in Islamic Studies/CERIS, 2007.
Professional Involvement and Accomplishments
Honors, Awards, Recognition
Fulbright-Hays Fellow, Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Program, 2004-05
Research Fellow, American University in Cairo, Department of Arabic Studies, 2004
Full-tuition graduate fellowship recipient, UC Santa Barbara, Department of History, 2002-03
Associations, Boards, Committees
Member of the Middle East Studies Association of North America, 1999-present
Fulbright-Hays Fellow, Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Program, 2004-05
Research Fellow, American University in Cairo, Department of Arabic Studies, 2004
Full-tuition graduate fellowship recipient, UC Santa Barbara, Department of History, 2002-03
Associations, Boards, Committees
Member of the Middle East Studies Association of North America, 1999-present
Expertise
Coptic Christianity
Fatimid and Ayyubid Egypt (969-1250 CE)
Nationalism and Identity in the Modern Middle East
Non-Muslims Communities of the Medieval and Modern Middle East
Social and Political Systems of the Medieval Islamic World
The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Special Interests and Activities
Participant, First Annual Workshop on the Arab-Israeli Conflict, 12-day academic tour and lecture series, hosted by the S. Daniel Abraham Center for International and Regional Studies, Tel Aviv University, Israel, June, 2006
Part-time instructor, HIS 195: Topics - The Middle East and Modernity, included co-leading a 40-day summer study abroad course of 19 students through Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Turkey, Westmont College, Santa Barbara, 2004
Part-time instructor, HIS 195: Topics - The Middle East and Modernity, included co-leading a 40-day summer study abroad course of 19 students through Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Turkey, Westmont College, Santa Barbara, 2004
Note: This information is current for the 2007-08 academic year. For additional information, please contact the appropriate office.
