About

I research and teach in the Department of Race, Diaspora, and Indigeneity at the University of Chicago. I grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan and received my B.A. in Political Science and Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor before completing an A.M. in Middle Eastern Studies at Harvard University. In 2020, I earned my Ph.D. in Islamic Studies at UNC Chapel Hill and taught at Ithaca College as an assistant professor until 2023. I have language training in Arabic (AUC in Egypt, the Noor Majan Institute in Oman), Urdu (American Institute of Indian Studies in Lucknow), and am a native speaker of Bangla. My family and I currently live on the lands of the Kiikaapoi (Kickapoo), Peoria, Bodéwadmiakiwen (Potawatomi), Miami, and Oceti Šakówiη (Sioux) peoples in Chicago. My pronouns are she/her.

You can reach me at samah@uchicago.edu. Find me in person at the annual conferences for the American Academy of Religion, the American Studies Association, and the Association of Asian American Studies.