Academic Bio
Sami Jiryis Sweis is a PhD candidate in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations where he studies the Modern Middle East. He received a BA in History and Government from Centre College in Danville, KY in 2010 and completed a MA in Middle Eastern Studies from the Center for Middle Eastern Studies (CMES) at the University of Chicago in 2012. His dissertation analyzes how the political milieu of the Ottoman Hijaz in the 19th century led to the 1916 Arab Revolt from the perspective of the politics of the Hashemite family and Arabist thinkers. His other research includes the formation of Mandate of Transjordan and the history of non-Muslim populations in the Middle East. Currently, he is an instructor in the University of Chicago Graham School Continuing Liberal and Professional Studies where he teaches a variety of classes pertaining to topics of the Middle East.