Former Members Receive ERC Synergy Grant for "The European Qur'an"

Two former Members in the School of Historical Studies, Mercedes García-Arenal (1988–89) and Roberto Tottoli (2016–17), are part of a research team that has been awarded a 2018 ERC Synergy Grant.

Their project, "The European Qur'an," takes a critical look at how the Muslim holy book is embedded in the intellectual cultures of Medieval and Early Modern Christians, European Jews, free-thinkers, atheists, and European Muslims. The project will be highly interdisciplinary, and a creative multimedia exhibition is planned.

The project is a continuation of Tottoli's work at IAS, which focused on the history of the editing and printing of the Qur'an, especially in Europe. Tottoli contributed an article on the subject to the Spring 2017 Institute Letter, available here.

ERC Synergy Grants are designed to bring small groups of lead researchers together to take advantage of their complementary skills, knowledge, and resources to address research problems at the frontiers of knowledge.

Read more at the European Research Council.