About the Author

Ali Riaz is an associate professor and the chair of the department of politics and government at Illinois State University. Previously, he worked for the BBC World Service as a producer and senior broadcast journalist.

Reviews

"At a time when attention is riveted on unearthing the networks of 'Islamic terror,' wherever they might be found, there is much to be said about doing a historically nuanced study of madrassahs in the South Asian subcontinent. There has been no in-depth scholarly work tracing the social, political, and intellectual history of madrassahs in South Asia - until now." - Ayesha Jalal, professor of history, Tufts University"