The IIS is pleased to announce the publication of Fortresses of the Intellect: Ismaili and Other Islamic Studies in Honour of Farhad Daftary, edited by Dr Omar Alí-de-Unzaga. This volume is dedicated to the achievements of Dr Farhad Daftary, a leading authority on Ismaili Studies and eminent scholar of Islamic history. Educated in Iran, Europe and the United States, Dr Daftary received his doctorate from the University of California at Berkeley in 1971. He has held different academic positions over the course of his career, and since 1988 he has been affiliated with The Institute of Ismaili Studies, where he is currently the Co-Director and Head of the Department of Academic Research and Publications.
This volume brings together a number of studies on intellectual and political history, particularly in the three areas where Dr Farhad Daftary’s scholarship has had a great impact – Ismaili Studies, Persian Studies and the wider context of Shi‘i Studies. It contains a biographical essay on his life, including his background, education, interest in Ismaili studies and involvement with the IIS. The volume also contains an exhaustive bibliography of his works to date. The title Fortresses of the Intellect reflects one of the underlying motifs in Ismaili history and thought - the importance of the intellect as a central facet of faith.
Intended as a volume of reference containing the most recent research in Ismaili Studies and other related fields, the publication focuses on the intellectual contributions of the Ismailis and their role in broader Islamic history. It includes discussions on subjects ranging from early Ismaili texts to thinkers of the Fatimid and Alamut eras in Ismaili history. The volume also focuses more broadly on Persian contributions to Islamic culture and the presence of the Central Asian Turks and the Franks in Muslim territories, such as Syria, Persia and Iraq, as well as Shi‘i thought in the Safavid era and other topics related to religion, history and language. The volume also contains resources such as a comprehensive index of subjects and terms, a general bibliography and a historical map.The contributors include some of the best-known contemporary scholars in the fields of Ismaili, broader Shi‘i and Islamic Studies, many of whom have worked with Dr Daftary during his career. These include Iraj Afshar, Hamid Algar, Mohammad Ali Amir-Moezzi, Carmela Baffioni, C. Edmund Bosworth, Delia Cortese, Patricia Crone, Daniel De Smet, Abbas Hamdani, Carole Hillenbrand, Alice Hunsberger, István Hajnal, Hermann Landolt, Leonard Lewisohn, Wilferd Madelung, Andrew J. Newman, Ismail K. Poonawala and Paul E. Walker.