Oral History Project

Overview Research

Our Research

There is a multipronged approach to research at the IIS Oral History Project.

Firstly, the project employs oral history as a research methodology with the objective of documenting the distinct histories, traditions, and languages of the global Ismaili communities. This endeavour entails conducting recorded interviews with elders selected based on criteria such as age, knowledge, and involvement within their respective communities, utilising a life story approach.

Interviewers are drawn from community institutions such as ITREBs, as well as from among IIS alumni, graduate students, volunteers, and independent research consultants as needed. Prior to conducting interviews, interviewers undergo a comprehensive training module.
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A young Dr Farouk Topan (fourth from left), one of the founding faculty members of the IIS and Professor Emeritus of the Aga Khan University, standing with the members of the managing committee of His Highness Aga Khan Shia Imami Ismaili Youth League in Zanzibar. The photo was taken on 28 February 1957 after a literary meeting. Dr Topan was interviewed for the Oral History Project in April 2022. Image credit: Dr Farouk Topan.
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Islamuddin (widely known as Khalifa Maseeh), 97, in Duikar Valley, Altit Hunza, Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. He was interviewed for the project in September 2022. Image Credit: Karamat Ali.
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Sadruddin Fattoum from Syria, an alumnus of the IIS’s class of 1987 Waezeen Training and Education Programme, now a scholar based in the UK, being interviewed at the Ismaili Centre, London, in November 2022 by Rizwan Karim, the IIS’s Oral History Coordinator. Image credit: Urooj.

Secondly, the primary outcome of this initiative is a digital archive designed to offer various levels of access to a meticulously catalogued compilation of interviews and associated materials. This archive facilitates access for researchers and graduate students both within and beyond the Institute, aiding them in their research endeavours.

In addition to the archive, diverse accessible outputs including articles, blog posts, podcasts, and other educational materials are generated utilising digitised memorabilia from recorded interviews and materials sourced from our collections at the ISCU.

Our activities