Disenchanting the Caliphate
The Secular Discipline of Power in Abbasid Political Thought
The political thought of Muslim societies is all too often defined in religious terms, in which the writings of clerics are seen as representative and ideas about governance are treated as an extension of commentary on sacred texts. “Disenchanting the Caliphate” offers a groundbreaking new account of political discourse in Islamic history by examining Abbasid imperial practice, illuminating the emergence and influence of a vibrant secular tradition.
Dream Town
Shaker Heights and the Quest for Racial Equity
Can a group of well-intentioned people fulfill the promise of racial integration in America?
Olin Library exhibits second original Declaration of Independence
A second broadside of the Declaration of Independence is now on view at Olin Library.
An 80-year odyssey of repatriation and repair
Jewish books stolen by Nazis during World War II are returned to Prague — by way of Washington University Libraries.
Codes of Modernity
Chinese Scripts in the Global Information Age
In the late nineteenth century, Chinese reformers and revolutionaries believed that there was something fundamentally wrong with the Chinese writing system. The Chinese characters, they argued, were too cumbersome to learn, blocking the channels of communication, obstructing mass literacy, and impeding scientific progress. What had sustained a civilization for more than two millennia was suddenly […]
‘The battle for memory’
Sowande M. Mustakeem discusses her seminar “Medicine, Healing and Experimentation in the Contours of Black History” and the importance of grappling with traumatic history.
Faculty named to American Academy of Arts & Sciences
Four faculty members of Washington University in St. Louis were elected members of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, the academy announced April 19. They are Jean Allman, Scott J. Hultgren, Tristram R. Kidder and Lilianna Solnica-Krezel.
Hamilton: A gateway to early American policy and politics
When Peter Kastor needed a topic for a seminar that teaches history majors how to be historians, he chose history’s man of the moment: Alexander Hamilton.
Shining a light on Black women physicians
From the Civil War to the 21st century, Black women have fought to become physicians. A new book by Jasmine Brown, AB ’18, tells the story of the barriers Black women pursuing a career in medicine have faced throughout history.
Twice as Hard
The Stories of Black Women Who Fought to Become Physicians, from the Civil War to the 21st Century
Black women physicians’ stories have gone untold for far too long, leaving gaping holes in American medical history, in women’s history, and in black history. It’s time to set the record straight.
Older Stories