Language-Based Area Studies

The Language-Based Area Studies (LBAS) Pathway is offered at Durham and Newcastle Universities and includes three strands in Arab Studies (offered at Durham) and Asian Studies and Iberian-American Studies (both offered at Newcastle).

The Language-Based Area Studies (LBAS) Pathway is offered at Durham University via the School of Government & International Affairs (Institute for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies) in collaboration with the School of Modern Languages and Cultures, which delivers Arabic language training; and at Newcastle University via the School of Modern Languages (East Asian Studies and Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies sections).

Across the two institutions, students following the Language-Based Area Studies (LBAS) Pathway engage with research that is conceptually rooted, theoretically innovative and empirically rigorous. In each institution, our research has research-user impacts, and we have significant global academic impact as well.

Inter-disciplinarity

The Language-Based Area Studies (LBAS) pathway is inherently inter-disciplinary, and both previous and current studentships have involved interactions and cross-fertilisations between distinct social science disciplines as well as between the social sciences and the humanities.

In the Arab Studies strand, we offer expertise in the following thematic areas: Arab, Israeli, Turkish and Iranian politics; Middle Eastern and North African international relations; regional security studies; the politics of identity, ethnicity, religion and diaspora; youth and youth policy; social movements and the politics of resistance; political Islam and Islamist political thought; gender and society; and regional political economy. Our students to date have been guided by inter-disciplinary teams of supervisors hailing from Middle Eastern political science, political economy, international relations and Muslim political thought.

In the Asian Studies strand, we offer expertise in the following thematic areas: identities; ethnicity, nationalism and borders; inter-ethnic relations; social protest and resistance; Uyghur / Xinjiang studies; Islamic revivalism; critical security studies; critical terrorism studies (including state terrorism); genocide studies; diaspora studies; transnational film studies; independent documentary film-making; audience/reception studies; language rights and language policy; gender and sexuality studies; transmediality; media representation studies; popular culture studies; world politics (including environmental politics); modernity studies; cross-cultural studies; built heritage, urban conservation, and sustainable urban development; and geospatial technology and urban governance. Our students to date have been guided by inter-disciplinary teams of supervisors hailing from Chinese area studies, social anthropology, political science, political geography, media studies, sociology and law.

In the Iberian-American Studies strand, we offer expertise in the following thematic areas: popular culture studies; nation, nationalism and state formation; conflict and conflict resolution; climate crisis and the Amazon; climate activism; gender relations and sexual diversity; indigenous knowledge and decolonial thought; popular education; race, ethnicity and religion; politics of everyday life; inequality; language ideologies; youth cultures; social movements; participatory democracy; urban studies; and sustainable development. Our students to date have been guided by inter-disciplinary teams of supervisors hailing from Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American area studies, politics, sociology and geography.

Across the three strands, we have supervised students using a wide range of methods, both qualitative and quantitative, including ethnography, interviews and focus groups, observation, and textual and discourse analysis. We anticipate that students may when appropriate spend significant periods of time in the field.

Research Environment

Both institutions are engaged in a variety of exciting activities linked to research and are committed to promoting engagement and impact beyond the academy. We therefore offer a rich research environment in which our PhD students can thrive. Durham University hosts the Institute for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, while Newcastle University hosts the Asian Studies Research Group and the Centre for Latin American and Caribbean Studies. Newcastle is also home to the Chinese Independent Film Archive (CIFA), which holds a large and rare collection of films and footage, their associated material culture, publications on Chinese independent cinema in English and Chinese, and oral history material.

Enquiries

If you are interested in submitting an application to any of the three strands of the Language-Based Area Studies (LBAS) Pathway, please contact the named person below for the strand that you’re interested in joining:

Arab Studies: Professor Emma Murphy (Institute for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, Durham University): [email protected]

Asian Studies: Dr Joanne Smith Finley (East Asian Studies section, School of Modern Languages, Newcastle University): [email protected]

Iberian-American Studies: Dr Nick Morgan (Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies, School of Modern Languages, Newcastle University): [email protected]