Richard T. Antoun

Richard T. Antoun (1932-2009) was Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at the State University of New York at Binghamton. A Fulbright scholar and past president of the Middle East Studies Association, he had taught at Indiana University, Manchester University, England, and as visiting professor at the American University of Beirut, Cairo University, and the University of Chicago. On the basis of extensive field research in Jordan and Iran, Antoun wrote three books: Arab Village: A Social Structural Study of a Transjordanian Peasant Community, Low-Key Politics: Local-Level Leadership and Change in the Middle East, and Muslim Preacher in the Modern World. His latest book, Understanding Fundamentalism: Christian, Islamic and Jewish Movements, was reprinted in a second edition and featured a new chapter on the transnational aspects of fundamentalism since 9/11 including the connections/misconnections between religion and violence and featuring a segment on Afghanistan and Osama bin Laden.