Professor Dr. Delwar Hussain

Biography

Delwar Hussain is a social anthropologist whose work explores the intersections of history, politics, and lived realities in South Asia. His research delves into themes such as religion, gender, urban life, and the dynamics of tolerance and intolerance. Delwar earned his PhD from the University of Cambridge in 2011 and joined the University of Edinburgh in 2013. His doctoral research resulted in the acclaimed monograph 'Boundaries Undermined: Ruins of Progress on the Bangladesh-India Border' (2013, Hurst Oxford University Press). The book has been widely discussed and reviewed, with features on BBC Radio 4’s 'Thinking Allowed'. Delwar's narrative perspective as a London-born anthropologist returning to Bangladesh following his father's death weaves together political unrest and climate crises with deeply personal reckonings of identity, loss, and belonging. He teaches and supervises both undergraduate and postgraduate courses, addressing topics such as Social Anthropology, Ritual Religion, Ethnographic Methods, and Sex, Gender & Politics, and is a pioneer of the undergraduate course 'Introduction to Queer Studies' at the University of Edinburgh. Beyond academia, Delwar is committed to public scholarship, contributing to platforms like The Guardian and has expertise that informs television and film productions.

Research Interests

Courses