How do different generations of Muslims understand what it means to be a Muslim in the UK? Can we talk about a British Muslim experience? If so, with what generation does it start? What kinds of everyday religious expressions bind British Muslims to each other and make them different from non-British Muslims? What do the experiences of British Muslims across the generations reveal about the relationship between migration and localization, especially with regard to diverse religious communities who come together and form distinct minority groups within society?
This is a collaboration between University of Cambridge Divinity Faculty and the Everyday Muslim Heritage and Archive Initiative. As part of this project, a PhD researcher will investigate expressions of Islam in the everyday lives of past or present Muslims in the UK. The project will utilize existing audio-visual archival material housed at the Everyday Muslim Project, as well as collecting additional information from three generations of Muslims from different families in the UK. This will be a unique opportunity to understand how the lived experience of being Muslim in the UK has changed through the generations. It will make a significant contribution to our understanding of the rich but understudied lived experience of Islam in the UK, as well as providing new insights into how religious expression creates cultural, ethnic, and citizenship ties.
The project is funded by the Open-Oxford-Cambridge Doctoral Training Partnership and the AHRC.
For more information, see this page or contact Professor Esra Özyürek.