Farhan Nizami
Farhan Nizami CBE, is the Prince of Wales Fellow in the study of the Islamic World, Magdalen College, Oxford, and the Founder Director of the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies. He read Modern History at Wadham College. From 1983 he has been a Fellow of St Cross College: Rothman’s Fellow in Muslim History, subsequently Fellow in Islamic Studies, and currently Emeritus Fellow. He is a member of the Faculties of History and Oriental Studies at the University of Oxford. He is Founder Editor of the Journal of Islamic Studies (OUP, 1990-); Series Editor, Makers of Islamic Civilization (OUP, 2004-). He specializes in Muslim social and intellectual history.
Farhan Nizami is the youngest of five children of the late Khaliq Nizami, one time Vice Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University, and of the late Razia Nizami. Farhan Nizami himself attended the Aligarh Muslim University, and in 1977 was awarded a BA Hons degree in History (1st Class), followed two years later by an MA degree (1st Class). He was awarded the University Medal, and the Khursheed Nurul Hasan Gold Medal in 1977. He was a National Scholar at the Centre for Advanced Study in History (1977–79) and the recipient of the University Medal in 1979. With the award of an Oxford Overseas Scholarship, Nizami came up to Wadham College, completing his DPhil degree in 1983. During 1982 – 83 he was elected to the Frere Exhibition.
Nizami is the Chairman of the Academic Council of Wilton Park, U.K; Member, Academic Committee, Cumberland Lodge, U.K; Member, Steering Committee C-100, World Economic Forum, Davos (2004–2007); Member, International Advisory Panel, World Islamic Economic Forum, Malaysia (2004 – 08); Member, Council of the Al-Falah Programme, University of California, Berkeley (2000–2005); Member, Advisory Board, Duke University’s Islamic Studies Centre; Member of the Court of Oxford Brookes University; Member, Christian Muslim Forum (2005–09); Patron, Oxford Amnesty Lectures; Director, Oxford Inspires, (2002-3); Member, Advisory Board, Dialogues Project, World Policy institute, New School University, NY (2003 - ); Governor, Magdalen College School, Oxford (2005 - )
In 2006 Nizami was made Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to Islamic studies. He has been awarded the Class IV Order of the Crown (Brunei).