Biography
I and my three sisters were raised by a military officer father and educator mother, at air force bases and other places across the U.S. and abroad. The experience gave me an enduring appreciation for pluralism and cross-cultural and interfaith encounters.
When I am not working, or even when I am, I like to listen to music, especially Paul Simon and world music of all kinds. (I recently wrote a review of Paul Simon's new album, Seven Psalms.)I also like to play the piano and write music, watch Detroit Tigers baseball, and sip strong coffee. My wife Sandy and I have four terrific adult children, and one grandchild. We enjoy traveling to see them, in long road trips with our teardrop camper.
Education
- B.A., History, Western Michigan University
- M.A., History, Indiana University
- Ph.D., Uralic and Altaic Studies, Indiana University
Academic Interests
My research field is the history of the Ottoman Empire. My book A History of the Ottoman Empire was published by Cambridge in 2017. In the book I used the main theme of the Ottoman worldview to write about how humans cope with calamity, suffering, and the passage of time.
Right now I am working with my colleague Géza Dávid of the University of Budapest to finish our critical edition and English translation of an Ottoman text from 1609 called Regulations of the Ottoman Dynasty, about how the Ottoman provincial cavalry worked.
Although I am retired officially, I do still teach a course now and then. I will teach REL 353, “Islam,” in the first half of the spring 2024 semester, and the same course in May in the Calvin Prison Initiative.
Publications
