Headshot of Ariela Marcus-Sells

Ariela Marcus-Sells

Associate Professor of Religious Studies

Department: Religious Studies

Office and address: Spence Pavilion-Religion/Phil., Office 211 2340 Campus Box Elon, NC 27244

Phone number: (336) 278-5742

Brief Biography

Dr. Ariela Marcus-Sells is a professor of Religious Studies at Elon University. She graduated with a PhD in Religious Studies/Islamic Studies from Stanford University in 2015. Her research focuses on Sufi intellectual history, the history of Muslim societies in West Africa, and the relationship between the categories of Religion, Magic, and Science. She enjoys mentoring undergraduate research projects related to the study of Islam, Religious Traditions in Africa, and Religion, Magic, and Science. 

News & Notes

Education

Ph.D, Stanford University, Religious Studies/Islamic Studies         

B.A., Barnard College/Columbia University, Religion – Summa Cum Laude

Courses Taught

100-level: Religion in a Global Context; Muslims in America

200-level: Islamic Traditions; African Traditions

300-level: Islamic Encounters; Islamic Secrets

Research

Undergraduate Research Projects Mentored:

"Islamophobia in the Airline Industry" - Sonya Walker, 2020, Multi Faith Scholar

"Christianity and the Kikuyu" - Sara Maya N’Deritu, 2020

“French Islamophobia from the Revolution to Today“ – Mason Enloe, 2020

"Christian Missionaries in Colonial West-Africa" - Brianna Elder, 2019

“American Muslim Responses to Racial Injustice“ – Joel Green, 2019, Honors Fellow

“Defunding Terror: Targeting International Terrorist Groups through Funding Networks” – Carly Goldstein, 2018, College Fellow

“Time is the Scroll: Poetic Expressions of Muslim and Jewish Identities in al-Andalus” – Iliana Brodsky, 2017

Grants Awarded

2018                National Endowment of the Humanities (NEH) Fellowship

2017                Elon University Summer Research Fellowship

2016                CIEE Faculty Development Fellowship

2015                Elon Distinguished Emerging Scholar

2013 – 2014    Mellon Foundation Dissertation Fellowship

2012                IIE Graduate Fellowship for International Study

2007-2008       IIE Fulbright Scholarship, Jordan

Publications

Refereed Publications:

“Science, Sorcery, and Secrets in the Fawa'id nuraniyya of Sidi Muhammad al-Kunti.” History of Religions 58.4 (2019): 432-464.

“The Kunta of the Sahara.” In Oxford Bibliographies in Islamic Studies. Ed. John O. Voll. New York: Oxford University Press, January 2018.

Online Publications: 

“Perspectives on Islam: A Short Intro-Course and Beginner’s Guide.” Elon University Learning on Demand. http://blogs.elon.edu/ondemand/perspectives-of-islam/         

Presentations

  • "Technologies of Devotion in the Works of Sidi al-Mukhtar al-Kunti," West Africa and the Maghreb: Reassessing Intellectual Connections in the 21st Century” at Harvard Divinity School, September 2018.
  • "The Science of God’s Friends: Sufi Authority and Devotional Practice in the Southern Sahara," Annual Meeting of the African Studies Association (ASA), November 2017.
  • “Textual Practice: Devotional Reading in a Southern Saharan Sufi Community," Triangle Conference on the History of Muslim Societies, National Humanities Center, Durham, NC, April 2017
  • “Poised on the Higher Horizon’: Narrative tafsir and Sufi practice in the Southern Sahara," The Annual Conference of the American Academy of Religion (AAR), “Qur’an Group,” November 2016
  • “Sorcery, Science, and Secrets: Muslim Devotional Practice in the Work of the Kunta Scholars,” Muslim Africa Symposium, Duke University, April 2016
  • “Spells and Prayers: Discussing Muslim Practice in Saharan Society,” The Annual Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies (MESAAS) Graduate Conference at Columbia University, March 2014
  • “From Sorcery to Devotion: Constructing Friendship with God in the Works of Sidi Mu?ammad al-Kunti”, The Annual Meeting of the Middle Eastern Studies Association (MESA), October 2013
  • “The Greatest Name of God: Text and Practice in the Fawa?id nuraniyya," The Ifriquiyya Workshop at Columbia University, March 2013.

Skills

Languages: 

Modern Standard/Scholarly Arabic, Advanced Reading and Speaking

Classical Arabic, Advanced Reading

Jordanian/Palestinian Arabic, Advanced Speaking

French, Advanced Reading and Speaking