Yakoob Ahmed is an assistant professor at Istanbul University’s Islamic Studies Institute (Ilahiyat), where he serves as a full‑time researcher and instructor in Islamic and Ottoman history. He earned his Ph.D. from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, where he also completed a master’s degree in Near and Middle East Studies with a focus on Ottoman history and Turkish politics. His academic expertise lies in the history of the late Ottoman Empire, Muslim intellectual and constitutional thought in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the ulema’s political engagement, identity formation, and collective memory.
Yakoob Ahmed has contributed regularly to media outlets such as Middle East Eye and TRT World, publishing analyses on topics including Ottoman‑era institutions, the evolution of the nation‑state, and historical memory in the Muslim world. He is also a frequent speaker and guest on podcasts such as The Thinking Muslim and Ottoman History Podcast, where he discusses themes like Ottoman decline, the role of Islamic scholars (ulema), and common misconceptions about Islamic history.
His research and public engagement include a forthcoming book on the late Ottoman ulema. He has also delivered talks such as “A Re‑examination of the Perception of Late Ottoman ʿUlamā within Ottoman Studies,” exploring historiographical narratives and the complexities of Islamic scholarship in the late empire. Through his teaching, writing, and media presence, Yakoob Ahmed aims to reorient understanding of Muslim history by highlighting institutional and intellectual dimensions often overlooked in mainstream accounts.