Carl S El-Tobgui
Degrees
McGill University, Ph.D.McGill University, M.A.
Georgetown University, B.S.
Expertise
Islamic Thought, particularly Islamic theology, law, and jurisprudence. Arabic language (Qur'anic, classical & modern) and Classical Arabic literature & poetry.Profile
Carl Sharif El-Tobgui holds a B.S. in Arabic Language from Georgetown University and a Master's and Ph.D. in Islamic Studies from McGill University and currently serves as Associate Professor Arabic & Islamic Studies and Director of the Arabic Language Program at Brandeis. He previously taught for five years at Harvard University as Preceptor of Arabic, and has also taught at the Middlebury College Summer Arabic Language School. Prof. El-Tobgui's scholarly expertise lies in the field of Islamic thought, with a concentration on theology, law, and jurisprudence. He is particularly interested in questions concerning the relationship between reason and revelation in the Islamic tradition and has published on the manifestations of this tension in the fields of classical Islamic jurisprudence and Qur'anic exegesis. His first monograph is an extensive study of Ibn Taymiyya's (d. 1328) 10-volume magnum opus, "Refutation of Contradiction Between Reason and Revelation" (published Open Access by E.J. Brill, 2020). In addition to his expertise in Islamic thought, Prof. El-Tobgui has a deep love of language in general and of Classical Arabic in particular and has enjoyed for many years exploring the intricacies of Arabic grammar as well as classical literature and poetry with his students.Courses Taught
| ARBC | 30a | Intermediate Arabic I |
| ARBC | 40b | Intermediate Arabic II |
| ARBC | 103a | Lower Advanced Arabic |
| ARBC | 103b | Middle Advanced Arabic: Contemporary Arab Media |
| ARBC | 106a | Advanced Arabic I: Contemporary Arabic Literature |
| ARBC | 106b | Advanced Arabic II: Classical Arabic & Islamic Literature |
| IMES | 104a | Islam: Civilization and Institutions |
| NEJS | 190a | Introduction to Islamic Theology |
Scholarship
El-Tobgui, Carl Sharif. Ibn Taymiyya on Reason and Revelation: A Study of Dar' ta'arud al-'aql wa'l-naql. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 2020.
El-Tobgui, Carl Sharif. "From Legal Theory to Erkenntnistheorie: Ibn Taymiyya on Tawātur as the Ultimate Guarantor of Human Cognition." Oriens 46. 1-2 (2018): 6-61.
El-Tobgui, Carl Sharif. "Ibn Taymiyya on the Incoherence of the Theologians' Universal Law: Reframing the Debate between Reason and Revelation in Medieval Islam." Journal of Arabic and Islamic Studies 18. (2018): 63-85.
El-Tobgui, Carl Sharif. "The Hermeneutics of Fakhr al-Din al-Razi." Coming to Terms with the Qur’an: A volume in honor of Professor Issa Boullata, McGill University. Ed. Khaleel Mohammed & Andrew Rippin. North Haledon: Islamic Publications International, 2008. 125-158.
El-Tobgui, Carl Sharif. "The Epistemology of Qiyas and Ta‘lil between the Mu‘tazilite Abu ’l-Husayn al-Basri and Ibn Hazm al-Zahiri." UCLA Journal of Islamic and Near Eastern Law 2. ii (2003): 281-354.
Jubran Khalil Jubran. Kitab al-Mawakib ("Le livre des processions"). Trans. Carl Sharif El-Tobgui. Montreal: Commissioned by Editions Trait d'union, 2001.