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Kayla Dang, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor; The Renard Professor of Islamic Studies
Theological Studies

Education

  • B.A. Classics, University of Notre Dame, 2011
  • M.A. Classics, University of Southern California, 2014
  • M.A. Iranian Studies, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, 2015
  • Ph.D. Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Yale University, 2022

Research Interests

  • History of Islam in Late Antiquity
  • Interactions of Muslims, Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians
  • Zoroastrianism
  • Classical Arabic, Syriac, Armenian, and Iranian languages

Publications and Media Placements

  • “Zoroastrianism in Early Arabic Sources,” in The Zoroastrian World, edited by Jenny Rose, Albert de Jong and Sarah Stewart. London: Routledge (2026), 76–84. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003168904-10
  • “ʿAlī and “Sons of Ādurbādh”: Zoroastrian Priestly Authority in the Early Islamic Era,” Medieval Worlds: Comparative and Interdisciplinary Studies. Special Issue: Knowledge Collaboration among Jews, Christians, Zoroastrians, and Muslims in the Abbasid Near East, Vol. 17 (December 2022), 97–119. https://doi.org/10.1553/medievalworlds_no17_2022s97

Honors and Awards

  • A.W. Mellon Junior Faculty Fellowship in Medieval Studies, Medieval Institute, University of Notre Dame, 2024–2025
  • Beaumont Scholarship Research Award, Saint Louis University, 2024
  • Mellon Faculty Development Award, Saint Louis University, 2024

Professional Organizations and Associations

  • American Society for Premodern Asia
  • Middle Eastern Studies Association
  • Middle East Medievalists
  • American Academy of Religion
  • Association for Iranian Studies