Farish Ahmad Noor

Dr. Farish Ahmad Noor (born 15 May 1967 in Georgetown, Penang) is a political scientist and historian and is Associate Professor at the Rajaratnam School of International Studies in the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He is of Javanese, European, Arab, Indian ancestry. At the NTU he is part of the research cluster on the contemporary development of trans-national religio-political networks across South and Southeast Asia, where he is studying the phenomenon of Muslim, Christian, Hindu and Buddhist religio-political mobilisation in the public domain.

He was formerly attached to Zentrum Moderner Orient (Centre for Modern Oriental Studies) in Berlin, Germany, Sciences-Po Paris, the Institute for the Study of Muslim Society (IISMM, Ecole des haute études en sciences sociale, EHESS), Paris and the International Institute for the Study of the Muslim World (ISIM), Leiden, Netherlands. Dr. Noor's teaching credits include the Centre for Civilisational Dialogue, University of Malaya, the Institute for Islamic Studies, Free University Berlin, Sunan Kalijaga Islamic University (Jogjakarta), Muhamadiyah University Surakarta and Nanyang Technological University.

At NTU/RSIS he teaches two courses: (1) History, Society and Politics of Southeast Asia and (2) Introduction to Philosophy of Language and Discourse Analysis. The first is part of the RSIS area studies curricula (which also covers Indonesia) while the second is a foundational course in Philosophy of Language, Linguistics and Semiotics with a heavy emphasis on Critical Theory as developed by the Essex School of Discourse Analysis.

He received his BA in Philosophy & Literature from the University of Sussex in 1989, before studying for an MA in Philosophy at the same University in 1990, an MA in South-East Asian Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, before completing his PhD at the University of Essex in 1997 in the field of governance and politics.

Over the past ten years he has also been researching the phenomenon of transnational and translocal religio-political movements, including missionary movements such as the Tablighi Jama'at and its networks from South to Southeast Asia; as well as the development of religio-politics in South and Southeast Asia, looking at the rise of Muslim, Christian and Hindu political-religious revivalism in particular (see "Islam" in Richter & Mar 2004).

His other interests include antiques and material history, and he has written about the plastic arts of Southeast Asia, focusing on things such as the Indonesian-Malaysian keris to the development of woodcarving and architecture. He has also written about the subject of national identity.

Farish has also appeared in the semi-documentary film The Big Durian, directed by Amir Muhammad. He also hosted a documentary on Channel NewsAsia called 'Inside Indonesia with Dr Farish'.

Publications

 * The Malaysian Islamic Party 1951-2013: Islamism in a Mottled Nation. (Amsterdam University Press, Amsterdam, 2014)
 * From Indrapura to Darul Makmur: A Deconstructive History of Pahang. (Silverfish Books, Kuala Lumpur, 2010.)
 * What Your Teacher Didn't Tell You (The Annexe Lectures, Vol. 1) (Matahari Books, Petaling Jaya, 2009)
 * Quran and Cricket: Travels Through the Madrasahs of Asia and Other Stories. (Silverfish Books, Kuala Lumpur, 2009)
 * Di Balik Malaysia Dari Majapahit Ke Putrajaya (ZI Publications, KL, 2008)
 * Islam Embedded: The Historical Development of the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party PAS 1951-2003 (MSRI, Kuala Lumpur, 2004)
 * The Madrasah in Asia: Political Activism and Transnational Linkages (University of Amsterdam press, 2008)
 * Writings on the War on Terror, Global Media Publications, New Delhi, 2006.
 * Crosscurrents: Alternative Voices in Our Changing Times. Marshall Cavendish-Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, 2006.
 * From Majapahit to Putrajaya: Searching For Another Malaysia. Silverfish Books, Kuala Lumpur, 2005.
 * Islam Progresif: Peluang, Tentangan dan Masa Depannya di Asia Tenggara. SAMHA, Jogjakarta, 2005.
 * Farish A. Noor: "Islam", in: Frank-Jürgen Richter, Pamela Mar: Asia's New Crisis, John Wiley & Sons, Singapore, 2004 (see Amazon)
 * Di San Zhi Yan Kan Ma Lai Xi Ya (Chinese edition of The Other Malaysia). Sin Chew Jit Poh Press, Petaling Jaya, Selangor, 2004.
 * The Other Malaysia: Writings on Malaysia's Subaltern History, Silverfish Books, Kuala Lumpur, 2002
 * Terrorising the Truth, The Shaping of Contemporary Images of Islam and Muslims in Media, Politics and Culture (JUST world press, Kuala Lumpur, 1998)