Our Research
The School’s mission is to be a leading centre for the study of Asia, Africa and the Middle East. It sees its role as advancing the knowledge and understanding of the cultures and societies of these regions and of the School’s academic disciplines, not only through high quality teaching but also through research.
SOAS has established itself a world-class research institution. The Research Assessment Exercise in 2008 put the School in the top rank of UK universities.
In addition to our premier position in Asian Studies, four of our units of assessment have figured in the top 25% as compared with their equivalent departments nationally, namely Anthropology, History, Music, and Politics.
In the majority of SOAS submissions at least 60% of the staff submitted were ranked at either the highest grade of 4* (world-leading quality) or 3* (internationally excellent):
- Music: 80% of the submission was graded 3* or 4*
- Anthropology: 70% of the submission was graded 3* or 4*
- Asian Studies: 65% of the submission was graded 3* or 4*
- Study of Religions: 65% of the submission was graded 3* or 4*
- History: 60% of the submission was graded 3* or 4*
- Middle East and African Studies: 60% of the submission was graded 3* or 4*
- Politics: 60% of the submission was graded 3* or 4*
The School has also had, and continues to have, remarkable success in attracting external funding for staff research in these areas, on occasions exceeding the achievements of the most celebrated of other universities in the UK.
For example, SOAS has been selected to take the lead in the administration of a £20m, 10-year research programme to study and document endangered languages worldwide, and to expand its own activities in this and allied fields. This large grant was awarded by the Lisbet Rausing Charitable Fund in response to the threat of extinction facing more than half the world’s 6,000 languages. SOAS has initiated an ‘in-house’ teaching and research programme focusing on endangered languages, and takes responsibility for administering a range of grants for research on threatened languages throughout the world.
A distinctive regional focus and global relevance are the hallmarks of our research. This is also reflected in The 'Law, Human Rights and Peace Building in the Middle East' programme, which is administered by SOAS. The project, sponsored by Sir Joseph Hotung, promotes greater understanding of Israeli-Palestinian relations. It is particularly concerned with the use of human rights and international law to develop strategies for a just and lasting peace in the region.
Other current SOAS research projects include:
- The analysis of an until recently lost Iranian language (Bactrian);
- The translation and establishment of a comprehensive edition of the Babylonian epic of Gilgamesh, one of the masterpieces of world literature;
- The completion of a dictionary of Manichaeism, a Mesopotamian religion created in third-century Iran;
- The documentation of tribal cultural practices in the northeast Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh;
- The study of dowry, bride burning and sun preference in South Asia; and
- The scholarly exploration of Tibetan culture.
