Dr. Sumanto Al Qurtuby joined KFUPM as a faculty member in 2014. He was promoted to associate Professor of cultural anthropology in 2021. Previously, he was a research fellow at the University of Notre Dame in the United States. His academic and research interests include the study of muslim societies and cultures, conflict and peacebuilding, Arabia–Southeast Asia connection, migration, and education.

PhD in Cultural Anthropology, Boston University, USA

MA in Conflict Transformation, Eastern Mennonite University, USA

BA in Islamic Law, State Islamic University, Indonesia

Cultural anthropology

Between Polygyny and Monogamy: Marriage in Saudi Arabia and Beyond. Al-Jami’ah: Journal of Islamic Studies 60 (1): 29-64.  

Language, Islam, and Muslim Societies: Perspectives from the Asia Pacific. Journal of Asian Pacific Communication 32 (1): 1-12. 

Islam, Muslim, and Anthropology. International Journal of Islamic Thought, Vol. 20, pp. 138-155.

Terrorism and Counterterrorism in Saudi Arabia Contemporary Review of the Middle East 8: 1, pp. 56-76. .

Pacifying the Radicals: Religious Radicalism, Islamist Militancy, and Peacebuilding Approaches in Contemporary Indonesia. JATI-Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, 24: 1, pp. 1-25.

Saudi–Indonesian Relations: Historical Dynamics and Contemporary Development. Asian Perspective, 42:1, pp. 121-44

Arabs and Indo Arabs in Indonesia: Historical Dynamics, Social Relations, and Contemporary Change. International Journal of Asia Pacific Studies, Vol. 13: 2, pp. 45–72.

“The Rise of Islamism and the Future of Indonesian Islam.” Journal of International Studies 16, pp. 105-128, 2020.

Saudi Arabia and Indonesian Networks: Migration, Education and Islam. London, UK: I.B. Tauris & Bloomsbury Publishing, 2020.

“Islam, Travel and Learning: A Case Study on Indonesian Muslim Student Diasporas in Saudi Arabia.” Journeys: the International Journal of Travel and Travel Writing 21: 2, pp. 42-66, 2020.

“Buddhism and Worldliness in Modern Taiwan”. Journal of Contemporary Religion 35:3, pp. 543-564, 2020.

“Pacifying the Radicals: Religious Radicalism, Islamist Militancy, and Peacebuilding Approaches in Contemporary Indonesia”. JATI-Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, 24: 1, pp. 1-25, 2019.

“The Paradox of Civil Society: the Case of Maluku, Eastern Indonesia”, Asian Journal of Social Science, 46, pp. 5-34, 2018.

“Saudi–Indonesian Relations: Historical Dynamics and Contemporary Development” (co-authored with Shafi Aldamer), Asian Perspective, 42:1, pp. 121-44, 2018.

“Arabs and Indo Arabs in Indonesia: Historical Dynamics, Social Relations, and Contemporary Change”, International Journal of Asia Pacific Studies, Vol. 13: 2, pp. 45–72, 2017.