MESA is pleased to announce a new biennial book award in honor of Roger Owen. Dr. Owen is currently the A.J. Meyer Professor of Middle East History at Harvard University. Announced at the Awards Ceremony at MESA’s annual meeting, the Roger Owen Book Award recognizes the very best in economics, economic history, or the political economy of the Middle East and North Africa scholarship.

2013 Nomination Guidelines

The Middle East Studies Association is pleased to announce the competition for the 2013 Roger Owen Book Award. Nominations can be made by either the publisher or the author. Below is a list of criteria that should be met:

1. Subject matter must deal with economics, economic history or the political economy of the Middle East and North Africa (Mali to Pakistan) and the work must seek to advance knowledge and scholarship on these areas within the modern period (roughly 1750 to the present). Indeed, the purpose of the award is to encourage work in these fields and areas. The works considered should demonstrate substantive understanding of the historical, social and political implications of economic factors, theoretical sophistication and interpretive elegance.

2. Books must be non-fiction scholarly monographs based on original research published in English* between May 1, 2011, and March 31, 2013.
*Works translated from other languages into English will also be considered but will be judged by the same rigorous standards as those for works submitted in English. Authors need not be members of MESA.

3. Works not eligible include edited collections and compilations, proceedings of symposia, new editions of previously published books, bibliographies, dictionaries, and textbooks.

4. Nominations must be made by April 5, 2013, with books delivered to the readers by April 15, 2013 or books will not be eligible for the competition.

5. The author of the single winning book will receive $2000 and a certificate of award. The 2013 winner will be announced at the Awards Ceremony on October 11 at the MESA annual meeting.

Nominations and inquiries should be addressed to:

Sara L. Palmer
Awards Coordinator
Middle East Studies Association
The University of Arizona
1219 N Santa Rita Ave
Tucson AZ 85721
520/626-4753 (direct line)
520/621-5850 (general number)
palmers@email.arizona.edu

2011 Award Recipient

Winner: Alan Mikhail, Yale University
Nature and Empire in Ottoman Egypt: An Environmental History (Cambridge University Press, 2011)