About this episode
Tazin Abdullah interviews Dr. Oludamini Oguannaike about the intersection of Islam and the English language in his research and poetry.
In this episode of the Language on the Move Podcast, Tazin Abdullah speaks with Dr. Oludamini Oguannaike, Associate Professor of African Religious Thought and Democracy at the University of Virginia. Tazin and Oludamini talk about his work into how languages, such as English, express concepts that originate from onto-epistemic perspectives that are not historically associated with the English language. They discuss his 2019 article “Islam in English,” which he co-authored with Dr. Mohammed Rustom and how this research is expressed in the literary genre in his book of poetry called The Book of Clouds. The conversation considers how the distinctive philosophical and metaphysical concepts associated with Islam collide with the use of English as a result of the global dominance of English. Tazin and Oludamini discuss how he has used his research and knowledge of historical religious thought to express these concepts using English in poetry. References Ogunnaike, O. (2024). The Book of Clouds. Fons Vitae of Kentucky. Ogunnaike, O., & Rustom, M. (2019). Islam in English. American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences, 36(2), 102-111. For additional resources, show notes, and transcripts…
People in this episode
Host: Tazin Abdullah
Guest: Dr. Oludamini Oguannaike
Topics covered
- Islam
- English language
- poetry
- philosophy
- metaphysics
- religious thought
Keywords
- Islam
- English
- poetry
- philosophy
- metaphysics
- religious thought
- language
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: University of Virginia, American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences
Books & works: The Book of Clouds, Islam in English
More episodes of New Books in Language and Translation
- Manasicha Akepiyapornchai, "Surrender to God Across Languages: Multilingual Intellectual History of Premodern India" (Oxford UP, 2026) · June 11, 2026 · 39 min
- Amrita Chowdhury and Ujaan Ghosh trans., "Baidehisha Bilasa: The Amorous Plays of Sita’s Husband" (Wide Open Window Books, 2025) · June 4, 2026 · 55 min
- Terao Tetsuya and translated by Kevin Wang, "Spent Bullets" (HarperVia, 2025) · June 3, 2026 · 59 min
- Romani Grassroots Language Learning · June 3, 2026 · 30 min
- Elizabeth Stordeur Pryor, "Something We Said: Richard Pryor, a Notorious Word and Me" (37 Ink, 2026) · June 2, 2026
- Gregory Kenicer, "Scottish Plant Names: An A–Z" (Birlinn, 2026) · May 29, 2026 · 23 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the New Books in Language and Translation podcast page.