Merryl Wyn Davies

Merryl Wyn Davies (23 June 1949 – 1 February 2021) was a Welsh Muslim scholar, writer and broadcaster. She specialised in Islam, and was the co-author of books and articles with Ziauddin Sardar. An exponent of Islamic anthropology, she was director of the Muslim Institute in London.

Biography Merryl Wyn Davies was born on 23 June 1949, in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. She attended Cyfarthfa Grammar School for A levels. After reading anthropology at University College, London, she began a career in broadcasting and journalism. Following jobs with local Welsh newspapers, and a stint with BBC Radio, Davies spent a decade with BBC TV Religious programmes, working on such award-winning shows as ‘Everyman’, ‘Heart of the Matter’ and ‘Global Report’

Thought

Davies pioneered a new approach to Islamic anthropology and a highly original critique of America based on Hollywood films. In her work, Knowing One Another: Shaping an Islamic Anthropology, Davies developed a new mode of inquiry which she described, "after ibn Khaldun, as ilm ul umran":

Books Introducing Anthropology, Icon Books, Cambridge, 2002 Darwin and fundamentalism (2000) Beyond Frontiers: Islam and Contemporary Needs, Mansell, London, 1989 Knowing one another: Shaping an Islamic anthropology (1988)

With Ziauddin Sardar Will America Change? Icon Books, Cambridge, 2008 American Dream, Global Nightmare, Icon Books, Cambridge, 2004 The No Nonsense Guide to Islam, Verso, London, 2004 Why Do People Hate America?, Icon Books, London, 2003 Barbaric Others: A Manifesto on Western Racism, Pluto Press, London, 1993 (also with Ashis Nandy) Distorted Imagination: Lessons from the Rushdie Affair, Grey Seal/Berita Publishing, London/Kuala Lumpur, 1990 Faces of Islam: Conversations on Contemporary Issues, Berita Books, Kuala Lumpur, 1989