Faculty Profile
David Commins
Professor of History; Benjamin Rush Chair in the Liberal Arts and Sciences (1987)
Contact Information
Denny Hall Room 217
Bio
His teaching interests are in modern Middle Eastern history with an emphasis on Islamic thought and political movements. His most recent book is Saudi Arabia: A Modern History. His other books are The Mecca Uprising: An Insider's Account of Salafism and Insurrection in Saudi Arabia, Islam in Saudi Arabia, The Gulf States: A Modern History, The Wahhabi Mission and Saudi Arabia, Historical Dictionary of Syria, and Islamic Reform.
Education
- B.A., University of California at Berkeley, 1976
- Ph.D., University of Michigan, 1985
2025-2026 Academic Year
Fall 2025
INTD 390 Activism in Prague
This seminar is offered at selected Dickinson Centers abroad to encourage students to reflect broadly on their site-specific experiences. The experiential and the theoretical dimensions of out-of-class experiences such as internships and service learning reinforce and enrich one another, providing students with a window onto the workings of their host society. Through readings, class discussions, writing assignments, and presentations, this seminar provides a rigorous academic context for evaluating and understanding the experiential components of the course. Offered only at selected Dickinson Centers abroad programs. Contact the Center for Global Study and Engagement for the list of programs offering this course.
Spring 2026
HIST 122 Middle East since 1750
Cross-listed with MEST 122-01.
MEST 122 Middle East since 1750
Cross-listed with HIST 122-01.
MEST 200 History of Saudi Arabia
Cross-listed with HIST 219-03. The course follows the rise and fall of Saudi power to the present day, with particular attention to the Wahhabi religious movement, strategic and economic ties to Western powers, social transformation, cultural tensions, and political opposition to the monarchy.
MEST 200 U.S. - Middle East Relations
Cross-listed with HIST 219-02 and INST 290-04. This course examines the history of US-Middle East relations from the Barbary Wars to the present. Topics will include American travel and missionary activity in "the Holy Land" during the 1800s; the American role in post-World War I diplomacy affecting the Middle East; rivalry with the Soviet Union; Arab-Israeli diplomacy; petroleum policy; anti-American terrorism; and military interventions.
HIST 219 History of Saudi Arabia
Cross-listed with MEST 200-03. The course follows the rise and fall of Saudi power to the present day, with particular attention to the Wahhabi religious movement, strategic and economic ties to Western powers, social transformation, cultural tensions, and political opposition to the monarchy.
HIST 219 U.S. - Middle East Relations
Cross-listed with INST 290-04 and MEST 200-02. This course examines the history of US-Middle East relations from the Barbary Wars to the present. Topics will include American travel and missionary activity in "the Holy Land" during the 1800s; the American role in post-World War I diplomacy affecting the Middle East; rivalry with the Soviet Union; Arab-Israeli diplomacy; petroleum policy; anti-American terrorism; and military interventions.
INST 290 U.S. - Middle East Relations
Cross-listed with HIST 219-02 and MEST 200-02. This course examines the history of US-Middle East relations from the Barbary Wars to the present. Topics will include American travel and missionary activity in "the Holy Land" during the 1800s; the American role in post-World War I diplomacy affecting the Middle East; rivalry with the Soviet Union; Arab-Israeli diplomacy; petroleum policy; anti-American terrorism; and military interventions.