Associate Professor
חבר/ת סגל אקדמי בכיר
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Department of Middle East Studies
72 - Cukier, Goldstein-Goren (Humanities & Social Sciences) Building Floor 5 Room 513, Marcus Campus
Prof. Avi Rubin
Departments
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08-647-7700
Staff member contact section
About
Avi Rubin is an Associate Professor in the Department of Middle East Studies at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. His research focuses on the socio-legal history of the modern Middle East, with a particular emphasis on the late Ottoman period. He explores themes such as historiography, the development of modern legal institutions, legal culture, the rule of law, codification, and political trials. His work offers a critical perspective on the processes of legal modernization in the Ottoman Empire by employing a "law in action" approach that bridges the gap between legal texts and social practices.The University bears no responsibility for the content displayed on this page or on any other faculty members’ pages. Full responsibility for the content rests solely with the faculty members themselves, who independently update and manage the information on their pages
Courses
The Great Transformation: The Emergence of Legal Modernity in the Middle East and Beyond, BA elective course, Dept. of History, Skidmore College.
Shuttering Myths on the Middle East: An Introduction, BA elective course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Law and Society in the Modern Middle East, BA elective course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
The Rule of Law in the Middle East: Historical Perspective, BA seminar course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Introduction to the Ottoman Empire, BA course (obligatory), Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Society and Culture in the Ottoman Empire: Selected Themes, BA pro-seminar course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Cyprus Past and Present: A Study Tour, BA pro-seminar course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Ottoman Istanbul, Turkish Istanbul: A Study Tour, BA elective course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
The Long 19th Century: Ottoman Modernity, BA seminar course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Methods and Approaches in the Study of the Modern Middle East, MA methodology course (obligatory), Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Ottoman State and Society: Themes in History and Historiography, MA course (international program), Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
The Rule of Law in the Middle East: A Historical Perspective, Dept. of History, Skidmore College.
AI Literacy and Learning Skills, obligatory course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Shuttering Myths on the Middle East: An Introduction, BA elective course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Law and Society in the Modern Middle East, BA elective course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
The Rule of Law in the Middle East: Historical Perspective, BA seminar course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Introduction to the Ottoman Empire, BA course (obligatory), Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Society and Culture in the Ottoman Empire: Selected Themes, BA pro-seminar course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Cyprus Past and Present: A Study Tour, BA pro-seminar course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Ottoman Istanbul, Turkish Istanbul: A Study Tour, BA elective course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
The Long 19th Century: Ottoman Modernity, BA seminar course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Methods and Approaches in the Study of the Modern Middle East, MA methodology course (obligatory), Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Ottoman State and Society: Themes in History and Historiography, MA course (international program), Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
The Rule of Law in the Middle East: A Historical Perspective, Dept. of History, Skidmore College.
AI Literacy and Learning Skills, obligatory course, Dept. of Middle East Studies, Ben-Gurion University.
Publications
Rubin, Avi. 2011. Ottoman Nizamiye Courts: Law and Modernity, Palgrave Macmillan.
Rubin, Avi. 2018. Ottoman Rule of Law and the Modern Political Trial: The Yildiz Case, Syracuse University Press.
Rubin, Avi. 2007. "Legal Borrowing and its Impact on Ottoman Legal Culture in the Late Nineteenth Century," Continuity and Change, 22, pp. 279-303.
Rubin, Avi. 2016. "The Slave, the Governor, and the Judge: An Ottoman Socio-Legal Drama in the Late Nineteenth Century," in Society, Law, and Culture in the Middle East: Modernity in the Making, eds. Ehud R. Toledano and Dror Ze'evi. De Gruyter, pp. 87-103.
Rubin, Avi. 2022. ?The Positivization of Ottoman Law and the Question of Continuity,? in State Law and Legal Positivism: The Global Rise of a New Paradigm, eds. Baudouin Dupret and Jean-Louis Halp?rin. Brill, pp. 150-176.
Rubin, Avi. 2025. ?Islam, Law, and Colonialism, c. 1800?1945.? In Oxford Bibliographies in Legal History. Ed. Gautham Rao. New York: Oxford University Press.
Avi Rubin and Iris Agmon, "Writing History Backwards and Forwards: Thoughts on the Notion of ?Ottoman Corruption?". In Corruption in the Ottoman Polity: Empirical Insights, Conceptual Reflections, eds. Bo?a? Ergene and Cengiz K?rl?. Edinburgh University Press, 2025, pp. 37-61.
Rubin, Avi. 2018. Ottoman Rule of Law and the Modern Political Trial: The Yildiz Case, Syracuse University Press.
Rubin, Avi. 2007. "Legal Borrowing and its Impact on Ottoman Legal Culture in the Late Nineteenth Century," Continuity and Change, 22, pp. 279-303.
Rubin, Avi. 2016. "The Slave, the Governor, and the Judge: An Ottoman Socio-Legal Drama in the Late Nineteenth Century," in Society, Law, and Culture in the Middle East: Modernity in the Making, eds. Ehud R. Toledano and Dror Ze'evi. De Gruyter, pp. 87-103.
Rubin, Avi. 2022. ?The Positivization of Ottoman Law and the Question of Continuity,? in State Law and Legal Positivism: The Global Rise of a New Paradigm, eds. Baudouin Dupret and Jean-Louis Halp?rin. Brill, pp. 150-176.
Rubin, Avi. 2025. ?Islam, Law, and Colonialism, c. 1800?1945.? In Oxford Bibliographies in Legal History. Ed. Gautham Rao. New York: Oxford University Press.
Avi Rubin and Iris Agmon, "Writing History Backwards and Forwards: Thoughts on the Notion of ?Ottoman Corruption?". In Corruption in the Ottoman Polity: Empirical Insights, Conceptual Reflections, eds. Bo?a? Ergene and Cengiz K?rl?. Edinburgh University Press, 2025, pp. 37-61.
