Islamic homosexualities and Christian-Muslim relations: new research perspectives

Since the mid-1990s, the history of Islamic sexualities have attracted increasing attention, especially by historians of gender and sexuality in the US. Their research has enriched our knowledge of Middle Eastern history and stimulated the wider debate on sexuality studies. The article focuses on the historiography on Islamic homosexualities and gender transgressions. This body of historical literature provides important insights for both a comparative analysis and a history of concrete interactions between Islam and Christianity. In the this article I suggest some hypothesis of research in both directions. I simultaneously analyse the theoretical problems left unsolved by the historiography, trying to answer questions that, for the most part, have arisen from the reception of the work of Said and Foucault. Finally, I take into account some relevant issues in current political debates, such as the increasing tension with the Islamic world, and the struggle for the rights of sexual minorities in Muslim-majority countries.