John Esposito, a pioneering American scholar of Islam who dedicated his career to challenging Islamophobia and fostering understanding between Muslims and the West, has died at the age of 86.

Widely seen as one of the world’s foremost authorities on Islam and Muslim-West relations, Esposito was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1940.

He spent many years as a professor of religion and international affairs at Georgetown University, where he became a key figure in shaping Western understanding of Islam.

As a young man, Esposito hoped to become a Catholic priest and joined the Capuchin Franciscan Order. He later left to pursue graduate studies in Islam, a choice that led him to dedicate his life to studying Islamic law, theology, and the role of Islam in politics across the Muslim world.

In 1993, he founded Georgetown’s Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, where he remained until his death.

He also started the Bridge Initiative, a major research project at Georgetown that became a respected source for documenting anti-Muslim prejudice in Europe and North America.

“The Bridge Initiative is part of Dr Esposito’s legacy,” the organisation said in a statement. “It was through his conviction to help build and sustain a pluralistic world that Bridge came to be: an organization dedicated to the highest level of research on one of today’s greatest social ills: Islamophobia.”

Esposito’s impact on the study of Islam and Muslim societies was especially strong during times of tension between the Islamic world and the West, such as after the 1979 Iranian Revolution and the September 11, 2001 attacks.

He wrote or edited more than 50 books, including Islam: The Straight Path, The Islamic Threat: Myth or Reality?, and Who Speaks for Islam? What a Billion Muslims Really Think.

Tributes pour in

Tributes have poured in from scholars, writers, and Muslim organisations around the world,

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the largest Muslim civil rights organisation in the United States, expressed its condolences.

“Professor Esposito devoted his life to advancing an accurate understanding of Islam and Muslims at a time when misinformation and prejudice too often dominated public discourse,” said CAIR’s national executive director, Nihad Awad. “His scholarship helped educate generations of students, policymakers, journalists, religious leaders, and members of the public around the world.”

Jonathan Brown, professor of Islamic civilisation at Georgetown, paid tribute to his former colleague, writing on X that he owed much of his career to Esposito. He described him as “a great American, in the best sense of the word”, adding that his commitment to religious freedom and free speech was “instinctual and abiding”.

Academic Nader Hashemi wrote that Esposito “demonstrated a deep empathy for the struggles of the people in the Global South, especially in the Arab-Islamic world”.

Writer Sarah Joseph paid tribute on Facebook, saying Esposito had “spent his career helping people better understand Islam and building bridges between communities”.

“His contribution through his teaching, books, and public voice was enormous,” she wrote. “He helped countless people see beyond stereotypes and fear, and to understand Muslim societies with greater honesty, depth, and humanity.”

Image: Georgetown University