Professor John L Esposito, widely regarded as one of the most influential non-Muslim scholars of Islam of his generation, died on July 15, 2026, at the age of 86, according to his family and Georgetown University.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1940, Esposito trained under Palestinian-American scholar Isma’il Raji al-Faruqi, which shaped his lifelong commitment to presenting Islam on its own terms rather than through Western biases. He spent nearly two decades teaching world religions at the College of the Holy Cross before joining Georgetown University.

At Georgetown, Esposito held the title of University Professor of Religion, International Affairs, and Islamic Studies. In 1993, he founded the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, later renamed the Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding. Under his leadership, the center became a leading institution for interfaith dialogue. He also launched the Bridge Initiative, a research project focused on tracking and challenging Islamophobia.

Esposito authored dozens of books and was known for correcting Western misconceptions about Islam and building lasting channels of dialogue between Muslims and broader societies. His 2007 book, Who Speaks for Islam? What a Billion Muslims Really Think, co-authored with Dalia Mogahed, drew on over 50,000 interviews across more than 35 Muslim-majority countries and became one of the most widely cited studies of Muslim public opinion.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, in a Facebook post, recalled a friendship with Esposito spanning over five decades, describing him as a scholar who laid the intellectual foundations for a deeper Western understanding of Islam and calling him “a true friend of the Islamic world.”

Sami Al-Arian, a Palestinian-American academic at Istanbul Sabahattin Zaim University, remembered Esposito’s visits during his years under house arrest in the US before his deportation to Turkey in 2015.

National Executive Director Nihad Awad praised Esposito for dedicating his life to advancing an accurate understanding of Islam and Muslims during times when misinformation and prejudice often dominated public discourse, crediting his scholarship with educating generations of students, policymakers, journalists, and religious leaders worldwide.

Sources