Persis Maryam Karim (born 1962)
is an American poet, essayist, editor, and educator. Her work focuses on Iranians living outside of Iran, specifically
Iranian Americans
Iranian-Americans, also known as Persian-Americans, are United States citizens or nationals who are of Iranian ancestry, or who hold Iranian citizenship.
Most Iranian-Americans arrived in the United States after 1979, as a result of the Irani ...
, and their complicated histories and identities which is often presented through storytelling.
She served as the Neda Nobari Distinguished Chair and director of the Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies at
San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University (San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Francisco, California, United States. It was established in 1899 as the San Francisco State Normal School and is ...
(SFSU) from 2017 to 2025.
Biography
Persis Maryam Karim was born in 1962 in
Walnut Creek,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
.
Her father was an Iranian, born in Paris; her mother was French and had immigrated from
Dijon
Dijon (, ; ; in Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Digion'') is a city in and the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Côte-d'Or Departments of France, department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in eas ...
,
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
.
She was the youngest child in her family (with six siblings and two step-siblings), and was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Karim attended the
University of California, Santa Cruz
The University of California, Santa Cruz (UC Santa Cruz or UCSC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Cruz, California, United States. It is one of the ten campuses in the University of C ...
(BA 1985), and
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...
(PhD 1998,
comparative literature
Comparative literature studies is an academic field dealing with the study of literature and cultural expression across language, linguistic, national, geographic, and discipline, disciplinary boundaries. Comparative literature "performs a role ...
).
She had studied under poet
Al Young
Albert James Young (May 31, 1939 – April 17, 2021) was an American poet, novelist, essayist, screenwriter, and professor. He was named Poet Laureate of California by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger from 2005 to 2008. Young's many books includ ...
.
Karim is known for editing anthologies and sharing the stories of Iranian-Americans, including ''A World Between: Poems, Short Stories, and Essays by Iranian-Americans'' (1999) and ''Tremors: New Fiction by Iranian American Writers'' (2013).
From 1999 until 2017, Karim worked at
San José State University
San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public research university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State Universit ...
, where she was a co-director of its Persian Studies Program.
Karim and Soumyaa K. Behrnes co-directed the documentary film ''The Dawn is Too Far'': ''Stories of Iranian-American Life'' (2024), which follows the Iranian diaspora community in the San Francisco Bay Area from the 1950s until present day.
The Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies is scheduled to close in 2025.
Publications
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Contributions
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See also
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List of Iranian women writers
References
External links
Profileat San Francisco State University
Profileat San Jose State University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Karim, Persis
1962 births
Living people
People from Walnut Creek, California
University of California, Santa Cruz alumni
University of Texas at Austin alumni
Poets from California
American editors
American Iranologists
American people of French descent
American writers of Iranian descent
20th-century American poets
21st-century American poets
San Francisco State University faculty
San Jose State University faculty
20th-century American women writers
21st-century American women writers
American women editors
Iranian diaspora studies scholars
Comparative literature academics