Ömer Özsoy
Turkish-born theologian who became the first Muslim theology professor at a German university in 2006, holding an endowed Koranic-exegesis chair at Goethe University Frankfurt and advocating historical-critical readings of the Koran.
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- Location
- Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- Country
- Germany
- Origin
- Kayseri, Turkey
- Position
- Professor of Koranic exegesis, Goethe University Frankfurt (Institute for Studies of Islamic Culture and Religion)
- Education
- Doctorate, University of Ankara
- School of thought
- The "Ankara School," a reformist Islamic theology movement that emerged at the University of Ankara in the mid-1990s
Overview
Ömer Özsoy is a theologian from Kayseri, Turkey, who holds a professorship in Koranic exegesis at Goethe University Frankfurt’s Institute for Studies of Islamic Culture and Religion. After earning his doctorate at the University of Ankara and receiving his professorship in Koranic exegesis in 2004, he was appointed in 2006 to an endowed chair at Frankfurt’s Faculty of Protestant Theology — becoming, by his own account and independent reporting, the first Muslim theology professor at a German university (Qantara.de).
The “Ankara School” and historical-critical method
Özsoy is associated with the “Ankara School,” a reformist current in Islamic theology that emerged at the University of Ankara in the mid-1990s. He argues that the Koran should be understood as a text shaped by historical circumstance and oral transmission rather than read as timeless and fixed, and that “only about ten percent of what the Koran wants to convey can be found in the text” — meaning, in his view, that modern believers must reinterpret its teachings contextually rather than apply them literally. This position puts him at odds with more conservative currents within Islamic scholarship that treat Koranic injunctions as absolute (Qantara.de).
On academic freedom
In a later interview, Özsoy argued that Islamic theology “can only lay claim to authenticity if it is truly academic and operates according to established academic standards,” and defended applying historical-critical analysis to Islamic texts against pressure to predetermine research outcomes: “If we prescribe a certain ideological orientation, then we cannot pursue our research as an open-ended endeavour.” He also pushed back against external calls for a specifically “European” or reform-labeled Islam, saying such framing “invites misunderstandings” and risks resembling a state-imposed theology (Qantara.de).
What this profile does not claim
No source read for this profile addresses any dispute or controversy over Özsoy’s appointment or teaching; he is presented here as a scholar known for a specific reformist theological position, not as a subject of institutional conflict.
Timeline
- 2004
- Receives his professorship in Koranic exegesis.
- 2006-2007
- Is appointed to an endowed chair at Goethe University Frankfurt's Faculty of Protestant Theology, becoming, by his own and reporters' account, the first Muslim theology professor at a German university.
- 2007
- Profiled as a leading voice of the reformist "Ankara School," arguing that Koranic teachings should be read as historically and orally shaped rather than as fixed, eternal text, and that religious teachings need contextual, modern reinterpretation.
- 2020s (undated)
- In an interview on academic freedom, argues that Islamic theology can only be authentic "if it is truly academic," defends the use of historical-critical analysis on Islamic texts against ideological constraints, and pushes back on external demands for a "European" or state-shaped model of Islam.
Sources
2 sources (2 tier 2), each opened and read against the claim it supports. Every source is independent of the subject; no first-party material is cited. See the source policy.
Both sources are Qantara.de, an international-affairs and cultural-dialogue platform run with backing from Germany's Federal Agency for Civic Education and Deutsche Welle Akademie; both articles were fetched and read in full rather than cited from a search snippet.
- Portrait of the Turkish Koran Expert Ömer Özsoy: A Modern Interpretation of Islam Instead of Missionary Work Supports: His origin in Kayseri, his doctorate from Ankara, his 2004 professorship and 2006 Frankfurt appointment, his "Ankara School" affiliation, and his views on historical-critical Koranic interpretation.
- Interview with theology professor Ömer Özsoy: Academic freedom takes precedence Supports: His current position at Goethe University Frankfurt's Institute for Studies of Islamic Culture and Religion, and his stated views on academic freedom, historical-critical method and resistance to externally prescribed models of Islamic theology.
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