Julia Elyachar | On the Semicivilized: Coloniality, Finance & Embodied Sovereignty in Cairo

The discussion covers the evolving role of debt as an instrument of empire, the emergence of sovereign wealth funds, and the ways financial instruments and flows of money subtly shape political realities and people's lives in the region. Professor Elyachar discusses her latest book "On the Semicivilized: Coloniality, Finance, and Embodied Sovereignty in Cairo" and how she challenges the notion that global finance originated solely in the West. The conversation delves into the history of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and their role in economic development, particularly in "pushing debt as a form of development". A Professor of Anthropology at Princeton University whose work examines the intersection of finance, political economy, and the Arab world, Elyachar also shares her family's history as sarrafs (bankers/brokers) in Ottoman Palestine, and how this tradition sparked her interest in finance and economics. She also explains the historical legal category of the "semicivilized," a term used in international law to describe the Ottoman Empire and other non-European powers who were recognized as legitimate sovereigns.

 

01:13 Introduction 

03:31 A Family History of Finance in Ottoman Palestine

06:52 Fieldwork in Cairo: Informal Economy and Debt

10:15 The Problem of NGOs and "NGOification"

15:53 Debt As an Instrument of Empire

23:28 Defining "Semicivilized"

37:57 The Central Question: Finance and Violence

50:12 The Rise of Sovereign Wealth Funds

56:11 Turning Debt Into Assets

 

Julia Elyachar is an anthropologist, political economist, and award winning author. She was trained in anthropology, economics, history of political and economic thought, political economy, social theory, Middle Eastern Studies, and Arabic language. She is an associate professor of anthropology at Princeton University, and associate professor at the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies. She is a Faculty Researcher with the Dignity and Debt network and serves on the Executive Boards of the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies, and the Center for Iran and Persian Gulf Studies. She has published the books "Markets of Dispossession: NGOs, Economic Development, and the State in Cairo" and "On the Semicivilized: Coloniality, Finance, and Embodied Sovereignty in Cairo" (2025).

Connect with Julia Elyachar 👉 https://twitter.com/JuliaElyachar

 

Hosted by Mikey Muhanna

 

Connect directly with Mikey Muhanna 👉 https://instagram.com/mikey_mu

 

Theme music: Peninsular, Tarek Yamani 🔊 https://spoti.fi/47I59ns

 

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FOLLOW & RATE THE AFIKRA PODCAST:
» Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/lb/podcast/the-afikra-podcast/id1529437743
» Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5nafoF1Zs7F48mGZjlhrze
» Anghami: https://play.anghami.com/podcast/1014643869

THIS SERIES IS PART OF THE AFIKRA PODCAST NETWORK 
Explore all episodes in this series: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfYG40bwRKl5xaTkBDrUKLCulvoCE8ubX&feature=shared

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