Marina Tolmachëva Photographs, Postcards, Filmstrips, and Slides from Europe and Asia, 1955-2003

Marina Tolmachëva was a Professor of History and Director of the Asia Program at Washington State University. In 1998-2005 Tolmachëva served the WSU College of Liberal Arts as Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs. A specialist in medieval Arab history and Islamic civilization, she authored and co-authored several books, contributed chapters to several more, and published over 50 articles. Her research explored the works of medieval Arab geographers and travelers, among them the famous Ibn Battuta. Tolmachëva wrote about the ancient heritage of Arabic geography and cartography, especially Ptolemy's Geography, and researched the pilgrimage and travel in the pre-modern Middle East, Africa, and Central Asia. She also published on Muslim women and on Islamic historiography of Africa and Central Asia.

Tolmachëva received her undergraduate degree with distinction from St. Petersburg University and Ph.D. in History from the Russian Academy of Sciences. A recipient of numerous grants and fellowships, Tolmachëva traveled to the Middle East and Asia from 1964 forward and served as lecturer and interpreter on more than 20 travel tours. In 1998 she was Visiting Professor at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales in Paris. In 2003 Tolmacheva was awarded the Honorary Professorship by the Institute of Eastern Languages and Cultures of the National Pedagogical University of Kyrgyzstan.