Afshin Irani

Biography

Spanish, Portuguese, English, French, Persian, Arabic.

Research Interests

  • Mahjari literature in Latin America (Chile and Brazil)
  • Latin American Orientalism
  • MENA-Latin American literary and cultural exchanges
  • Iranian Cinema

Education

  • MA in Latin American Studies, Universidad de Chile. (2022)
  • BA in Philosophy, Universidad de Chile. (2018)

Grants

  • 2026 Tinker Field Collaborative Fellowship, Center for Latin American & Caribbean Studies, UIUC.
  • 2026 Graduate Conference Travel Grant, Lemann Institute for Brazilian Studies, UIUC.
  • 2025 Illinois Distinguished Fellowship, Graduate College, UIUC.

Additional Campus Affiliations

  • Unit for Criticism & Interpretive Theory

Recent Publications

IRANI, Afshin & CARMONA, Miguel. "On Palestinian Latin Americanism: Reading Walter Garib and Mahfud Massís". Mashriq & Mahjar: Journal of Middle East and North African Migration Studies, 13(1), 2026.  https://doi.org/10.24847/v13i12026.566

IRANI, Afshin. "Holy Spider y el 'Persian Noir'". La Fuga: Revista de Cine, 28, 2025. https://lafuga.cl/holy-spider-y-el-persian-noir/1230