Literally meaning "speech, word, utterance" among other things, Kalām or philosophy of religion within the Islamic ecumene has divided Muslim believers about it scope, methods and even its validity in itself. To give us a brief history of Kalām is the presenter of a new podcast devoted to explaining Kalām to the uninitiated, Dr. Hannah Erlwein. Dr. Erlwein completed her PhD at the School of Oriental and African Studies on Arguments for the Existence of God in Classical Islamic Thought which is now published and she is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at Das Max-Planck-Institut für Wissenschaftsgeschichte or Max Planck Institute for the History of Science in Berlin. Timestamps 01.45 The term Kalām appears in the formative Abbasid period of early Islamic doctrine. What is the socio-political and intellectual-cultural context of its birth and development? 07.13 The practitioner of Kalām is known as a mutakallim. Tell us about some notable figures in the tradition. 11.43 The Islamic scholastic tradition across different school has a culture of texts, commentaries, supra-commentaries and summaries. This is helpful to trace genealogies of thought. Tell us about the contents of the earliest extant Kalām works and subsequent texts. 15.30 What do you feel is the enduring legacy of medieval Kalām for our world today and where should listeners turn to next for more information? 19.27 You currently host Kalamopod, a new podcast dedicated to the history of Kalām. Before you tell us more about that and other current projects that listeners can anticipate, tell us about your book Arguments for the Existence of God in Classical Islamic Thought. Sponsors We are sponsored by IHRC bookshop. Listeners get a 15% discount on all purchases. Visit IHRC bookshop at shop.ihrc.org and use discount code AHP15 at checkout. Terms and conditions apply. Contact IHRC bookshop for details. We are also sponsored by Turath Publishing. Buy now An Introduction to Sahih al-Bukhari by Mustafa al-Azami. Listeners get a 15% discount on all purchases. Visit Turath Publishing at Turath.co.uk and use discount code POD15 at checkout. Terms and conditions apply. Contact Turath Publishing for details.