Drawing on recent developments in the comparative study of religion, this book explores the trends of the past sixty years from a global perspective. Each of the ten chapters covers the study of religion in a different region of the world, from Europe and the Americas to Asia and the Far East. Topics covered include: local background to the study of religions - formation of religious studies in the region - important thinkers and writings - institutions - interregional diversity and interregional connections - emerging issues. This book is a major contribution to the field of religious studies and a valuable reference for scholars, researchers and graduate students. 'Accessible and essential reading for all students of religion: an important collection on the modern formation of Religious Studies as an academic field' – Steven Sutcliffe, University of Edinburgh, UK 'Editor, G. Alles, rightly I think, considers the IAHR, the International Association for the History of Religions, with its 42 national and regional associations from all over the world, as a sign of an emergent global community of scholars of religion. This book is a gift to the IAHR and to this community of scholars. It offers a wealth of useful information, thus serving its major purpose: to give scholars around the world more knowledge about what ‘their counterparts elsewhere have been and are doing’ (p. 3). In this, it also serves the purpose of the IAHR.' – Tim Jensen, Secretary General of the IAHR Gregory D. Alles