문화인류학 전공자로 서울대학교에서 박사학위를 받고, 중동 지역과 이슬람 그리고 이란 지역을 중심으로 연구하고 있다. 최근에는 한국 사회의 종교다양성, 이슬람포비아 이슈 그리고 이란과 아프가니스탄의 여성 문제 등을 주목하고 있다. 단독 저서인 <이란 도시 젊은이, 그들만의 세상 만들기: 국가의 감정통제와 개인들의 자아구성>는 2018년에 우수학술도서로 선정된 바 있다. 여성인류학자들의 해외 지역 현지조사방법론에 대하여 저술한 <여성 연구자, 선을 넘다>를 책임편집하였고, 중동학과 인류학 중동 여성분과 대표 저널인 Journal of Middle East Women’s Studies에 “Riding the Korean Wave in Iran Cyberfeminism and Pop Culture among Young Iranian Women“을 게재하였다. 2022년 1월부터 경향신문에 국제칼럼을 맡아, 서아시아 지역연구의 사회적 확산에 기여하고 있다.

Gi Yeon Koo is an anthropologist conducting research in the region of Western Asia. Her research also focuses on religious diversity and Islamophobia in Korean society. In 2018, her paper “Islamophobia and the Politics of Representation of Islam in Korea” dealt with Islamophobia within Korean society prior to the Yemeni refugee issue of 2019. Her book Iranian Urban Youth, Creating Their Own World: State Control of Emotions and Individual Self-Construction was designated by the Korean government as an ‘outstanding academic book’ in 2018. She has maintained a close international network with Middle Eastern studies researchers and participated as a co-author in Participation Culture in the Gulf: Networks, Politics and Identity (2018, Routledge). She also served as the chief editor of Female Researchers Crossing the Line, a book on field research methodology in overseas regions written by female anthropologists, published in January 2020. Since January 2022, she has also served as a columnist for The Kyunghyang Shinmun, contributing to the social dissemination of West Asian regional research. She has also continued her research on the Iranian media, the youth generation, Muslim women, and current issues in the Iranian region, which has important academic significance in the comparative study of Mega-Asia.