Carool Kersten (Haelen, 28 June 1964) is a Dutch scholar of Islam and the author and editor of eleven books. Trained as an Arabist, Southeast Asianist and scholar of Religions, he currently is Professor of Islamic Studies at the Catholic University Leuven in Belgium and Emeritus Reader in the Study of Islam & the Muslim World at King's College London. His research interests focus on the modern and contemporary Muslim world, in particular political and intellectual developments in both regional and global contexts.