Olivier Roy (1949) is a French political scientist and orientalist. Professor at the European University and holder of the Mediterranean Chair at the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies since 2009. He was Head of research at the French National Centre de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) and Professor both at the School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences (EHESS) and at the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris (IEP). He has written numerous books on Iran, Islam and Asian policy. His most famous book is "The Echec politique de l'Islam" ("The failure of political Islam"), a standard textbook for students of Islamic culture.