Christel Freu

Christel Freu is a Professor of Roman History at the University of Évry-Paris Saclay and Director of the IDHE.S laboratory (since January 2025). She holds a Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches (HDR) and has held prominent roles such as Vice-Dean at the Université Laval and co-director of the History Department at the University of Rouen. Her research focuses on labor history, social inequality, and ancient economies, with a particular emphasis on Roman and late antique Egypt. She has published extensively on labor contracts, taxation, and the socio-economic structures of antiquity.

Education:

• Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches (2019), Sorbonne University
• PhD (2004), University of Strasbourg
• Agrégation d'Histoire (1998) and DEA in Ancient Christian History (2000)

Research Interests: Her work explores labor systems, economic stratification, and social inequality in the Roman Empire. Notable projects include studies on wage labor in Roman Egypt and the socio-legal status of the poor in late antiquity. She currently co-authors the Nouvelle Histoire Économique de la France, focusing on ancient economic contributions.

Awards:

• 2023: Médaille Diehl for Les Salariés de l'Égypte Romano-Byzantine
• 2022: Prix Zo graphos for the same work

Grants and Leadership: Secured significant funding from Canadian and French research programs, including leadership in multidisciplinary teams like GRANT (2018–2021) and GRECAT (2013–2017). Active in academic governance, including jury memberships for doctoral exams and faculty recruitment.

Labs/Teams: Directs the IDHE.S laboratory, focusing on work, capital, and inequality studies. Engaged in collaborative projects on ancient fiscal documents and late antique economic policies.