About
Professor Geoffrey Khan is the Regius Professor of Hebrew at the University of Cambridge, affiliated with the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies. He holds a Ph.D. in Semitic Languages from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, and has dedicated his career to philology, Semitic linguistics, and manuscript studies.
- Education: B.A. and Ph.D. in Semitic Languages (SOAS, University of London)
- Academic Leadership: Editor-in-Chief of Encyclopedia of Hebrew Language and Linguistics, Chairman of British Academy's Oriental and African Studies Section
His research spans Hebrew, Aramaic, and Arabic linguistics, focusing on:
- Biblical Hebrew syntax and Tiberian pronunciation traditions (e.g., 2020 monograph on Masoretic vocalization)
- Neo-Aramaic dialectology, particularly endangered North-Eastern Neo-Aramaic dialects (2008-2016 fieldwork publications)
- Medieval Arabic documents (Fatimid period Nubia, Khurasan texts)
Recent publications (2020-2024) emphasize comparative Semitic phonology, language contact in Western Asia, and manuscript-based historical analysis. His work combines empirical field research with critical text editions.
- 1998: Elected Fellow of the British Academy at age 40
- 2004: Lidzbarski Gold Medal for Semitic philology
- 2011: Honorary Fellow of the Academy of the Hebrew Language
- 2014: Fellow of Academia Europea
- 2017-2018: Honorary doctorates from Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Uppsala University
Supervises Lina Brüssel on Medieval Karaite Transcriptions of Hebrew into Arabic Script. Current projects include Grammar of Biblical Hebrew updates for Oxford University Press and documenting Fatimid Nubia Arabic texts.
