About
Professor James Gerien-Chen is a historian of modern Japan, China, and Taiwan in the Department of History at the University of Florida, holding a Ph.D. from Columbia University (2019). Previously, he served as the Dorothy Borg Postdoctoral Research Scholar at Columbia University's Weatherhead East Asian Institute.
His educational background:
- Ph.D. in History, Columbia University, 2019
Gerien-Chen specializes in comparative empires and imperialism, migration and diaspora, and borderlands and urban history. His current book project analyzes Japanese imperial expansion in colonial Taiwan and South China Sea port cities during the early 20th century, examining Japanese subject migration patterns and Sino-Japanese legal debates over nationality. This research demonstrates how mobility and legal categorization shaped Japanese imperialism, Chinese state formation, and overseas Chinese networks.
His scholarly contributions have been recognized through prestigious awards:
- Fulbright Program fellowship
- Social Science Research Council grant
- American Council of Learned Societies/Henry Luce Foundation support
At the University of Florida, he teaches survey courses on modern Japan and East Asia alongside specialized courses on empires, migration, borderlands, and capitalism, with office located in 204 Keene-Flint Hall (Phone: 352-392-0271).
