Jonathan Ratcliffe

Jonathan Ratcliffe serves as a Sessional Lecturer at the School of Culture, History and Language within the College of Asia and the Pacific at The Australian National University (ANU), specializing in interdisciplinary Asian studies with emphasis on Mongolian epic traditions and political history.

His academic credentials include:

• Bachelor's degree with Honours in Philosophy and Religious Studies from La Trobe University
• Master of Arts in Classics from Monash University
• PhD in Asian History from ANU, awarded for doctoral research on the political history of the Geser epic hero among Buryat Mongols during the 20th century

Ratcliffe's research integrates history, anthropology, mythology, philology, linguistics, epic narrative, folklore, and philosophy, with primary focus on the reception of Geser cycles recorded from Buryat uligershin Manshut Imegenov. His international fieldwork includes six months at Mongolia's National University in 2006 and a 2019 Visiting Fellowship at Inner Mongolia University, reflecting deep engagement with Mongolian cultural heritage and oral traditions.