Jos J.L. Gommans

Jos J.L. Gommans serves as Professor of Colonial and Global History at Leiden University, a position he has held since 2011. Previously, he was Associate Professor of South Asian History at the same institution since 1993. His academic career includes a visiting professorship at The College of William and Mary in Virginia (2008) and doctoral research funded by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) from 1989-1993.

Professor Gommans' research spans multiple historical domains with particular expertise in South Asian history, Central Asian history, military history, and colonial history. His scholarly approach emphasizes global connections and comparative frameworks, especially through his examination of Eurasian empires and their interactions. His work has significantly contributed to understanding Mughal military organization, frontier dynamics in South Asia, and the broader patterns of Eurasian cosmopolitanism during the early modern period.

Gommans' extensive publication record reveals consistent thematic development across decades, with early work focusing on Indo-Afghan relations and Mughal military systems evolving toward broader comparative studies of Eurasian empires. His research demonstrates remarkable continuity in examining cross-cultural interactions, military organization, and imperial structures across different geographical contexts. The scholarly impact of his work is evident in its reproduction in Indian academic publications and citations by prominent historians like Sanjay Subrahmanyam and Jeremy Black.

Notable honors:

• Horizon Project (NWO) on Eurasian Empires: Integration Processes and Identity Formations (€2 million grant)

Gommans has maintained significant editorial leadership, serving as editor/editor-in-chief of the Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient from 2000-2010 and currently sitting on the editorial boards of Itinerario and the Rijksmuseum Bulletin. His current research direction, as co-director of both the NWO-Horizon project on Eurasian Empires and the Cosmopolis-programme, reflects his continued commitment to global and connective historical approaches that bridge regional specializations.