Maria Reyes Baztán

Maria Reyes Baztán serves as College Assistant Professor in Spanish at the University of Cambridge's Faculty of Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics, where she is also Jean Sybil Dannatt Fellow in Modern and Medieval Languages and Director of Studies MML at Girton College. Her academic journey began with undergraduate studies at the Universitat de València, followed by postgraduate work at the University of Warwick where she completed both her MA and PhD.

Dr. Reyes Baztán's research critically examines the intersection of nationalism and anticolonialism, with particular focus on the Basque Country and Cuba. Her groundbreaking work challenges Eurocentric approaches to nationalism by highlighting transnational ideas that emerged outside Europe. She is currently completing her first monograph under contract with Liverpool University Press, which explores anticolonial language and rhetoric within Basque nationalism from the 1890s to 1930s. Her additional research on food and nation-building has garnered media attention from major outlets including The Times.

Her scholarly contributions span multiple publications including articles in the Journal of Contemporary History (2023) and Journal of Latin American and Iberian Studies (2021), with forthcoming work in the Routledge Companion to Language and Food. Her research on Cuban history has been informed by fieldwork in Eastern Cuba, reflecting her commitment to both theoretical and experiential understanding of the cultures she studies.

As an educator, Dr. Reyes Baztán has taught Spanish and Latin American culture across several UK institutions including the University of Nottingham (2021-22) and University of Reading (2022-23), where her exceptional teaching was recognized through student nomination for a teaching award. Her teaching expertise covers multiple course papers including SP1, SP4, and SP5 within the Cambridge curriculum.