Sebastian Demuth

Sebastian Demuth is an Associate Researcher and Lecturer in the Department of Chinese Studies at the University of Tübingen. He completed his Ph.D. in 2023 with a dissertation on Li Zhi (1527-1602) and Late Ming historiography. He has held academic positions since 2013, including roles at Adam Mickiewicz University and as Interim Managing Director at the European Centre for Chinese Studies (ECCS) in Peking.

• MA in Sinology/Chinese Studies (2013), University of Tübingen
• BA in Sinology/Chinese Studies (2009), University of Tübingen

His research focuses on Ming-era intellectual history, cartography, and cross-cultural transmission of Western science to China. He collaborates on translations of Ming-era texts like Kunyu gezhi and Taixi shuifa, and explores concepts such as gonglun (public discourse) and tianming (Mandate of Heaven). Current projects include analyzing his great-grandfather’s role in the Boxer Uprising and translating the Qing science fiction novel Tales of the Moon Colony.

Scientific awards include scholarships from the Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation (2018) and an ERC grant (2016-17). He has taught Chinese language, history, and politics at the Ev. Gymnasium Doberlug-Kirchhain (2023) and contributed to academic publications on Late Ming geographical compilations.