About
Simcha Gross is an Assistant Professor of Ancient Rabbinics at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Arts & Sciences. His research focuses on ancient and early medieval Jewish history, particularly Babylonian Jews under Sasanian and Islamic rule, and Syriac Christianity. He holds fellowships from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Israel Institute for Advanced Studies, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, and Harvard University's Center for Jewish Studies.
Education: PhD in Religious Studies from Yale University (2017).
Research Interests: He examines Jewish communities in late antiquity within Persian and Islamic contexts, Syriac Christian-Jewish intersections, and the cultural dynamics of ancient empires. His work includes studies on religious conversion, imperial policies, and textual analysis of martyrdom narratives.
Publications: Includes a monograph on Babylonian Jews and Sasanian imperialism (Cambridge UP, 2024), a co-authored translation of a Syriac martyr act (2016), and an edited volume on Jewish-Syriac Christian relations (2020).
Awards:
- Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fellowship
- Alexander von Humboldt Foundation Fellowship
- Harvard University Center for Jewish Studies Fellowship
Teaching & Grants: Teaches courses on Jewish history, Syriac Christianity, and ancient empires. Previously taught at UC Irvine (2017–2019) and Stanford University (2016).
