Adrian Wanner

Adrian Wanner is Distinguished Professor of Slavic Languages and Comparative Literature at Pennsylvania State University. His main appointment is in the Department of Germanic and Slavic Languages and Literatures, where he served as department head from 2000 to 2008 and currently directs the Russian Program. He has been teaching at Penn State since 1996.

• PhD, Columbia University, 1992
• MA, University of Zurich, 1987

Wanner's research focuses on Russian literature, translation studies, and translingual diaspora fiction. His original interests included symbolism, literary relations between Russia and Western Europe, the prose poem, and utopian studies. More recently, he has concentrated on literature by contemporary Russian-Jewish émigré authors writing in French, German, English, and Hebrew, as well as on self-translation phenomena. He is also an active translator of poetry, having published six bilingual editions of Russian, Romanian, and Ukrainian poetry in German verse translation.

Wanner's publications reveal a strong trend toward examining cross-cultural literary exchanges, particularly between Russian literature and other European traditions. His work often explores how literary forms and ideas transform when crossing linguistic and cultural boundaries, with special attention to translation practices and diasporic writing. His research spans from 19th century Russian reception of Baudelaire to contemporary translingual writing by Russian émigrés.

As an active scholar and translator, Wanner has made significant contributions to Slavic literary studies and comparative literature.

Wanner has served in significant leadership roles within his department, having been head of the Department of Germanic and Slavic Languages and Literatures from 2000 to 2008. He currently directs the Russian Program at Penn State, indicating ongoing administrative responsibilities alongside his research and teaching duties. His extensive publication record suggests successful grant support for his research projects, particularly those involving translation and cross-cultural literary studies.

While specific laboratory or research team information isn't provided in the available materials, Wanner's work with émigré authors and self-translation suggests collaboration with scholars across multiple linguistic and national traditions.