Astrid Köhler

Professor Astrid Köhler is a Professor of German Literature and Comparative Cultural Studies at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL), serving as Co-Head of the Department of Modern Languages and Cultures and Head of German Studies. She holds a doctorate from the Free University of Berlin and studied in Jena. Her research spans two key areas: the cultural history of 18^th–19^th-century Europe and contemporary German literature, with a focus on East German authors and European spa culture. She is a co-editor of ANGERMION, the yearbook of the Centre for Anglo-German Cultural Relations, which she also convenes. Notable works include the biography of Klaus Schlesinger (2011), a critical edition of Uwe Johnson’s Mutmaßungen über Jakob, and an edition of Adolf Endler’s poems. Her translation work covers historical narrative, experimental prose, and poetry.

Her teaching includes modules on German and comparative literature, cultural history, and literary translation. She leads interdisciplinary research on European spa culture since 2019 and has published extensively on salons, public rituals, and literary journals of the early 19^th century.