معرفی
Christian Mann is Professor and Chair of Ancient History at the Historical Institute, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Mannheim. He has been in this position since 2011, following research and teaching roles at Freiburg, Frankfurt, Brown University, Konstanz, and Basel.
He earned his PhD in 1999 with a thesis on the political significance of athletes in early Greek polis formation and completed his habilitation in 2005 on demagogues in democratic Athens. His research spans Greek and Roman history, with a focus on ancient sports (MAFAS project), political culture, populism, and the social roles of athletes. He examines how ancient athletic competitions functioned as mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion, and draws parallels between classical demagoguery and modern populism.
His recent work includes a 2023–2024 Opus Magnum scholarship from the Volkswagen Foundation to write Greek Athletes: A Social History. He is co-editor of KLIO and a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Gerda Henkel Foundation. His publications from 1998 to 2024 cover topics such as gladiatorial games, equestrian competitions, democratic theory, and religious aspects of sport.
His recent articles reveal a strong trend in analyzing athletic competitions as social institutions intertwined with politics, religion, and identity. He frequently employs epigraphic and literary sources to explore honor systems, talent promotion, and cross-cultural comparisons, particularly between Greek, Roman, and Jewish traditions.
- Opus Magnum scholarship, Volkswagen Foundation (2023/24)
Christian Mann has supervised academic projects and interdisciplinary seminars, such as the Mannheim Hall of Antiquities (2016) and a seminar on Karl Popper’s Open Society (2019). He has received external research funding, notably the Opus Magnum grant, supporting extended scholarly writing. There is no public list of his advisees in the provided text.
He leads the MAFAS (Mannheim Research Focus on Ancient Sports) initiative, which investigates the sociopolitical dimensions of athletic competition in antiquity. His chair fosters interdisciplinary collaboration, as seen in joint seminars with colleagues from other departments.
