Thomas Heine Nielsen

Thomas Heine Nielsen serves as Associate Professor at the SAXO Institute within the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Copenhagen. His research centers on ancient Greek cultural history, with special focus on city-state culture, inter-city-state interactions, social history of Greek athletics, religion, archaeology, and literary genres.

His primary research areas include:

• Greek city-state political dynamics
• Social history of Greek athletics (particularly Olympic Games)
• Greek religious practices and archaeological evidence
• Epic poetry and historical literature traditions

Current projects involve authoring a book on ancient Olympics through Joseph Nye's soft power theory and producing related scholarly articles. He actively engages public audiences through antiquity-focused podcasts and media appearances.

Teaching responsibilities encompass comprehensive instruction across classical studies:

• Greek Language Studies and Poetry
• Ancient Poetry in Translation
• Greek Archaeology, Material Culture and Art History
• Greek History, Historiography and Rhetoric
• Specialized modules on Olympia, Delphi, and Athenian Democracy