Dr Daniëlle Slootjes (1975) has been appointed professor of Ancient History at the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Amsterdam (UvA).
Slootjes' research is characterised by a multidisciplinary vision that is consciously discarding traditional boundaries between disciplines. Her work on the Roman Empire's administrative structures and geography has demonstrated how closely intertwined the late Roman and early medieval periods were. Her most recent research, into the universal phenomenon of collective behaviour in Greek, Roman and Byzantine cities, is ideally suited to a multidisciplinary approach. Slootjes is constantly on the lookout for connections between the traditional disciplines (philology, ancient history and archaeology) and the more modern concepts and methods from, for example, sociology, social psychology and social geography.
Intertwining of the Mediterranean area in antiquity
As a professor at the UvA, Slootjes will focus in particular on the connections between various chronological periods and geographical areas of the ancient Mediterranean area. Antiquity is often presented in a diachronic fashion with the help of the classical chronological categorisations of the Greek, Hellenistic and Roman worlds. Slootjes argues for a more integrated and synchronous approach, emphasising the interweaving of the classical world with the Ancient Near East, Egypt and the later Byzantine Empire. This integrated approach also allows for the history of the ancient Mediterranean area to be placed in a broader trans-regional perspective and related to the history of the Middle and Far East.
Slootjes' research will be embedded in the Amsterdam Centre for Urban History (AHUC) and will make use of the expertise of the Centre for Urban Studies (CUS).
About Daniëlle Slootjes
Since 2007, Slootjes has been working as an assistant professor of Ancient History in the History department of Radboud University. She recently developed and coordinated the new English-language Bachelor's programme Comparative European History. Partly due to her own positive experiences during many stays abroad, she has, in recent years, been very involved in the development of aninternational academic environment for students , characterised by an inclusive international classroom.
Slootjes has published numerous scientific articles and books, for the preparation of which she likes to collaborate with colleagues from all over the world. In addition, through (radio) interviews, public lectures, columns or educational projects, she has for many years been committed to a more intensive connection between universities and society. She recently (April 2021) organised two public activities during the 'Week of the Classics', in collaboration with the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden and colleagues from the US and China: 'Inclusive Antiquity' and 'Western Classics in China'.
