Dr Christopher Degelmann has received the prestigious Heinz Maier-Leibnitz-Preis 2024 from the Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation). He is one of ten scientists to be honoured with the most important award for researchers in the early stages of their careers for outstanding achievements. The award is endowed with 200,000 euros and is intended to support the recipients in pursuing their scientific careers.
Christopher Degelmann has been a visiting professor of Ancient History at Humboldt-Universit?t zu Berlin (HU) since 2023. With this award, the DFG recognises the fact that the 38-year-old ancient historian combines historical and contemporary issues and thus makes the significance of our ancient heritage accessible to our modern self-image. "Conversely, he knows how to change perspectives in a novel way by using contemporary issues as a key to the ancient heritage," the jury said in its statement.
"We are delighted that Dr Christopher Degelmann has been awarded the Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Prize. We are very proud to have such a scientist at our university who, in the good tradition of our university since Wilhelm von Humboldt, shows that the humanities make a significant contribution to understanding social processes and successful coexistence in societies. His outstanding research results honour both the award winner and the university. I offer my warmest congratulations," says Christoph Schneider, Vice President for Research at HU.
Prof. Dr Dr h.c. mult. Christoph Markschies, President of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BBAW): "Christopher Degelmann shows that ancient studies work that utilises the entire wealth of often little-known sources that have come down to us and interprets them with a high level of philological and historical competence can be very topical - he is interested, for example, in why political communication is influenced by fake news or how a society can cope with uncertainty. In this way, he brings antiquity right into the present without concealing the differences to our present day. I am delighted that this colleague, a member of the Junge Akademie supported by the BBAW and the Leopoldina, who is as clever as he is friendly, has been honoured by the DFG with the prestigious Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Prize 2024."
About the prizewinner
Christopher Degelmann studied European History at Chemnitz University of Technology and Ancient Religions at the University of Erfurt. While a staff member at Georg-August-Universit?t G?ttingen, he completed his doctorate at the Max Weber College for Social and Cultural Studies. In 2017 and 2018, he was an assistant professor (Juniorprofessor) for Antiquity and Europe at Chemnitz University of Technology. In 2021, Christopher Degelmann won the 5th Antiquity Slam of the BBAW. The ancient historian is a member of various research groups and networks and has been leading the project "Postfactuality in pre-modern communities?" in the postdoctoral programme of the Daimler and Benz Foundation since 2023. Christopher Degelmann has been a visiting professor of Ancient History at Humboldt-Universit?t zu Berlin (HU) since 2023.