Scholarship and Biography

Works on the social history of early modern Europe (c. 1450 to c. 1750), especially in comparative perspective with Indo-Islamic and East Asian civilizations. He is most interested in rural Germany, and in particular in the role of criminal and civil legal institutions in the daily life of the peasantry.

Honors

Doctoral Fellowship
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (Canada, Ottawa) - SSHRC, 1989
DAAD Fellowship
University of Regensburg (Germany, Regensburg), 1989
DAAD Fellowship for Archival Research
University of Augsburg (Germany, Augsburg), 1991
Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, Harvard University CUE Guide
Harvard University (United States, Cambridge), 1995
Gross Dissertation Prize in History
Harvard University (United States, Cambridge), 1995
Michael L. Walzer '56 Award for Teaching
Brandeis University (United States, Waltham), 1999-2000
Marver and Sheva Bernstein Faculty Fellowship
Brandeis University (United States, Waltham), 2000-2001
Faculty Fellowship
National Endowment for the Humanities (United States, Washington D.C.) - NEH, 2001
Theodore and Jane Norman Award for Faculty Scholarship
Brandeis University (United States, Waltham), 2006
Jeannette Lerman-Neubauer ’69 Prize for Excellence in Teaching and Mentoring
Brandeis University (United States, Waltham), 2021
Senior Faculty Research Leave
Brandeis University (United States, Waltham), 2024

Organizational Affiliations

Associate Professor of History, Department of History, Brandeis University

Affiliated Faculty, Interdepartmental Program in European Cultural Studies, Brandeis University

Affiliated Faculty, Interdepartmental Program in Medieval and Renaissance Studies, Brandeis University

Affiliated Faculty, Interdepartmental Program in South Asian Studies, Brandeis University

Education

Harvard University
Ph.D.
Harvard University
M.A.