Institute of History and Philology, Academia Sinica

Academician Dr. Fan-sen Wang, distinguished research fellow of the IHP, has been awarded the 2023 Humboldt Research Award by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Germany, becoming the first Taiwanese scholar in the field of humanities to receive this honor.

Dr. Wang’s research interests include the intellectual, cultural, and academic history as well as historiography of the period stretching from the Ming and Qing dynasties to modern China. In recent years, he has also extended his research to China’s so-called “neo-traditional period,” including the political meanings of the rational learning of Song dynasty neo-Confucianism. Over the course of his academic career, Dr. Wang has published twelve scholarly books and more than one hundred book chapters, articles, etc., the most significant of which include Chang T’ai-yen and His World (in Chinese, 1985), The Rise of the Ku-shih-pien Movement (in Chinese, 1987), Fu Ssu-nien: A Life in Chinese History and Politics (in English, 2000), Genealogy of Modern Chinese Thought (in Chinese, 2003), The Capillary Effects of Power: Intellectual, Mentality and Scholarship in the Ch’ing Period (in Chinese, 2013), and Thinking as a Way of Life (in Chinese, 2017), to name just a few.

The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation was initially established in 1860. Its functions and development have gone through various turning points until being re-established by the government of the Federal Republic of Germany in 1953, and it has become one of the most important foundations in Germany. The Humboldt Research Award, conferred by the Foundation, is one of the most prestigious honors in Germany for internationally renowned scientists and scholars who live and work outside of Germany in recognition of their entire academic record to date. Recipients are “academics whose fundamental discoveries, new theories or insights have had a significant impact on their own discipline and who are expected to continue producing cutting-edge academic achievements in the future.” The Humboldt Research Award for U.S. Senior Scientists was launched in 1972 as a thank you to the United States for its support in rebuilding German science after the Second World War. Since 1972, however, scholars worldwide have been eligible, with the majority of recipients being in the fields of natural sciences and social sciences, making winners in the field of humanities relatively rare. The Award, which is presented by the president of Germany, is currently valued at €60,000. In addition, recipients are invited to carry out research projects of their own choice in cooperation with specialist colleagues in Germany, promoting international scientific cooperation. Dr. Wang will be traveling to Germany in June 2024 to accept the Award.

Reference: http://www.humboldt-foundation.de/web/home.html