Odd Arne Westad
Encyclopedia
Odd Arne Westad FBA
(born, Aalesund, 5 January 1960) is a Norwegian
historian
specialising in the Cold War
and contemporary East Asia
n history
.
After studying as an undergraduate at the University of Oslo
, Westad attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
to work on his Ph.D under Professor Michael H. Hunt. He was appointed Director of Research at the Norwegian Nobel Institute
and Adjunct Professor of History at the University of Oslo
in 1991. In 1998, he left Oslo to join the International History Department at the LSE, where he also worked in the LSE Asia Research Centre before becoming Head of Department 2004-2007.
Westad is currently Professor of International History at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)
and co-director of LSE IDEAS
, the LSE's centre for international affairs, diplomacy and strategy, together with Professor Michael Cox
. Westad speaks and writes in a number of languages, including his native Norwegian
, English
, French
, German
, Mandarin and Russian
. He is a very well known lecturer in several countries, both on history and on contemporary international affairs, especially with regard to China and East Asia.
Westad's book, The Global Cold War: Third World Interventions and the Making of Our Times, won the 2006 Bancroft Prize
, the Michael Harrington Prize of the American Political Science Association, and the Akira Iriye International History Book Award. It was also shortlisted for the Council on Foreign Relations' Arthur Ross Award for the best book published in the last two years on international affairs .
Westad is the editor of the University of North Carolina Press's book series on the Cold War and founding editor of the journal Cold War History.
As well as his work at the London School of Economics, Westad has held Visiting Fellowships at Cambridge University, Hong Kong University and New York University
. He has received major grants for research from the British Arts and Humanities Research Board and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. He also worked as the International Coordinator of the Russian Foreign Ministry
's Advisory Group on Declassification and Archival Access.. In 2011 he was nominated for president of the American Historical Association.
Westad has published thirteen books on international history and contemporary international affairs, including an updated version of The New Penguin History of the World. He is a co-editor of the three-volume Cambridge History of the Cold War, with Professor Melvyn Leffler of the University of Virginia
., published in 2010. His new book, on the history of Chinese foreign affairs since 1750, will be published in 2012.
He was elected a fellow of the british academy in 2011.
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
(born, Aalesund, 5 January 1960) is a Norwegian
Norwegians
Norwegians constitute both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway. They share a common culture and speak the Norwegian language. Norwegian people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in United States, Canada and Brazil.-History:Towards the end of the 3rd...
historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
specialising in the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
and contemporary East Asia
East Asia
East Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms...
n history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
.
After studying as an undergraduate at the University of Oslo
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...
, Westad attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
to work on his Ph.D under Professor Michael H. Hunt. He was appointed Director of Research at the Norwegian Nobel Institute
Norwegian Nobel Institute
The Norwegian Nobel Institute was established in 1904 in Kristiania , Norway.The principal duty of the Nobel Institute is to assist the Norwegian Nobel Committee in the task of selecting the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize and to organize the annual Nobel event in Oslo.The institute is situated...
and Adjunct Professor of History at the University of Oslo
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...
in 1991. In 1998, he left Oslo to join the International History Department at the LSE, where he also worked in the LSE Asia Research Centre before becoming Head of Department 2004-2007.
Westad is currently Professor of International History at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
and co-director of LSE IDEAS
LSE IDEAS
LSE IDEAS is a research centre for the study of international affairs, diplomacy and grand strategy at the London School of Economics . It was founded by Prof Michael Cox and Prof Arne Westad in 2008. Its pre-cursor was the Cold War Studies Centre , also co-founded by Prof Cox and Prof Westad.LSE...
, the LSE's centre for international affairs, diplomacy and strategy, together with Professor Michael Cox
Michael Cox (academic)
Michael E. Cox is a British academic and international relations scholar. He is currently a professor of international relations at the London School of Economics , where he is Co-Director of LSE IDEAS...
. Westad speaks and writes in a number of languages, including his native Norwegian
Norwegian language
Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, Mandarin and Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
. He is a very well known lecturer in several countries, both on history and on contemporary international affairs, especially with regard to China and East Asia.
Westad's book, The Global Cold War: Third World Interventions and the Making of Our Times, won the 2006 Bancroft Prize
Bancroft Prize
The Bancroft Prize is awarded each year by the trustees of Columbia University for books about diplomacy or the history of the Americas. It was established in 1948 by a bequest from Frederic Bancroft...
, the Michael Harrington Prize of the American Political Science Association, and the Akira Iriye International History Book Award. It was also shortlisted for the Council on Foreign Relations' Arthur Ross Award for the best book published in the last two years on international affairs .
Westad is the editor of the University of North Carolina Press's book series on the Cold War and founding editor of the journal Cold War History.
As well as his work at the London School of Economics, Westad has held Visiting Fellowships at Cambridge University, Hong Kong University and New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
. He has received major grants for research from the British Arts and Humanities Research Board and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. He also worked as the International Coordinator of the Russian Foreign Ministry
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation is the central government institution charged with leading the foreign affairs of Russia. Its predecessor organisation is the Ministry of External Relations of the USSR...
's Advisory Group on Declassification and Archival Access.. In 2011 he was nominated for president of the American Historical Association.
Westad has published thirteen books on international history and contemporary international affairs, including an updated version of The New Penguin History of the World. He is a co-editor of the three-volume Cambridge History of the Cold War, with Professor Melvyn Leffler of the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
., published in 2010. His new book, on the history of Chinese foreign affairs since 1750, will be published in 2012.
He was elected a fellow of the british academy in 2011.