Johannes A.P. Makar is an historian of the Modern Middle East, specializing in Arabic intellectual and cultural history. His first project, tentatively titled “The Forgotten Renaissance: Coptic Intellectuals and Cross-Confessional Politics in the Age of Reform,” investigates the rise of the Nahḍa (or “Arab Renaissance”) through the writings and citational practices of Coptic intellectuals in the period 1860-1910.

Johannes is finalizing his doctorate at the Departement of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations. He curates Coptica at Harvard, a bi-lingual platform aimed at making Harvard Library's Coptic collections more accessible. At Harvard, he has taught graduate and undergraduate students in Arabic, Arabic literature, Middle Eastern history, and Islamic studies. He has coordinated the Research Methods in Islamic Studies Workshop (2018-2022) and the Middle East Beyond Workshop (2018-2020).  

Johannes has held research fellowships at Stanford University’s Hoover Archives and the Institute of Eastern Christian Studies, Radboud University. He holds an MSc in Middle East Politics (SOAS, University of London), a BA in Arabic and Islamic Studies (Leuven University), and a BA in Philosophy (Leuven University).