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George Paul Meiu is a Professor of Anthropology and head of the Ethnological Seminar at the University of Basel. His research and teaching primarily focus on the political economy of sexuality, ethnicity, belonging, citizenship, and knowledge production. Drawing from extensive ethnographic fieldwork in East Africa and Eastern Europe, he explores desire, intimacy, and embodiment as pivotal aspects for understanding historical shifts in the global order. He is the author of two award-winning monographs: 'Ethno-erotic Economies: Sexuality, Money, Belonging in Kenya' (University of Chicago Press, 2017) highlights how the commercialization of ethnic sexuality transforms belonging and relationships among the Samburu people in Northern Kenya. His second book, 'Queer Objects Rescue: Intimacy Citizenship in Kenya' (University of Chicago Press, 2023), analyzes the emergence of homophobic violence linked to objects that indirectly construct the homosexual body as a target of rejection through rumor and political rhetoric. Meiu has published numerous articles in leading journals, including American Anthropologist and Cultural Anthropology, and has numerous contributions to edited volumes. He has a BA in Anthropology from Concordia University Montreal and an MA and PhD from the University of Chicago, where he received the Daniel F. Nugent Prize for the best dissertation in historical anthropology. Before joining Basel in 2022, he taught at Harvard University, specializing in Anthropology, African and African American studies.
University of Basel • Basel, Switzerland
Head of the Ethnological Seminar, engaged in teaching and research of anthropology focusing on sexuality, ethnicity, and political economy.
Harvard University • Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
Tenured Professor specializing in anthropology, African and African American studies.
The University of Basel generally requires C1 level proficiency in the language of instruction. For most English-taught Masters, TOEFL (min 92-95) or IELTS (min 7.0) is the standard.