Dan Ben-Amos

Professor

Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations

215.898.5857

damos@sas.upenn.edu

Dan Ben-Amos is trained in the comparatist tradition in Jerusalem and at Indiana University at Bloomington, brings a truly international perspective to the Folklore and Folklife graduate program. He is the editor of a series of translations of folklore classics, primarily from European scholars. Dan holds his faculty appointment in the Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations Department. Dan teaches History of Folklore Studies, Jewish Folklore, African Folklore, Prose Narrative, Proverb, Riddle and Speech Metaphor, Theories of Myth, Structural Analysis, and Ethnic Humor.

Education:

B.A. Hebrew University (1961); M.A. and Ph.D., Indiana University (1964, 1967)

Languages:

Hebrew, French, German

Research Interests:

Jewish Folklore; African Folklore; Prose Narrative; Proverbs; Theories of Myth.

Overseas Research Experience:

Israel, Nigeria

Representative Awards and Distinctions:

University of Pennsylvania Research Foundation (1989); American Council of Learned Societies grant (1984, 1978);  National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship ( 1980-81); John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship (1975); Smithsonian Research Foundation grant (1973).

Courses:
  • NELC 252: Themes in Jewish Tradition
  • NELC 254: Jewish Humor
  • NELC 258: Jewish Folklore
  • NELC 653: Folklore in the Hebrew Bible
  • NELC 682: Proverb, Riddle & Speech Metaphor
  • NELC 683: Theories of Myth
  • NELC 684: Prose Narrative