Prof. Dr. Max Oidtmann

Professor of Chinese and Central Asian History

Ph.D. 2014 Harvard University, History and East Asian Languages
M.A. 2007 Harvard University, Regional Studies East Asia
B.A. 2001 Carleton College

I am a historian of China during the "late imperial period" (roughly 1400 through the early 20th century). I investigate in how China-based states such as the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1636-1912) interacted with neighboring states and societies, as well as how they governed their own diverse populations. Simultaneously, I am curious about how non-Chinese subjects of the Ming and Qing states made sense of their inclusion within these great empires and how their culture and social structures changed over time.

In more concrete terms, I have been studying 1) the relationship between Tibetan Buddhist elites and the Qing government and 2) the local religious and legal cultures of Tibetans, Mongols, Muslims, and Chinese who lived in the borderlands between the Tibetan plateau and the north China plains (areas now referred to as Gansu and Qinghai provinces).

At LMU I teach a broad range of courses on the history of China and Central Asia from late imperial times to the present. I offer lectures on the "Politics and Society of Late Imperial China" and seminars on diverse topics such as comparative studies of Xinjiang and Uzbekistan, the PRC and the Soviet Union, Tibetan history, Islam in China, Chinese legal and administrative history, Ming and Qing vernacular literature, and the religious and minority affairs policies of the Chinese Communist Party. I train students at the BA, MA, and PhD levels to read primary sources in Chinese, Manchu, and Tibetan, as well as employ the methodological tools of historians.

For prospective PhD candidates

I am willing to mentor doctoral students working on topics related to the cultural, social, legal, economic, environmental, and/or religious history of China and Central Asia from the 1400s to the present. I review applications for admission into the PhD program on a twice-yearly basis, October 1 (for candidates who wish to begin in the next summer semester) and March 1 (for candidates who wish to begin in the next winter semester). Applicants can expect a response within two weeks from the application deadlines.

Prospective candidates should submit the following materials to Promotion bei Prof. Oidtmann. Cover letter, research proposal with bibliography, and CV. Applicants should also be prepared to submit confidential letters of recommendation if requested. All candidates must clearly demonstrate that they have received adequate training to successfully research and write a dissertation in the discipline of history using primary sources. Limited funding is available for exceptional applicants.

Disciplinary Sovereignty: The Qing State-Idea, Borderland Governance, and the Dowa-Junwang Case, 1876-1882, co-authored with Rong Zhang 長榮, T’oung Pao Monographs v. 17, Brill, forthcoming, 2027.

“The Laws of Güüshri Khan and the Kökenuur Assembly,” in Tibetan Rulers: Traditional Practices and Historic Ideologies, edited by Fernanda Pirie, Ian MacCormack, & Danial Wohjan, 127-159. Vajra Academic, 2026.

“The Xi Jinping Cohort and the Chinafication of Religion,” The Berkeley Center, https://berkleycenter.georgetown.edu/posts/regulating-religion-in-china (March 16, 2020).

Forging the Golden Urn: Qing Empire and the Politics of Reincarnation in Tibet 《金瓶鑄就: 大清帝國與活佛轉世》, monograph, Columbia University Press, July 2018. Winner of the E. Gene Smith Inner Asian Book Prize, Association for Asian Studies, 2020.

“新清史与安多区域史研究” (New Qing History and research on the regional history of Amdo), 江汉论坛 Jianghan luntan 2017 v. 3: 49-52.

“Overlapping Empires: Religion, Politics, and Ethnicity in 19th Century Qinghai,” Late Imperial China, 37.2 (December 2016): 41-91.

“A ‘Dog-eat-dog’ World: Qing Jurispractices and the Legal Inscription of Piety in Amdo,” Extrême-Orient Extrême-Occident 40 (November 2016): 151-182.

“A Case for Gelukpa Governance: A Historian of Labrang Monastery, Amdo, and the Manchu Rulers of China.” In Greater Tibet: An Examination of Borders, Ethnic Boundaries, and Cultural Areas, edited by Paul Christiaan Klieger, 111-148. Lanham: Lexington Books, 2016.

“经世派、格鲁派史学家与19世纪清朝青海论争变化” (Qing Era Statecraft Scholars, Geluk Historians, and the 19th Century Debate over the Future of Qinghai), 青海民族研究 Qinghai minzu yanjiu 26.3 (July, 2015): 137-143.

“A Study of Qing Dynasty ‘Xiejia’ Rest Houses in Xunhua Subprefecture, Gansu,” coauthored with Yang Hongwei. In Muslims in Amdo Tibetan Society: Multi-Disciplinary Approaches, edited by Paul Nietupski, Bianca Horlemann, and Marie-Paule Hill, 21-46. Lanham: Lexington Books, 2015.

“Imperial Legacies and Revolutionary Legends: The Sibe Cavalry Company, the Eastern Turkestan Republic, and Historical Memories in Xinjiang,” Saksaha: The Journal of Manchu Studies, 12 (November, 2014): 49-87

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1. Gesellschaft, Staat und Wirtschaft Chinas (GSW) VL (Dienstag 16:00-18:00)

Dieser Kurs bietet einen Überblick über Staat, Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft des heutigen China. Gleichzeitig ist dieser Kurs auch eine Einführung in das Studium Chinas. Wir werden nicht nur untersuchen, was zeitgenössische Menschen in China über ihre Gesellschaft und Geschichte sagen, sondern diese Aussagen auch im Lichte der sinologischen Forschung analysieren. Da wir in erster Linie als Historiker arbeiten, werden wir zeitgenössische Behauptungen über die chinesische Gesellschaft (ihre Vergangenheit und Zukunft) mit historischen Belegen vergleichen. Da es sich bei der Sinologie um ein internationales Studienfach handelt, an dem Wissenschaftler aus der ganzen Welt (und vor allem aus China) beteiligt sind, wir dieser Kurs in einer Mischung aus Deutsch und Englisch abgehalten. In den Vorlesungen werden zudem auch wichtige chinesische Fachbegriffe eingeführt und erklärt. Die Sinologie ist außerdem ein multidisziplinäres Fach, das Wirtschaft, Anthropologie, Soziologie, Religionswissenschaft, Philosophie, Geschichte, Literatur, Kunst und sogar Umweltwissenschaften umfasst, so dass wir versuchen werden, ein breites Spektrum an Analyseinstrumenten auf das Studium China anzuwenden. Es gibt zwei Übungskurse zu den Vorlesungen, in denen sowohl das Verständnis für die Schlüsselthemen vertieft und die Analyse von den Primärquellen geübt werden.

2. Critical Issues and Debates in the Study of Late Imperial China, Hauptseminar (für MA und PhD, Mittwoch, 12:00-14:00)

Why study the history of late imperial China? How has the field evolved since WWII? What have been the major debates and methodological approaches to the study of Chinese society during this period? Where is the field now? What are scholars currently working on? The purpose of this seminar is to provide you with a better sense of how your own research interests fit into the world of professional scholarship on China and prepare you to join ongoing debates and research conversations. This seminar represents an opportunity to not only read widely in the field of late imperial China but also learn about the state of the profession. We will examine the historical development of scholarship on Chinese history and consider a range of methodological approaches to both researching and writing about Chinese society. We will also pay particular attention to the ways in which scholars and scholarship outside of China have/had interacted with scholars and scholarship within China.

3. Qing History Colloqium (für MA und PhD, abwechselnd Feitags, 10:30-14:30)