Grad Students
David Spielman
David B. Spielman is an Africanist and Ethiopian historian with a broader interest in the Horn of Africa. David’s research is focused on an Ethiopian Orthodox Christian legal text known as the Fətḥa Nägäśt (Law of Kings) and its practical application in Early-Modern Ethiopian society.
Field of Study
Africa
Subfield
Ethiopia
Eritrea
Horn of Africa
Red Sea
Christianity
Law/Canon Law
Legal Institutions
Research
David B. Spielman is an Africanist and Ethiopian historian with a broader interest in the Horn of Africa. David’s research is focused on an Ethiopian Orthodox Christian legal text known as the Fətḥa Nägäśt (Law of Kings) and its practical application in Early-Modern Ethiopian society.
Publications
Articles
- "Evidence of the Fetha Nägäśt's Broader Social Impact on Early Modern Ethiopian Society." In the Proceedings of the 20th International Conference of Ethiopian Studies 2018. Forthcoming.
Reviews
- Review of The Life and Struggles of Our Mother Walatta Petros: A Seventeenth Century African Biography of an Ethiopian Woman, by Galawdewos, translated and edited by Wendy Belcher and Michael Kleiner. Ufahamu: A Journal of African Studies 40, no. 1 (2018): 199-201.
Grants and Awards
- 2019-2020 Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Fellowship, U.S. Department of Education
- 2018 Hiob Ludolf Centre Summer School in Ethiopian and Eritrean Manuscript Studies-Travel Grant, Hiob Ludolf Centre for Ethiopian Studies, University of Hamburg
- 2017 Graduate Summer Research Mentorship Award, UCLA Graduate Division
Conference Presentations
Invited Lectures
- 2020 UCLA, "COVID-19 and the History of Epidemic Response in Ethiopia" (April 24, Fiatlux Zoominar, Global Health19-2.
Academic Conferences and Workshops
- 2020 University of Texas at Austin LILLAS Benson Webinar "Racism and Linguistic Diversity in K-16 Education" (July 16, 2020)
- 2020 Renaissance Society of America Conference: Session-Law and Politics in Early Modern Africa and the Mediterranean. "Without Interest: Prohibitions Against Usury in Gondarine Ethiopia." (April 2-4, 2020, Philadelphia, PA) *Cancelled COVID-19*
- 2018 20th International Conference of Ethiopian Studies: "Evidence of the Fetha Nägäśt's Broader Social Impact on Early Modern Ethiopian Society." (Oct. 1-5, 2018, Mekelle, Tigray, Ethiopia).
- 2018 Third Hiob Ludolf Centre Summer School in Ethiopian and Eritrean Manuscript Studies: "The Manuscript Heritage of Ethiopia: Theory and Practice." (Sept. 24-29, 2018, Axum Hotel, Mekelle,Tigray, Ethiopia).
Advisors
Degrees
C. Phil., UCLA, 2018
M.A., African Studies, UCLA, 2015
B.A., Afro-American Studies, African Studies Minor, 2014