Bryan Averbuch (he/him/his)

My teaching and research focuses on Indo-Pacific (maritime Southeast Asian and Indian Ocean) history and area studies. My fascination with this vast and diverse region began with an abiding interest in cross-cultural trade in global history, particularly the Spice Trade and the Silk Routes. Other thematic interests of mine include Islamic history, which is closely intertwined with that of the Indian Ocean, and piracy. The latter interest has naturally taken me into other oceans and seas, particularly the Caribbean and the Mediterranean.   

My Ph.D. dissertation explored ways in which the Indo-Pacific spice trade transformed the culture and expanded the geographical horizons of the early Islamic Middle East, while setting the stage for the advent of Islam across maritime India and Southeast Asia. Since then, I have published articles on the Spice Trade in Southeast Asia and the Port of Sohar in Oman. 

My current book project is Historical Dutch for Reading Knowledge, co-authored with Frans Blom and Wijnie de Groot (John Benjamins, Forthcoming). This primer will help scholars learn the skills necessary to read and explore sources in early modern Dutch, which are critically important for Indo-Pacific history as well as a wide variety of other fields.

Prior to my current teaching at UW, I taught at the City University of New York's College of Staten Island. I earned my Ph.D. from Harvard University, and my M.A. and B.A. from the University of Washington in Seattle.