Karel van der Toorn

Karel van der Toorn (1956) is Faculty Professor of Religion and Society in the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Amsterdam. After a career as professor of ancient religions in the Universities of Utrecht and Leiden (1985-1998), van der Toorn served as dean of the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Amsterdam (1998-2004). From 2006-2011 he was president of the University of Amsterdam and the University of Applied Sciences of Amsterdam. 

Throughout his academic career, Karel van der Toorn has combined teaching and research with high-level administration. His long-standing interest in the ancient Near East, with a focus on the Hebrew Bible in its cultural context, has led to such books as Family Religion in Babylonia, Syria, and Israel (1996) and Scribal Culture and the Making of the Hebrew Bible (2007). Since 2011, his research has shifted to religion in the contemporary world, all the while maintaining a strong presence in the field of Oriental Studies. He is currently working on a monograph on religion in the modern democracy, with special attention for India, Turkey, France, and the U.S.

Van der Toorn was recipient of the Kluwer Prize for his books Sin and Sanction in Israel and Mesopotamia (1985) and From Her Cradle to Her Grave: Religion in the Life of the Babylonian and the Israelite Woman (1989). The Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible (1995, 2nd edition 1998), for which he acted as managing editor, was acclaimed as “best book of the year” by Choice. As author of Scribal Culture (2007), van der Toorn was a finalist of the Independent Publisher Book Awards. The Society of Biblical Archaelogy awarded him its 2008 prize for the best publication of the year in the field of ancient Israel.

Van der Toorn is a member of the North American Biblical Colloquium. In 2012, he was distinguished as Commandeur dans l’Ordre du Mérite by the French president.