Meet our speaker - Marcin Jacoby

Marcin Jacoby

Marcin Jacoby

SWPS University

Marcin Jacoby

SWPS University

BIO

Sinologist, translator, literary scholar. An expert on political and social issues of the East Asian region, especially China and the Republic of Korea. He is interested in the historical and cultural sources of the transformations and processes taking place in this region of the world. Academically, he specializes in Chinese classical literature and ancient Chinese culture. He is fluent in modern and classical Chinese, and translates works of Chinese literature into Polish.

From 2017 to 2021, he headed the International Office of SWPS University. From 2008 to 2017, he worked at the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, where he headed the Asia Project. At the same time, he was employed at the Department of Sinology of the Faculty of Oriental Studies at the University of Warsaw as an assistant professor. From 2002 to 2008, he worked at the Oriental Art Collection of the National Museum in Warsaw. He was also an interpreter from English and Chinese.

He is the author of the scholarly monograph „The Art of Persuasion in Ancient China. Allegorical Storytelling in the Warring States Period (453-221 B.C.)” (2018) and highly acclaimed popular science publications about East Asia: „China Without Makeup” (2016, 2021), „South Korea. Republic of the Elements” (2018). Popularizer of knowledge about Asia, in 2020-2022 host of the webinar series „Project Asia” in the Zone of Cultures at SWPS University, co-author of a textbook for learning Chinese: „Modern Chinese. I speak and write Chinese” (2008). Dr. Marcin Jacoby, Professor at SWPS University, is currently researching the ancient work „Lüshi chunqiu” and heading one of the research teams in the international grant „China Horizons” (2022-2025) on modern China, funded by the European Commission.

At SWPS University, she serves as Dean of the Faculty of Humanities, and heads the Department of Asian Studies and the Center for East Asian Civilizations. She teaches courses on China and East Asia: literature and culture and art.