Gregory Smits
Professor of History and Asian Studies
211 Weaver Building
University Park, PA 16802
Curriculum Vitae:
Education:
PhD, University of Southern California
MA, University of Hawaii
BA, University of Florida
Biography:
I have conducted research on a variety of topics and time periods. What they all have in common is a connection to Japan, broadly defined. Past research topics include, Confucianism, political economy, earthquakes, volcanoes, seismology, maritime networks, technology and environmental history. My current research focuses on the Ryukyu islands between the tenth and seventeenth centuries.
Recent Publications:
The Ryukyu Islands: A New History, Stone Age-2024 (tentative title). Forthcoming (estimated summer 2025). University of Chicago Press.
Early Ryukyuan History: A New Model. University of Hawai’i Press, July 2024. ISBN 9780824897635.
“Earthquakes in Historical Context.” In De-Min Tao and Gary P. Leupp, eds., The Tokugawa World (Routledge, 2021): 99-116.
Maritime Ryukyu, 1050-1650. University of Hawai’i Press, January 2019. ISBN 9780824873370 (Paperback, February 29, 2020, ISBN 9780824884277).
Recent Courses:
HIST 010 – World History I
HIST 011 – World History II
HIST 122 – History of Science I
HIST 123 – History of Science II