Dr. Sophia Dege-Müller is a scholar of Ethiopian Studies specialising in Ethiopian manuscript cultures, the literary traditions of the Beta Israel, and interreligious relations in medieval Ethiopia. Her research focuses particularly on the cataloguing and study of Ethiopian manuscripts, Jewish–Christian relations, and the formation of religious identities. She is currently pursuing her habilitation at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München with a comprehensive catalogue of Beta Israel manuscripts.
Areas of Interest
Ethiopian manuscripts and manuscript cataloguing; Beta Israel and their literary traditions; Jewish–Christian relations; interreligious encounters and identity formation in Ethiopia.
Historical Periods of Interest
Medieval and early modern Ethiopia, with a particular focus on the early Solomonic period and the historical and literary traditions of the Beta Israel.
Positions
Since 02/2025
Research Associate in the project “Understanding the ‘Kingdom of the Gideonites’: The Shaping of the Memory of Ethiopia’s Jewish Kingdom and Its Impact on Ethiopian Jewish Identity Discourse, Past and Present,” funded by the German-Israeli Foundation, 2025–2027.
Since 01/2023
Scientific Coordinator of “BeInf: The Connected Histories of Ethiopic and Syriac Christianity,” Universität Hamburg, ERC Consolidator Grant, 2022–2027.
06/2021–06/2024
Research Associate in the project “Demarginalizing Medieval Africa: Images, Texts, and Identity in Early Solomonic Ethiopia (1270–1527),” Universität Hamburg.
Since 03/2021
Member of the editorial team of the journal <em>Aethiopica</em>.
10/2015–09/2020
Research Associate in the project “Jews and Christians in the East: Strategies of Interaction between the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean,” Ruhr-Universität Bochum, ERC Consolidator Grant.
01/2013–12/2014
Research Associate in the project “Ethio-SPaRe: Cultural Heritage of Christian Ethiopia. Salvation, Preservation, Research,” Universität Hamburg, Hiob Ludolf Centre for Ethiopian and Eritrean Studies, ERC Starting Grant.
06/2009–12/2012
Assistant Editor of the <em>Encyclopaedia Aethiopica</em>, Universität Hamburg, Hiob Ludolf Centre for Ethiopian and Eritrean Studies.
Education
Since 02/2026
Habilitation project, “Comprehensive Catalogue of Beta Israel Manuscripts,” Institute for the Near and Middle East, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München.
06/2009–10/2023
PhD in Ethiopian Studies, Universität Hamburg, Department of African and Ethiopian Studies. Dissertation: “Die Angelologie der Aksimaros-Literatur. Aufnahme und Anwendung eines literarischen Motivs.”
10/2003–05/2009
Magister Artium in Ethiopian Studies, with minors in Comparative Religious Studies and the History of the Natural Sciences, Universität Hamburg, Department of African and Ethiopian Studies.
