Jana Mynářová

Jana Mynářová

e-mail: jana.mynarova@ff.cuni.cz

phone: +420 221 619 750

Professor of History and Cultures of Asia and Africa (since 2023) and Director of the Institute of Ancient Near Eastern Studies at the Faculty of Arts, Charles University (since 2022), specializing in Assyriology and Egyptology. Her research primarily focuses on the political, social, and economic history of the Near East and Egypt in the second millennium BC, ancient law and diplomacy, and interactions between the two regions. Her current work investigates the materiality of written documents (especially cuneiform tablets), the non-linguistic aspects of cuneiform writing during the Bronze and Iron Ages, and the archaeology of texts.

She is the author and editor of numerous articles and monographs, including Language of Amarna – Language of Diplomacy: Perspectives on the Amarna Letters (2007), and the Crossroads series (published in 2011, 2015, 2019, with a forthcoming volume in 2024). Since 2021, she has co-edited the Bulletin of ASOR.

Jana Mynářová earned her M.A. in Cuneiform Studies and Egyptology (2000) and PhD in Philology – Languages of Asia and Africa from Charles University (2004). Between 2001 and 2021, she was affiliated with the Czech Institute of Egyptology at the Faculty of Arts, Charles University (Associate Professor since 2015), and in 2022, she joined the Institute of Ancient Near Eastern Studies (formerly Institute of Comparative Linguistics). Since 2023, she has been a Fellow-by-Courtesy at the Department of Near Eastern Studies at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, USA.

 

Complete and updated bibliography and downloadable pdf files of selected publications are available in the profile at Academia.edu

 Education and Employment

2023: Full Professor of History and Cultures of Asia and Africa

2015: Associate Professor of Egyptology (theme: Communication and Exploitation. Egypt as an Integral Part of the Eastern Mediterranean in Antiquity)
2000–2004: Ph.D., Philology – Languages of Asia and Africa (Charles University in Prague, Ph.D. dissertation: Greeting Formulae in Peripheral Akkadian)

1995–2000: M.A. in Cuneiform Studies and Egyptology (Charles University in Prague, M.A. paper Akkadian Texts of the Egyptian Provenance from Tell el-Amarna)

 

Research Projects (as PI) and Fellowships  

2023–2025: Research Project “Archaeology of Texts. Tradition, Transmission, and Transformation in the Ancient Near East”, Czech Science Foundation, Project No. 23-05181S (in co-operation with Paul Delnero/JHU, Jacob Lauinger/JHU, Adam Miglio/Wheaton College, Maurizio Viano/UNITO)

2022: “Writing on the Fringe. Cuneiform Traditions in the Peripheries”, summer school on Peripheral Akkadian, Charles University, POINT/Bi/2021-2-006.

2018–2021: Research Project “Economic Complexity in the Ancient Near East. Management of Resources and Taxation in the 3rd and 2nd millennium BC”, Czech Science Foundation, Project No. 18-01897S (co-PI: Sergio Alivernini)

2012–2018: Research Project “History and Interpretation of Bible”, Czech Science Foundation, Project No. P401/12/G168; responsible investigator for the Faculty of Arts (PI: Jan Dušek)
2009–2013: Research Project “Centre or Periphery – History and Culture of Syria-Palestine (3000-300 BC)”, Czech Science Foundation, Project No. 404/09/0162
2006–2008: Postdoctoral Research Project “Amarna as the Crossroads of the Ancient World”, Czech Science Foundation, Project No. 404/06/P058
2006: Mellon Research Fellow in Spain, Instituto de Filología, Dept. de Filología Bíblica y de Oriente Antiguo, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (Madrid, Spain)
2004: Research Project “Cultural Anthropology of Egypt and the Near East in the Bronze Age”, Fond rozvoje vysokých škol, Project No. 1821/2004
2002, 2004, 2005: Erasmus, teachers’ mobility, Departament de Prehistoria y Arqueología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain
2001: Erasmus, Free-movers, Ph.D. studies at the Departament de Filología Semítica and Institut del Pròxim Orient Antic, Universitat de Barcelona, Spain

Selected bibliography 

Monographs: 

  • Juliš, K. – Krumpová, I. – Mynářová, J. – Pech, M. – Polák, L. – Štefcová, P. – Valach, J. – Vavřík, D. – Wolf, B. – Zemánek, P. Nástroje paměti / Memory Tools, Prague: National Museum 2020.
  • Mynářová, J. – Onderka, P.– Pavúk, P. The Deir el-Medina and Jaroslav Černý Collections II: Pottery. Editio Monographica Musei Nationalis Pragae 25. Prague: National Museum 2018.
  • Mynářová, J. Počátek vítězství krále Horního a Dolního Egypta. Texty k dějinám starověké Levanty. Starověké písemnictví Levanty VI. Praha: Univerzita Karlova v Praze, Filozofická fakulta – OIKOYMENH 2015.
  • Čech, P. – Mynářová, J. – Antalík, D. – Dušek, J. Jak je psáno. Vědecké, právní, administrativní a školní texty starověké Levanty. Starověké písemnictví Levanty IV. Praha: Univerzita Karlova v Praze, Filozofická fakulta – OIKOYMENH 2014.
  • Antalík, D. – Čech, P. – Mynářová, J. – Dušek, J. Na stezkách domu Baalova. Náboženské texty literární a kultické. Starověké písemnictví Levanty II. Praha: Univerzita Karlova v Praze, Filozofická fakulta – OIKOYMENH 2014.
  • Mynářová, J. – Dušek, J. – Čech, P. – Antalík, D. Poskytni králi výmluvná slova. Korespondence starověké Levanty. Starověké písemnictví Levanty, III. Praha: Univerzita Karlova v Praze, Filozofická fakulta – OIKOYMENH 2013.
  • Dušek, J. – Antalík, D. – Čech, P. – Mynářová, J. Jako pták v kleci. Epigrafické památky starověké Levanty. Starověké písemnictví Levanty V. Praha: FF UK v Praze – OIKOYMENH 2013.
  • Mynářová, J. – Onderka, P. – Podhorný, R. – Vrtal, V. Poklady starého Egypta. Olomouc: Vlastivědné museum v Olomouci 2013.
  • Language of Amarna – Language of Diplomacy. Perspectives on the Amarna Letters, Prague: Faculty of Arts, Charles Univerity in Prague 2007.

 

Edited special journal issues:

  • Cohen, S. – Mynářová, J. (guess associate editors), Outside the Pale. Marginality and Liminality in the Bronze Age Near East, a special issue of Journal of Ancient Near Eastern History 9/2 (2022).

 

Edited volumes (since 2019):

  • Mynářová, J. – Bertolini, L. – Zangani, F. (eds.), Migration and Mobility in the Ancient Near East and Egypt – the Crossroads IV. Columbus, GA: Lockwood Press 2024 (forthcoming).
  • Mynářová, J. – Alivernini, S. (eds.), Economic Complexity in the Ancient Near East. Management of Resources and Taxation (Third – Second Millennium BC). Prague: Charles University 2020.
  • Kim, R. – Mynářová, J. – Pavúk, P. (with assistance of D. Frantíková and P. Zemánek) (eds.), Hrozný and Hittite: The First Hundred Years. Proceedings of the International Conference Held at Charles University, Prague, 11–14 November 2015. Culture and History of the Ancient Near East 107. Leiden – Boston: Brill 2020.
  • Devecchi, E. – Mynářová, J. – Müller, G.G.W. (eds.), Current Research in Cuneiform Palaeography 2. Proceedings of a Workshop Organised at the 64thRencontre Assyriologique Internationale, Innsbruck 2018. Gladbeck: PeWe Verlag 2019.
  • Mynářová, J. – Kilani, M. – Alivernini, S. (eds.), A Stranger in the House – the Crossroads III. Proceedings of an International Conference on Foreigners in Ancient Egyptian and Near Eastern Societies of the Bronze Age Held in Prague, September 10–13, 2018. Prague: Charles University, Faculty of Arts 2019.
  • Dušek, J. – Mynářová, J. (eds.), Aramaean Borders. Defining Aramaean Territories in the 10th-8th Centuries B.C.E. Culture and History of the Ancient Near East 101. Leiden – Boston: Brill 2019.

 

Selection of peer-reviwed articles and chapters (since 2019):

  • The Egyptian View on Mittani in the Amarna Age. In: S. de Martino (ed.), Handbook Mittani, Empires through the Ages in Global Perspective, Oldenbourg: De Gruyter (forthcoming, 2025)
  • Women and International Politics in the Late Bronze Age Near East. In: M. Yoyotte-Husson – A. Tenu (eds.), Femmes et diplomatie au Bronze récent. Égypte et Proche-Orient. Women and Diplomacy in the Late Bronze Age. Egypt – Near East. Women of the Past. Testimonies for Archaeology and History. Turnhout: Brepols (forthcoming, 2025)
  • Memories of Objects, Memories of People. The Egyptian “Empire” in the Southern Levant Reconsidered, in: J. Andersson – N. Highcock – Ch. Tsouparopoulou (eds.), Crafting Memories: Commemorative, Votive, and Dedicatory Practices in Antiquity, Archaeology of the Mediterranean World, Turnhout: Brepols (forthcoming, 2025)
  • The Economic Role of Temples in the Interrelated World of the Middle and Late Bronze Age Levant in the Prism of Cuneiform Evidence, in: De Graef, K. – Goddeeris, A. – Morando, G. L. (eds.), Priests and Profits—New Perspectives and Approaches to the Role of the Temple in Babylonian Economy and Beyond. wEdge Münster: Zaphon Verlag (forthcoming, 2025)
  • “Silver for Clothing” … Textiles and Diplomacy in the Late Bronze Age Near East, in: A. Hallmann (ed.), Outward Appearance vs. Inward Significance: Addressing Identities through Attire in the Ancient World, March 1–2, 2018. ISAC, University of Chicago. Chicago: ISAC (forthcoming, 2025)
  • Manufacturing Technology: Firing as an Integral Component in the Production of Cuneiform Tablets from the Amarna Archive, Tel Aviv. Journal of the Institute of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University 51/2 (2024, forthcoming) doi.org/10.1080/03344355.2024.2385144
  • Crossing Borders, Reaching Limits. Boundaries in the Late Bronze Age Levant, in: Mynářová, Jana – Bertolini, Ludovica – Zangani, Federico, eds., Crossroads IV. Migration and Mobility in the Ancient Near East and Egypt, Columbus, GA: Lockwood Press 2024, 153–163 (2024, forthcoming)
  • Ancient Egypt and Southwest Asia. In: Oxford Research Encyclopedia of African History, Oxford University Press 2016–, article published April 17, 2024 https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190277734.013.1199
  • Across Languages, Across Cultures. Interconnectivity in the Late Bronze Age Ugarit, Diacrítica 37.2 (2023), 71–81, special volume Um mundo constante mudança: Interconexões no Antigo Oriente Próximo e no Mediterrãneo Oriental (ca. 3500-300 aC) org/10.21814/diacritica.4770
  • Cohen, S. – Mynářová, J. Introduction to Outside the Pale: Marginality and Liminality in the Bronze Age Near East, Journal of Ancient Near Eastern History 9/2 (2022), 147–153. org/10.1515/janeh-2022-0009
  • Liminal People(s) in the Late Bronze Age Levant? A New Light on Sherden (šerdanu), Journal of Ancient Near Eastern History 9/2 (2022), 285–304. org/10.1515/janeh-2021-0010
  • Vavřík, D. – Kumpová, I. – Mynářová, J. – Polák, L. – Zemánek, P., Průzkum staroasyrských klínopisných tabulek metodami RTG počítačové tomografie a mikro-rentgen-fluorescenční analýzy, Fórum pro konzervátory-restaurátory XI/1 (2021), 83–89.
  • Fear of Strangers? Ethnicity and Xenophobia in the Amarna Letters, Aula Orientalis 39/1 (2021), 115–125. https://www.ub.edu/ipoa/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/20211AuOrMinarova.pdf
  • A Note on Patronage in the Amarna Letters. Akkadica 142/2 (2021), 181–190.
  • Management of Resources and Taxation in the Southern Levant in the Middle and Late Bronze Age, in: Mynářová, J. – Alivernini, S. (eds.), Economic Complexity in the Ancient Near East. Management of Resources and Taxation (Third – Second Millennium BC), Prague: Charles University 2020, 419–435.
  • Zemánek, P. – Mynářová, J. – Štefcová, P. – Valach, J., Virtual Collection of Cuneiform Tablets as a Complex Multilevel System with Interdisciplinary Content. In: Kremers, Horst (ed.), Digital Cultural Heritage, Berlin: Springer Verlag 2020, 183–194. DOI: http://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-15200-0_13
  • Mynářová, J. – Kořínek, P., The Ancient Near East in Czech Comics and Popular Culture. The Case of Jáchym and the Printer’s Devil, In: Garcia Ventura, Agnès – Verderame, Lorenzo (eds.), Receptions of the Ancient Near East in Popular Culture and Beyond, Atlanta, GA: Lockwood Press 2020, 181–196. DOI: http://doi.org/2307/j.ctvxrpzkx.14
  • A Note on KUB 3.39 in Light of an LBA Diplomatic Practice. An Addendum, Rivista degli Studi Orientali, Nuova Serie XCII/1–2 (2019), 47–53. DOI: https://doi.org/10.19272/201903802004.
  • Egyptian Reflections on Babylon, Canadian Society for Mesopotamian Studies Journal 14 (2019), 5–14.
  • Mynářová, J. – Dušek, J., Tell Fekheriye Inscription and the Western Assyrian Border in the late 9th Century B.C.E. In: Dušek, Jan – Mynářová, Jana (eds.), Aramaean Borders. Defining Aramaean Territories in the 10th-8th Centuries B.C.E. [Culture and History of the Ancient Near East 101], Leiden – Boston: Brill 2019, 63–77. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004398535_004
  • Amarna Texts from the Northern Levant. The Qaṭna Palaeography in Context, in: Devecchi, E. – Mynářová, J. – Müller, G.G.W. (eds.), Current Research in Cuneiform Palaeography 2. Proceedings of a Workshop organised at the 64th Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale, Innsbruck 2018, Gladbeck: PeWe Verlag 2019, 91–107.
  • Are You an Egyptian? Are You a Stranger? Egyptians in the Levant in the Bronze Age, in: Mynářová, J. – Kilani, M. – Alivernini, S. (eds.), A Stranger in the House – the Crossroads III. Proceedings of an International Conference on Foreigners in Ancient Egyptian and Near Eastern Societies of the Bronze Age Held in Prague, September 10–13, 2018. Prague: Charles University 2019, Faculty of Arts, 239–255
Úvod > Academic staff > Jana Mynářová