Professor Hagen Keller FBA

Hagen Keller has been Professor of Medieval History at the University of Muenster (Germany) since 1982. He got his PhD 1962 at the University of Freiburg. 1963-1969 he did research at the German Historical Institute in Rome. After the qualification as University Lecturer he was Professor at the University of Freiburg until 1982. With others he established in Muenster the interdisciplinary Collaborative Research Centre (SFB 231, 1986-1999) focused on the pragmatic use of writing and literacy during the High and Late Middle Ages. He led a subproject studying the evolution in the Italian Communes. For the whole time he was chairman or vice-chairman of the Centre. He participated in the draft of a new Collective Research Centre (SFB 496, 2000-2011), entitled Symbolic communication and social value systems from the Middle Ages to the French Revolution, which he joined with his subproject until 2008. The main focus of his studies are the Medieval Empire (9th - 13th centuries), the Italian City-Communes, the role of writing in Medieval society, as well as the transformation of the Roman regions occupied by the Alemans and Burgundians (4th - 8th centuries).