Lek Chan

Profile

I completed two undergraduate degrees in history and sociology respectively in the National Taiwan University, before moving to York to study for my MA in Medieval History in 2012. There, I examined the concept of the Soldier of Christ in the early Anglo-Saxon hagiographies in relation to the competition of masculinities. I graduated in 2013 and was awarded a distinction.

I returned to Asia after my graduation, working first as a journalist and then as a history teacher for several years, before coming back to the UK for my PhD studies in 2018. I will continue to focus my studies on Anglo-Saxon England under the supervision of Professor Julia Barrow and Dr Catherine Batt.

Research interests

My Research Interest:

• Merovingian Gaul and Anglo-Saxon England
• The legacy of Late Antiquity
• Hagiography and the cult of saints
• Gender, ethnicity and other types of social differentiation

My research project focuses on the earliest Anglo-Saxon hagiographies, which were all written in early eighth century. I compare their displays of warriors, authors, monks and ascetics from a gender perspective in order to understand the transformation of gender roles and relations during the Age of Conversion.

Qualifications

• MA Medieval History, York
• BA History, National Taiwan University
• BA Sociology, National Taiwan University