Prof. Dr. Talja Blokland will take up the chair at New York University (NYU) at the beginning of the year, where she will initially teach and conduct research on European studies until the end of the 2026/27 academic year. In addition, she will help shape the programme of the German House at New York University.
The chair, created jointly by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and NYU, is part of the DAAD's German Studies Lectureships in North America programme, which invites German academics to spend time as visiting scholars in the United States. Before Talja Blokland, Claus Leggewie, Detlef Pollack, Michael Minkenberg, Christiane Lemke, Christian Martin and, most recently, Thomas Zittel held the Max Weber Chair.
About
Talja Blokland has been Professor of Urban and Regional Sociology at the Institute for Social Sciences at Humboldt University in Berlin (HU) since 2009. Her work has shaped international debates on urban sociology and urban studies.
HU's partnership with New York University
Humboldt-Universität and New York University are connected by a collaboration spanning three decades. In December 2025, the universities' Presidents signed an agreement establishing a Strategic Partnership, providing for a deepening of mutual exchange as well as enhanced cooperation in teaching and research.