Anthony Lovenheim Irwin

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Email Address:
Languages:
Thai
Education:
2011. Master of Arts in Southeast Asian Studies, Center for Southeast Asian Studies, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin.
2005. Bachelor of Arts in English, Department of EnglishSUNY New Paltz, New Paltz, New York.
2003. Associates Degree, Monroe Community College, Rochester, New York.
Fields of Study:
Thai Buddhism, Visual Culture, Asian Religions
Program & Degree:
Languages and Cultures of Asia, PhD
I lived and worked in Thailand from 2006-2007, and from there applied to the MA program at the Center for Southeast Asian Studies here at Madison. During my time at the Center I worked on issues of Theravada civilizations, Thai Language, Southeast Asian history and modernity, Pali and Sanskrit—primarily in courses offered through Languages and Cultures of Asia. I defended my MA thesis through the Center and began the PhD program in Languages and Cultures of Asia, working under Dr. Anne Hansen. In LCA I have been thoroughly trained in methodologies pertinent to the study of Asian Religions, and ethical approaches to the study of Asian Humanities. I spent 2013-2015 in Thailand conducting field work for my dissertation project, “Building Buddhism in Chiang Rai, Thailand: Construction as Religion,” which foregrounds acts of religious construction in the modern history and Buddhist landscape of northern Thailand. I am currently finishing drafting my dissertation, and will defend in the Spring of 2017. I am honored to be a part of the Department of Asian Languages and Cultures, and thankful to my professors and fellow students for making Madison one of the country’s top centers for the study of Asia.