Prof. Dr. Dani Kranz has been the Hertie Visiting Professor for “Jewish Perspectives Within Antisemitism Studies and Research on Contemporary Jewry” at the College of Jewish Studies in Heidelberg since October 2026 and is on leave from her position as research coordinator at the Tikvah Institute in Berlin. In addition, she has been an honorary professor at the Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences in Kleve since October 2026.
She has served as the first chair of since 2023. In her professional work since 2019, she has been a member of the advisory board of the Federal Commissioner for Jewish Life and the Fight Against Antisemitism, among other roles, and collaborates with foundations; she also advises museums and NGOs. She serves on the board of the Association for the Social Scientific Jewry (ASSJ) and is one of the founding members of the Network of Jewish University Faculty (NJH).
Her expertise includes research on migration and ethnicity, the anthropology of law, politics, and the state, intergenerational transmission, the culture and politics of memory, as well as antisemitism, philosemitism, and cultural heritage.
Courses in the Winter Semester:
What does Jewish life look like in Germany today? This seminar explores Jewish life worlds and Jewish heritage from a social science perspective. The focus is on the diversity of contemporary Jewish life and the question of how Jewish heritage is understood and negotiated in today’s society.
What Is Antisemitism? Research, Research Approaches, and Methods After 1945
What do we mean by antisemitism—and how can it be studied scientifically? This seminar examines antisemitism research after 1945 and its various theoretical and methodological approaches. It explores how antisemitism is defined, analyzed, and becomes the subject of scientific inquiry.
Empirical Methods in Research on Antisemitism and Contemporary Jewish Life
How can contemporary Jewish life and antisemitism be studied empirically? This seminar is dedicated to the methods researchers use to examine experiences, perceptions, and social contexts. The focus is on the relationship between research questions, methodological approaches, and scientific knowledge.
Israel, Palestine, and Germany as Reflected in German-Language Texts: Social Science Perspectives on Knowledge Production and Interpretation
How is knowledge about Israel, Palestine, and Germany produced and conveyed in German-language texts? This seminar examines, from a social science perspective, how interpretations emerge and which viewpoints shape them. The central question is how texts help shape societal perceptions and debates.
A Visiting Professorship in Contemporary Jewish Life and Anti-Semitism Research
The visiting professorship at the Heidelberg University of Jewish Studies is made possible by the non-profit Hertie Foundation as part of its Fund for Combating Antisemitism and Education. The position is filled for one semester per academic year and combines two interrelated areas of focus: research on contemporary Jewish life and the scholarly examination of antisemitism from the perspective of those affected.
The research on Jewish life today is at the heart of the visiting professorship. Jewish existence is shaped by a pluralistic, vibrant, and dynamic culture—by religious, cultural, political, and social practices, by debates, everyday life, and self-conceptions. This present reality cannot be reduced to experiences of discrimination, defense mechanisms, or resilience. The visiting professorship therefore makes contemporary Jewish culture an independent subject of academic research and teaching.
In doing so, it expands the historical and textual focus for which the College of Jewish Studies is known to include a consistently contemporary perspective. Jewish life is thus not viewed solely as a subject of the past, but is made visible in all its diversity and relevance to the present.
This focus is complemented by the scholarly analysis of antisemitism from the perspective of those affected. This perspective is often neglected in research: How do Jewish people perceive antisemitism? How do they contextualize it historically, socially, and theoretically? And what forms of coping, self-assertion, and solidarity emerge from this?
The visiting professorship brings these questions into teaching, research, and public debate. It aims to attract internationally renowned researchers to Heidelberg, provide new impetus for the university, and strengthen the exchange between academia, Jewish communities, and the broader public.
Source: HfJS Heidelberg