Participant Info

First Name
Erika
Last Name
Harlitz-Kern
Country
United States
State
FL Florida
Affiliation
Florida International University
Website URL
ehkern.com
Keywords
Europe, Scandinavia, Sweden, Vikings, medieval, early modern, gender, women, urbanization, maritime history, book history, public history.
Availability
Media Contact
Additional Contact Information
PhD
PhD

Personal Info

Photo
About Me

I specialize in ancient, Viking, medieval, and early modern history with focus on Europe, Scandinavia, and Sweden. I write essays and op-eds about how the past informs the present, and how we project our modern values and assumptions on to the past to suit our current needs. I also write commentary on the Nobel Prize and essays on book history.

I am an Adjunct Instructor at Florida International University with a Ph.D. in medieval and early-modern history from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

I am also a public historian. I am a columnist for Tordotcom, and a recurring contributor to The Week. I have also been published by The Daily Beast, The Washington Post, Atlas Obscura, Book Riot, and Quirk Books. I have been featured on Counterpoint with Amanda Vanstone on ABC Australia and The Story of God with Morgan Freeman on the NatGeo Channel.

Recent Publications

The Week, “The Myth of the Viking Woman Warrior.” https://theweek.com/articles/865878/myth-viking-woman-warrior

The Week, “Viking Runestones Were the Original Tweets.” https://theweek.com/articles/841539/viking-runestones-original-tweets

The Daily Beast, “What the Alt-Right Gets Wrong about the Vikings.” https://www.thedailybeast.com/what-the-alt-right-gets-wrong-about-the-vikings?ref=author

The Daily Beast, “Give the Notre Dame a Modern Roof the Alt-Right Will Hate.” https://www.thedailybeast.com/give-notre-dame-a-modern-roof-the-alt-right-will-hate

The Washington Post, “How a Forgotten War Can Help Us Solve the Crisis in Syria.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/made-by-history/wp/2018/06/17/how-a-forgotten-war-can-help-us-solve-the-crisis-in-syria/?utm_term=.4cd162d2f983

 

 

 

 

 

Media Coverage
Country Focus
Sweden
Expertise by Geography
Eastern Europe, Mediterranean, Scandinavia, Western Europe
Expertise by Chronology
Ancient, Medieval, Pre-17th century, 17th century, Early Modern
Expertise by Topic
Book History, Gender, Government, Libraries & Archives, Literary History, Museums, Public History, Urban History, Women