Pekka Hämäläinen facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Professor Pekka Hämäläinen FBA
Hämäläinen in 2020
Born	Pekka Johannes Hämäläinen 1967 (age 57–58) Helsinki, Finland
Alma mater	University of Helsinki
Occupation	Historian
Notable work	The Comanche Empire (2008)
Title	Rhodes Professor of American History
Scientific career
Institutions	Texas A&M University University of California, Santa Barbara

Pekka Johannes Hämäläinen (born in 1967 in Helsinki, Finland) is a well-known historian. He is a professor of American History at the University of Oxford in England, a position he has held since 2012. Before that, he taught history at the University of California, Santa Barbara in the United States.

About Pekka Hämäläinen

Early Life and Education

Pekka Hämäläinen was born and grew up in Helsinki, Finland. When he was in high school, he discovered he really enjoyed history. He was especially interested in the history of Native American people.

He went to the University of Helsinki to study history. He earned his master's degree and then started working on his Ph.D. He finished his Ph.D. in 2001.

Teaching Career

After getting his Ph.D., Hämäläinen began teaching. He taught at Texas A&M University from 2002 to 2004. Later, he taught at the University of California, Santa Barbara. In 2012, he became the Rhodes Professor of American History at University of Oxford.

New Ways to Study History

Hämäläinen is part of a group of historians who started a "new Indian history" movement in the late 1900s. This group wanted to change how Native American history was told. Before, many history books were written mostly from a European point of view.

These new historians wanted to use ethnohistorical methods. This means they tried to understand history from the experiences of the Native American people themselves. They wanted to show how Native groups reacted to and dealt with European settlers.

Pekka Hämäläinen's Books

Pekka Hämäläinen has written several important books about Native American history.

The Comanche Empire

In 2008, Hämäläinen published a book called The Comanche Empire. This book won the Bancroft Prize, which is a major award for history books.

In the book, Hämäläinen argued that the Comanche people created a powerful "empire" in the Southern Plains of North America. This was during the late 1700s and early 1800s. He showed how the Comanche used their skills with horses to control a large area.

Lakota America: A New History of Indigenous Power

In 2019, Hämäläinen released another book, Lakota America: A New History of Indigenous Power. This book tells the story of the Lakota people from the 1600s to the 1900s. It also suggests that the Lakota people formed a kind of empire.

Some Native American scholars and historians have discussed this idea. For example, Jameson "Jimmy" Sweet and Delphine Red Shirt have shared their thoughts on the book. They believe the Lakota were trying to survive and adapt to big changes brought by European settlers.

Indigenous Continent: The Epic Contest for North America

Hämäläinen's 2022 book is called Indigenous Continent: The Epic Contest for North America. This book tries to change how we think about the history of North America. Many people used to think that Native Americans were always going to be conquered by Europeans.

Hämäläinen's book highlights the great political and military strength of many Native nations. He writes about groups like the Great Sioux Nation and the Comanche. He shows that these groups had a lot of power and played a big role in shaping history.

Historians like Elizabeth Fenn and Elliott West have praised the book. They said it helps to show the important role Native peoples had in history. However, other historians like Ned Blackhawk have also shared different views on the book's ideas.

Awards and Recognition

Pekka Hämäläinen has received several awards for his historical research and books:

• 2009 Bancroft Prize
• 2008 Kate Brocks Bates Award
• 2009 Merle Curti Award
• 2009 Cundill Prize runner-up
• 2009 Caughey Western History Association Prize
• 2023 Fellow of the British Academy

Published Works

Here are some of the books Pekka Hämäläinen has written:

• The Comanche Empire. New Haven, CT; Yale University Press. 2008.
• When Disease Makes History: Epidemics and Great Historical Turning Points. Helsinki, Finland; Yliopistopaino Printing Services. 2006.
• with Benjamin H. Johnson.Major Problems in the History of North American Borderlands. Boston, MA; Cengage Learning. 2011.
• Lakota America: A New History of Indigenous Power. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. 2019.
• Indigenous Continent: The Epic Contest for North America. Liveright. 2022.