Bio


Amir Weiner’s research concerns Soviet history with an emphasis on the interaction between totalitarian politics, ideology, nationality, and society. His first book, Making Sense of War analyzed the role and impact of the cataclysm of the Second World War on Soviet society and politics. His current project, Wild West, Window to the West engages the territories between the Baltic and Black Seas that were annexed by the Soviet Union in 1939-40, from the initial occupation to present. Professor Weiner has taught courses on modern Russian history; the Second World War; the Origins of Totalitarianism; War and Society in Modern Europe; Modern Ukrainian History; and History and Memory.

Academic Appointments


  • Associate Professor, History

Administrative Appointments


  • Donald Andrews Whittier Faculty Fellow, Humanities Center, Stanford University (2009 - 2010)
  • Gordon and Dailey Pattee Faculty Fellowship, Stanford University (2002 - 2003)
  • William and Frances Green Faculty Fellowship, Stanford University (1999 - 2000)
  • National Fellow, Hoover Institution (1998 - 1999)
  • Research Fellow, Woodrow Wilson Center, Washington, DC (1994 - 1995)
  • Research Fellow, Davies Center, Harvard University (1993 - 1994)
  • Junior Fellowship, Harriman Institute (1991 - 1992)
  • Research Fellowship, ACTR in Russia/Ukraine (1991 - 1992)
  • President Fellowship, Columbia University (1987 - 1991)
  • Dean's Fellowship, The Hebrew University (1984 - 1986)
  • Associate Professor, Department of History, Stanford University (1995 - Present)

Honors & Awards


  • Lees Knowles Lecturer in Military History, Trinity College, Cambridge University (2012)
  • Lees Knowles Lecturer in Military History, Cambridge University, UK (2012)
  • Campbell and William C. Bark National Fellow, Hoover Institution (2004-2005)
  • School of Humanities & Sciences Dean's Award for Distinguished Teaching, Stanford University (2002)
  • Klozner Award for Outstanding Essay in the Department of Slavic and Russian Studies, The Hebrew University (1986)

Boards, Advisory Committees, Professional Organizations


  • Editor, Journal of Contemporary European History (1995 - Present)
  • Co-Director, Center for European Studies, Stanford University (2006 - 2009)
  • Member, Graduate Studies Committee, Stanford University (2010 - Present)
  • Member, Appointments Committee, Department of History, Stanford University (2006 - 2009)
  • Member, Editorial Board, Journal of Contemporary European History
  • Member, Editorial Board, Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions
  • Member, American Historical Association
  • Member, Association for Slavic Studies, East European and Eurasian Studies
  • Manuscript referee, Cornell University Press
  • Manuscript referee, Harvard University Press
  • Manuscript referee, Oxford University Press
  • Manuscript referee, Pittsburgh University Press
  • Manuscript referee, Princeton University Press
  • Manuscript referee, Yale University Press
  • Manuscript referee, American Historical Review
  • Manuscript referee, Canadian Slavonic Papers
  • Manuscript referee, Kritika
  • Manuscript referee, Journal of Modern History
  • Manuscript referee, Russian Review
  • Manuscript referee, Slavic Review
  • Manuscript referee, Journal of Contemporary European History
  • Editor & Board Member, Contemporary European History
  • Editorial Board Member, Dystopia

Professional Education


  • Ph.D., Columbia University, History (1995)
  • M.A., Columbia University, History (1990)
  • B.A., The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Russian Studies and International Relations (1987)

2023-24 Courses


Stanford Advisees


All Publications


  • Bloodlands or Bloody Nose to History? Cahiers du monde Russe Weiner, A. 2013; 54 (4)
  • Getting to Know You The Soviet Surveillance System, 1939-57 KRITIKA-EXPLORATIONS IN RUSSIAN AND EURASIAN HISTORY Weiner, A., Rahi-Tamm, A. 2012; 13 (1): 5-45
  • Foreign Media and the Soviet Western Frontier: Accounts of the Hungarian and Czechoslovak Crises Cold War Broadcasting: Goals, Methods, and Impact Weiner, A. edited by Johnson, R. A. Central European Press. 2010
  • Something to Die For, A Lot to Kill For: The Soviet System and the Brutalization of Warfare The Barbarisation of Warfare Weiner, A. edited by Kassimires, G. Central European Press. 2010
  • Life under Occupation: Vinnitsa Region, 1941-1944 Weiner, A. Rosspen, Moscow. 2010
  • Special Issue Revisiting 1989: Causes, Course and Consequences Introduction CONTEMPORARY EUROPEAN HISTORY Weiner, A., Connelly, J. 2009; 18 (3): 247-251
  • A Writer at War: Vasily Grossman with the Red Army, 1941-1945 (Book Review) KRITIKA-EXPLORATIONS IN RUSSIAN AND EURASIAN HISTORY Book Review Authored by: Weiner, A. 2009; 10 (2): 387-397
  • Robust revolution to retiring revolution: The life cycle of the Soviet revolution, 1945-1968 Conference on the Relaunch of the Soviet Project, 1945-64 Weiner, A. MANEY PUBLISHING. 2008: 208-?
  • Tear off the masks! Identity and imposture in twentieth-century Russia. (Book Review) AMERICAN HISTORICAL REVIEW Book Review Authored by: Weiner, A. 2007; 112 (3): 959-961
  • Collaboration and resistance during the Holocaust. Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania (Book Review) SLAVIC REVIEW Book Review Authored by: Weiner, A. 2006; 65 (3): 588-589
  • The empires pay a visit: Gulag returnees, East European rebellions, and Soviet frontier politics JOURNAL OF MODERN HISTORY Weiner, A. 2006; 78 (2): 333-376
  • Deja Vu All Over Again: Prague Spring, Romanian Summer, and Soviet Autumn on Russia's Western Frontier Journal of Contemporary European History Weiner, A. 2006; 15 (2): 159-194
  • The Political Leadership of Ukraine, 1938-1989 Weiner, A. Rosspen, Moscow. 2006
  • The Moscow State Yiddish theater: Jewish culture on the Soviet stage. (Book Review) AMERICAN HISTORICAL REVIEW Book Review Authored by: Weiner, A. 2003; 108 (2): 607-609
  • Landscaping the Human Garden: Twentieth-Century Population Management in a Comparative Framework edited by Weiner, A. Stanford University Press. 2003
  • Nothing but certainty (the Soviet approach to race and genocide) SLAVIC REVIEW Weiner, A. 2002; 61 (1): 44-53
  • Review of "Moral Reckoning" by D. Goldhagen The New Leader Weiner, A. 2002; November
  • Review of "The Black Book of Communism" by S. Courtois et al Journal of Interdisciplinary History Weiner, A. 2002; January
  • Review of "A Prayer for the Government" by H. Abramson Polin: Studies in Polish Jewry Weiner, A. 2002; 15
  • When Memory Counts Crimes of War: Guilt and Denial in the Twentieth Century Weiner, A. edited by Bartov, O., Grossmann, A., Nolan, M. New Press. 2002: 191–216
  • In the long shadow of war: The Second World War and the Soviet and post-Soviet world DIPLOMATIC HISTORY Weiner, A. 2001; 25 (3): 443-456
  • Review of "Thank You, Comrade Stalin" by J. Brooks Journal of Modern History Weiner, A. 2001; December
  • Making Sense of War: The Second World War and the Fate of the Bolshevik Revolution Weiner, A. Princeton University Press. 2001
  • Saving Private Ivan: From What, Why, and How? Kritika Weiner, A. 2000; 1 (2): 305-336
  • Review of "Freedom and Terror in the Donbas" by H. Kuromiya Russian Review Weiner, A. 2000; April
  • Nature, nurture, and memory in a socialist utopia: Delineating the Soviet socio-ethnic body in the age of socialism AMERICAN HISTORICAL REVIEW Weiner, A. 1999; 104 (4): 1114-1155

    View details for Web of Science ID 000083497700002

    View details for PubMedID 19291898

  • Review of "Golod v SSSR 1946-1947 godov" by V. Zima Russian Review Weiner, A. 1999; April
  • The making of a dominant myth: The Second World-War and the construction of political identities within the Soviet polity RUSSIAN REVIEW Weiner, A. 1996; 55 (4): 638-660