Welcome to the Obama Institute
for Transnational American Studies!

The Obama Institute for Transnational American Studies at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz offers a dynamic and wide-ranging program in both research and teaching for all students interested in topics related to the Americas in a global context.

With a special focus on interculturality, transnationalism, and interdisciplinarity, our expertise lies in the fields of Early American Studies, Indigenous Studies, Life Writing/Life Sciences, Political & Intellectual History, Film & Media Studies, Religion and American Culture, and Materiality.

Contact

Obama Institute for Transnational American Studies
University of Mainz
Jakob-Welder-Weg 20
55128 Mainz
Germany
+49 6131 39-22357
+49 6131 39-29097
Email

Pressemitteilung: 30-Jahr-Feier USA-Bibliothek 🗓

Von rechts nach links: Generalkonsul Brian Heath, Dr. Monika Hagenmaier, Dr. Nora Kuster, Dr. Michael Hansen, Prof. Dr. Schäfer ©Universitätsbibliothek Mainz Am Donnerstag, 20. November 2025, luden die Universitätsbibliothek und das Obama Institute for Transnational...

Jan 22 – Guest Lecture: Vanishing Oil in John Joseph Mathews’s SUNDOWN (1934) 🗓

Guest Lecture by Jannis Buschky, M.A. (University of Konstanz) Vanishing Oil in John Joseph Mathews’s Sundown (1934) January 22, 2026, 6-8pm, P 6 (Philosophicum) When Osage writer John Joseph Mathews wrote his novel Sundown (1934) about the Osage oil boom in the early...

Dec 16 – Guest Lecture: Getting Their Word Out – Native Rhetorical Strategies in the School Press of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School 🗓

Guest Lecture by Christianna Stavroudis, M.Sc. (Bonn) Getting Their Word Out:Native Rhetorical Strategies in the School Press of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School December 16, 2025, 6-8pm, P 6 (Philosophicum) Deemed the “disciples of Gutenberg” by school...

Dec 9 – Guest Lecture: Humor on Social Media as Practice of Native American Survivance 🗓

Guest Lecture by Teresa Fischler (University of Passau) “Laughter Is Good Medicine”:Humor on Social Media as Practice of Native American Survivance December 9, 2025, 6-8pm, P 6 (Philosophicum) This talk explores the dynamic intersection of Indigenous presence, humor,...

Dec 2 – Guest Lecture CRC 1482: The Commercial Fan Magazine Between Fandom and Brandom 🗓

Guest Lecture by Dr. Matt Hills (University of Bristol) “This is Very Much Not On-Message for DWM”: The Commercial Fan Magazine Between Fandom and Brandom — Doctor Who Magazine in the Disney/“RTD2” Era December 2, 2025, 6-8pm, P 6 (Philosophicum) This talk will build...

Nov 27 – Obama Lecture with Obama Dissertation Prize & Galinsky Prize 🗓

Nov 27, 2025 – 10.00-ca. 12.30 – Obama Lecture – Fakultätssaal (Philosophicum, 01-185) Please join us for our annual Obama Lecture on Thanksgiving, where we will highlight outstanding work in Transnational American Studies and show appreciation for the work of young...