In Memoriam: Professor John N. Miksic
| It is with great sadness that the NTU Singapore community mourns the passing of Professor John N. Miksic, Senior Research Fellow in the School of Humanities at NTU, as well as Emeritus Professor at NUS. John was a central figure working on the history and archaeology of Southeast Asia for many decades. Born in the United States, John first came to the region as a Peace Corps volunteer in the late 1960s, and devoted the rest of his life to Southeast Asia. After four further years in Malaysia, he returned to the USA to undertake postgraduate study. John then spent nine years in Indonesia, after which he had lived in Singapore since 1987. John played a leading role conducting archaeological research about Singapore. His 1984 excavation at Fort Canning Hill unearthed evidence of a thriving settlement in fourteenth-century Singapore, transforming prevailing understandings of the island's history. In the ensuing decades, he led numerous other archaeological excavations.His landmark 2013 book, Singapore and the Silk Road of the Sea, 1300–1800, remains a cornerstone of the field and earned him the inaugural Singapore History Prize in 2018. John was awarded the Singapore Public Service Medal in 2023 for his contributions to national heritage. In addition to his work on Singapore, and in collaboration with his wife, NTU scholar Goh Geok Yian, John pioneered an approach to the early history of Southeast Asia which emphasised its interconnected, cosmopolitan and dynamic character, rather than being fragmented or narrowly derivative of Chinese or Indian influences. John was well-known for his warmth, his humanity and the generosity with which he supported others, particularly other scholars. John was a deeply valued and beloved presence in the NTU History department, and he is greatly missed by the scholarly community in Singapore and beyond. Colleagues from NTU are currently discussing the most appropriate permanent memorial to John’s life and work. |
