Jonathan D. Spence

Jonathan Dermot Spence was an English-born American historian, sinologist, and writer who specialized in Chinese history. He was Sterling Professor of History at Yale University from 1993 to 2008. His most widely read book is The Search for Modern China, a survey of the last several hundred years of Chinese history based on his popular course at Yale. A prolific author, reviewer, and essayist, he published more than a dozen books on China. Spence's major interest was modern China, especially the Qing dynasty, and relations between China and the West. Spence frequently used biographies to examine cultural and political history. Another common theme is the efforts of both Westerners and Chinese "to change China", and how such efforts were frustrated. ^{Jonathan Spence, English-American historian and academic (d. 2021)}

11 August 1936

Born on the same birth date (11 August 1936): Andre Dubus • Bill Monbouquette

Born on the same birth day (11 August): Alfredo Binda • Alyson Stoner • Audrey Mestre • David Brooks (commentator) • Eva Ahnert-Rohlfs • Geoffrey Cass • Grant Waite • Joe Jackson (musician) • John Gorrie (director) • Richard Scudamore • Tarmo Rüütli

Born in the same month (August 1936): Andre Dubus • Arthur B. C. Walker Jr. • Don Denkinger • Giorgos Zographos • Kjell Grede • Laurie Taylor (sociologist) • Margaret Hamilton (software engineer) • Nikolai Baturin • Patrick Tse • Radish Tordia • Wilt Chamberlain