Cynthia H. Hoehler-Fatton

Assoc Director, Carter G Woodson IAAS & Associate Professor

E-mail:
Phone: 434-924-8889

Address:
Department of Religious Studies
PO Box 400126
Charlottesville, VA 22904-4126

Research Interests

African independent churches; Luo religion; East African spirit possession movements; gender and religion in Africa; the history of Christianity and Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa; African-derived religions in the New World.

Education

• Bachelor of Arts (BA), Bowdoin College
• Master of Arts (MA), University of Virginia
• Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), University of Virginia

Research and Teaching

My teaching and scholarship concentrate on the intersections between African indigenous religions and Christianity and Islam over the last hundred years. I am fascinated by religious change, and my research—whether it be on gender in East African independent churches, the revitalization of "ATR" (African Traditional Religion) in post-apartheid South Africa, or my current work on the introduction of Islam into Western Kenya—reflects my ongoing interest in the dynamism of religion. For several years, I have served as Associate Director of the Carter G. Woodson Institute, where I direct the undergraduate interdisciplinary program in African-American and African Studies.