Short Biography
Kishiya Hidaka is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Zurich, supported by a Return Grant from the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) for the period 2026–2027. He received his doctorate in theology from the University of Zurich in 2024 with a dissertation supervised by Prof. Konrad Schmid. His doctoral research was supported by the Swiss Government Excellence Scholarship, and in 2023 he received the EABS Student Prize. From 2024 to 2026, he conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Oldenburg under the mentorship of Prof. Benedikt Hensel, funded by an SNSF Postdoc.Mobility fellowship.
His research focuses on the literary and redactional history of the Hebrew Bible, particularly the Pentateuch, the Former Prophets, Priestly literature, diaspora traditions, and the formation of Israelite identities. His current SNSF-funded project examines the literary development of the concepts of Canaan and the Canaanites in biblical traditions. Since 2025, he has co-chaired the EABS Research Unit “The Origins of Israel: Perspectives from Archaeology and Biblical Studies” with Benedikt Hensel. His dissertation, The Theme of Diaspora in the Pentateuch, was published by Mohr Siebeck in 2026 in the series Forschungen zum Alten Testament I.
Research Focus
- Literary Formation of the Pentateuch
- Priestly Literature
- Israelite Identity Formation
- Diaspora
- Canaan and the Canaanites
Publications
Monographs
- The Theme of Diaspora in the Pentateuch. Forschungen zum Alten Testament I 193. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2026 (Open Access).
- Introduction to Hebrew Bible Studies. Tokyo: Shinkyo Shuppansha, forthcoming. Japanese.
- Introduction to the History of Ancient Israel. Tokyo: Shinkyo Shuppansha, commissioned. Japanese.
Memberships
- Chair, EABS Research Unit “The Origins of Israel and the Shaping of Early Israelite Identities during the Iron Age,” since 2025
- Member, Wissenschaftliche Gesellschaft für Theologie, since 2025
- Member, Society of Biblical Literature, since 2022
- Member, European Association of Biblical Studies, since 2021
- Member, Japanese Biblical Institute, since 2017