Mirnig, Nina

"Early Sanskrit culture forms the basis of numerous cultural, religious, philosophical, and scientific traditions in South Asia—a region that is home to around a quarter of the world's population today and plays an important role in global political, economic, and cultural affairs. Since the first millennium, Sanskrit-based cultural forms have spread far beyond the subcontinent to Central, Southeast, and East Asia.

By exploring Sanskrit text sources and inscriptions, some of which are still unexplored, in conjunction with questions and methods from history, archaeology, art history, and anthropology, I work to reveal cultural connections and historical processes that continue to shape local identities and the way cultural heritage is dealt with today. In this way, historical knowledge is made usable for current social debates on cultural heritage and its preservation, identity, and intercultural understanding."

• Religious, cultural, and intellectual history of South Asia (with a focus on 500-1200 CE)
• Development and literature of the Hindu Shaiva and Tantric traditions
• Religious and cultural history of early Nepal and the Himalayan region
• Inscription culture of South Asia
• Manuscript culture of South Asia
• Interdisciplinary research on cultural contacts and knowledge transfer in South Asia and beyond
• Interdisciplinary research on technological knowledge systems
• Preservation of cultural heritage

• 2001-2004 Bachelor's degree in Oriental Studies/Sanskrit, Oriental Institute, University of Oxford, UK
• 2004-2005 Master of Studies in Oriental Studies/Sanskrit, Oriental Institute, University of Oxford, UK
• 2005-2010 Doctor of Philosophy in Oriental Studies/Sanskrit, Oriental Institute, University of Oxford, UK
• 2010-2013 Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Institute for Indian Studies, University of Groningen, Netherlands (Project: A Historical Enquiry Concerning the Composition and Spread of the Skandapurāṇa, Dutch Research Council, No. 360-63-050)
• 2013-2014 Jan Gonda Scholarship, Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, International Institute for Asian Studies, Leiden, Netherlands
• 2014 Research Fellow, Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Cambridge, UK (Project: The intellectual and religious traditions of South Asia as seen through the Sanskrit manuscript collections of the University Library, AHRC AH/I003789/1)
• 2014-2019 Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Institute for Cultural and Intellectual History of Asia, Austrian Academy of Sciences (projects: Visions of Community, FWF F4208 and The Śivaliṅga Cult on the Eve of the Tantric Age, FWF P27838-G15)
• 2016-2024 External Lecturer, Institute for South Asian, Tibetan, and Buddhist Studies, University of Vienna
• 2019-2024 Elise Richter Prize (PI), Institute for Asian Cultural and Intellectual History, Austrian Academy of Sciences (project: Mapping Piety, Politics, and Power in Early Medieval Nepal FWF V-755)
• Since 2020 Elected member of the Young Academy, Austrian Academy of Sciences
• Since 2023 Key Researcher, FWF Cluster of Excellence “Eurasian Transformations” (FWF COE 8)
• 2023-2025 Research Associate (tenure track) in the field of “Himalayan Connectivities,” Institute for Asian Cultural History, Austrian Academy of Sciences
• since May 2025 Professor of Cultural and Intellectual History of Pre-modern South Asia, Institute for South Asian, Tibetan, and Buddhist Studies, University of Vienna