Evans, James Allan 1931–

(James Allan Stewart Evans)

PERSONAL:

Born March 24, 1931, in Galt, Ontario, Canada; son of David Arthur (a farmer) and Isabella Jane Evans; married Eleanor Lynn Ward, June 16, 1964; children: James Arthur Laird, Cecily Eleanor, Andrew Lindsay. Education: Victoria College, Toronto, B.A., 1952; Yale University, M.A., 1953, Ph.D., 1957; also attended American School of Classical Studies, Athens, Greece, 1954-55. Politics: Conservative. Religion: Anglican.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Office—Buchanan Bldg., University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

CAREER:

University of Western Ontario, Waterloo College, London, Ontario, Canada, assistant professor of classics, 1955-60; University of Texas at Austin, assistant professor of classics, 1961-62; McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, professor of history, 1962-71; University of British Columbia, Vancouver, professor of classics, beginning 1972, became professor emeritus. Visiting special lecturer in classics, University of Toronto, 1960-61.

MEMBER:

Canadian Classical Association, Canadian Historical Association, American Philological Society, American Institute of Archaeology.

WRITINGS:

Economic History of an Egyptian Temple in Greco-Roman Egypt, Yale University Press (New Haven, CT), 1961.

Procopius, Twayne (Boston, MA), 1972.

Polis and Imperium: Studies in Honour of Edward Togo Salmon, Hakkert (Toronto, Ontario, Canada), 1974.

Herodotus, Twayne (Boston, MA), 1982.

Herodotus, Explorer of the Past: Three Essays, Princeton University Press (Princeton, NJ), 1991.

The Age of Justinian: The Circumstances of Imperial Power, Routledge (New York, NY), 1996.

The Empress Theodora: Partner of Justinian, University of Texas Press (Austin, TX), 2002.

The Emperor Justinian and the Byzantine Empire, Greenwood Press (Westport, CT), 2005.

Daily Life in the Hellenistic Age: From Alexander to Cleopatra, Greenwood Press (Westport, CT), 2008.

Editor, Waterloo Review, 1958-60; editor, Vergilius, 1963-71; literature editor, Commentator, 1963-71; reviews editor, Bulletin of the American Society of Papyrologists, 1970-76; editor, Studies in Medieval and Renaissance History, 1977—.

SIDELIGHTS:

James Allan Evans is professor emeritus of classical Near Eastern and religious studies at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. Among his many books on ancient Greece and Rome are two on Herodotus. A volume in a series by Twayne, Herodotus provides a critical overview of the ancient historian's works and influence. Herodotus, Explorer of the Past: Three Essays deals with the subjects of imperialism; the individuals that Herodotus wrote about in the Histories, including Croesus, Cyrus, Darius, Xerxes, and others; and oral tradition.

Evans's three works on the Justinian age have been well received. The Age of Justinian: The Circumstances of Imperial Power presents a thorough introduction to the subject. The Empress Theodora: Partner of Justinian examines the life and influence of Justinian's wife, a woman who had once been a prostitute and mime artist. Evans argues that Theodora played a significant role in governing the Byzantine Empire, especially in the conflict between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church. Writing in NWSA Journal, Mary A. Valante praised Evans's "impeccable" grasp of historical sources and "balanced portrait of a lowborn woman with questionable background who rose to power and influence during a crucial period of history."

In The Emperor Justinian and the Byzantine Empire Evans presents an overview for nonspecialist audiences. Historian reviewer James J. Cooke praised the book as "a readable work on that important era."

Daily Life in the Hellenistic Age: From Alexander to Cleopatra is also written for a general audience. It covers such subjects as marriage and family; sports; religion; work; science, technology, and medicine; and arts, including theater.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

American Historical Review, February, 2004, Brian Croke, review of The Empress Theodora: Partner of Justinian, p. 234.

Choice: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries, March, 2003, J.W. Nesbitt, review of The Empress Theodora, p. 1237.

Contemporary Review, May 1, 2003, review of The Empress Theodora, p. 319.

Historian, September 22, 2006, James J. Cooke, review of The Emperor Justinian and the Byzantine Empire, p. 623.

Journal of Near Eastern Studies, April, 2005, Walter E. Kaegi, review of The Empress Theodora, p. 151.

NWSA Journal, June 22, 2004, Mary A. Valante, review of The Empress Theodora, p. 218.

Reference & Research Book News, August 1, 2005, review of The Emperor Justinian and the Byzantine Empire, p. 42.

ONLINE

Bryn Mawr Classical Review,http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/bmcr/ (April 30, 2008), Donald Lateiner, review of Herodotus, Explorer of the Past: Three Essays.