Emeritus Professor John Norman Miksic, a distinguished scholar at NUS Southeast Asian Studies and Senior Research Fellow at Nanyang Technological University, passed away on 25 October 2025 at the age of 79.

Professor Miksic first came to Singapore in 1968 while serving in the Peace Corps in Kedah, Malaysia, and went on to spend most of his life in Southeast Asia. After earning his PhD from Cornell University’s Department of Anthropology in 1979, he worked for USAID as a Rural Development Advisor in Bengkulu, Indonesia, for two years, and taught at Gadjah Mada University, Yogyakarta, for six years. In 1987, he moved to Singapore, where he joined the National University of Singapore’s Department of History (NUS History) and played a key role in establishing the Southeast Asian Studies Programme in 1991.

Prof. Miksic was the first head of the Nalanda-Sriwijaya Centre, the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute’s Archaeological Unit, between 2010-2013 and was a member of the Board of the Center for Khmer Studies in Siem Reap, Cambodia, for 15 years. He also held the position of Deputy Chairperson of the National Heritage Board’s Archaeological Advisory Panel. In 2023, he was awarded the Public Service Medal by the Government of Singapore for his contributions to the nation.

Prof. Miksic was a towering figure in the field of archaeology in Southeast Asia. His extensive fieldwork spanned the region and included major excavations, including such world-renowned sites at Borobudur in Indonesia and Angkor in Cambodia, as well as more than a dozen sites in Singapore, including St. Andrew’s Cathedral, Empress Place, Parliament House and Padang. He is renowned for leading the first systematic excavation at Fort Canning Hill in 1984, which uncovered compelling evidence of Singapore’s significance as an early major regional port before 1819. His discoveries profoundly reshaped the understanding of Singapore’s pre-colonial history and prompted revision to the national secondary school history curriculum. Prof. Miksic was the winner of the inaugural Singapore History Prize awarded in 2018 for his book Singapore and the Silk Road of the Sea, 1300-1800 (NUS Press, 2013).

At NUS Southeast Asian Studies, his courses on archaeology, art, history and cultural resource management, as well as his supervision of undergraduate and postgraduate research, educated generations of historians and archaeologists and inspired many students to take up the study of ancient Southeast Asia. He was a beloved teacher, admired for his generosity, kindness and vast knowledge. He will be deeply missed by his students and colleagues.

Prof. Miksic is survived by his wife, Dr Goh Geok Yian, his two children from his first marriage, Mr Ezra Miksic and Ms. Vonya Miksic Eisinger, and four grandchildren.

By Associate Professor Vatthana Pholsena, Head of NUS Southeast Asian Studies.