Scholars and Professional Staff: Paul Y. Hoskisson

Paul Y. Hoskisson
Director of the Laura F. Willes Center for
Book of Mormon Studies

Paul Y. Hoskisson is a professor of Ancient Scripture at Brigham Young University and is the director of the Laura F. Willes Center for Book of Mormon Studies and the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies. He is married to Joaquina V. Hoskisson; they are the parents of four children.

Dr. Hoskisson has taught classes at BYU since 1981 on the Book of Mormon, the Old Testament, the New Testament, the Pearl of Great Price, the history of civilization, and Ugaritic, Akkadian, and Hebrew languages. Before coming to BYU, he worked at the Universität Zürich, Switzerland, and the Universität Tübingen, Germany. He was granted his PhD from Brandeis University in ancient Near Eastern Studies and his master’s and bachelor’s degrees from BYU.

Throughout his career, Dr. Hoskisson has served in many university assignments, including as associate dean of Religious Education and as the Richard L. Evans Professor of Religious Understanding. He also participates in international organizations such as the Society of Biblical Literature, the American Oriental Society, the American Schools of Oriental Research, and the Mormon History Association.

Dr. Hoskisson has authored more than 35 articles, book chapters, or book reviews. His recent publications include “Aaron’s Golden Calf,” in The FARMS Review; “Looking Beyond the Mark,” in A Witness for the Restoration: Essays in Honor of Robert J. Matthews; and “Neo-Assyrian Rhetoric: The Example of the Third Campaign of Sennacherib (704–681 B.C.),” with Grant Boswell in Rhetoric Before and Beyond the Greeks. He has also edited four books, including Historicity and the Latter-day Saint Scriptures.