Jean Hudson Boyd is an American scholar of Chinese religion and cultural history. She is a professor in the Department of History at Georgetown University, where she teaches courses on Chinese religion, folklore, and ritual practice. Her research focuses on popular religion in modern and contemporary China, including the study of folk sects, Taoist rituals, and the interaction between state and religious practices.
Boyd has authored several monographs and articles that are widely cited in the fields of sinology and religious studies. Notable works include:
- Mysterious and Moral: The Cult of the Ghost in China (University Press, 2000) – an examination of the role of ghost worship in Chinese society.
- The Cult of the Dead in Early Modern England (Oxford University Press, 2005) – a comparative study of death rituals.
- The Religious Landscape of Contemporary China (Cambridge University Press, 2012) – a comprehensive overview of religious diversity and state‑religion relations in the People’s Republic of China.
Her scholarship contributes to a deeper understanding of how religious traditions adapt to social, political, and economic changes. Boyd has presented her research at numerous international conferences and serves on editorial boards for journals such as Journal of Chinese Religions and Asian Ethnology.
Personal details such as her date of birth are not publicly documented, and no controversy or unrelated notoriety is associated with her name in reliable sources.