Adam Jelonek


Adam Wacław Jelonek is a Polish diplomat, sociologist and political scientist. He is the former Polish ambassador to Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines. He is a professor and head of department in the Department of Middle and Far East at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków.

Early life and education

Jelonek was born in Kraków. He is a graduate of the Faculty of Journalism and Political Science at the University of Warsaw. In 1986, he became an underground activist for the Federation of Fighting Youth. He received a Ph.D. in humanities from the Institute of Sociology at the University of Warsaw in 1997, and habilitation at the Faculty of Philosophy and Sociology in 2005.

Academic career

Between 1993 and 2006, Jelonek was an assistant and associate professor at the Institute of Sociology in the University of Warsaw. Between 1999 and 2005, he was an associate professor at the Institute of Political Studies at the Polish Academy of Sciences. He has been head of department in the Department of Middle and Far East at the Faculty of International and Political Studies at the Jagiellonian University since 2007 – and under his leadership, the department became an institute. Between 2007 and 2009, he was Chairman of the Scientific Council of the Institute of Regional Studies at the Jagiellonian University. He is the director of the Institute of the Middle and Far East of the Jagiellonian University.

Ambassadorial career

In 2010 Jelonek became Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Poland to Malaysia, accredited to Brunei and the Philippines. He ended his term in 2014.

Books and papers

Jelonek has written a number of books and papers, including:Kibbutz. Is this a crisis of the collectivist socialism? Revolution of the Khmer Rouges 1975–1979 Theories of social development Towards illiberal democracy Dilemmas of consociationalism. The case of Malaysia Vietnamese-The Values Systems- Stereotypes of the West Individual and society on Asia Confucianism. China Towards the New Century History of Cambodia History of Malaysia