About.
I am a New Testament scholar with a special interest in onomastics (the study of names), Luke-Acts, and in making scholarship accessible to a broader audience. Here you can learn more about my books and research.
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Featured Research.Luke the PhysicianIs there internal evidence for the church tradition that Luke the Evangelist was a doctor? This new peer-reviewed study uses the latest analytical tools to inform the discussion. It examines Luke's vocabulary, his medical knowledge, and his level of education.
Name StatisticsThis is one of several articles that describes how name distribution can gauge the historicity of the Gospels and Acts, co-authored with Jason Wilson, head of the math and computer science department at Biola University. Read our preprint version for free.
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Forthcoming Book (2028).
Jason Wilson and I are currently under contract with InterVarsity Academic to produce a book on the historical and statistical significance of personal names in the Gospels and Acts. It will include:
- additional lexical entries from recent archaeological publications;
- tests of the Gospels-Acts male names against various chronological periods;
- statistical and historical analysis of female names in the Gospels-Acts;
- goodness-of-fit testing on tria nomina from ancient biographies and modern historical novels;
- alternative testing and data-binning methods to confirm our findings.
- additional lexical entries from recent archaeological publications;
- tests of the Gospels-Acts male names against various chronological periods;
- statistical and historical analysis of female names in the Gospels-Acts;
- goodness-of-fit testing on tria nomina from ancient biographies and modern historical novels;
- alternative testing and data-binning methods to confirm our findings.
Are name statistics in the Gospels and Acts a good test of historicity? These two videos explain the initial findings.
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In 2025, Wes Huff discussed my names research on the Joe Rogan Experience (Ep. 2252), including the concept of 'onomastic congruence', a termed coined for my 2023 paper on name patterns within Greco-Roman biographies.
Since then, Wes and I have collaborated on several projects: - a video on the evidence for historical reportage in the Gospels; - a video on reading the Parable of the Lost Son(s) in its historical and literary context (forthcoming). |
Documentary.Many thanks to Capturing Christianity and Green Light Studio for putting together a documentary on my book, The Historical Tell.
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Endorsements.
I have previewed this book [The Historical Tell] with great interest, admiration, and, dare I say, envy. The author displays to me an incredible breadth of authoritative knowledge... Paul Barnett
Lecturer Emeritus, Moore Theological College |
Luuk van de Weghe contributes meaningfully to our understandings of biblical historiography regarding the histories of early Christianity and Jesus of Nazareth. Paul N. Anderson
Professor of Biblical and Quaker Studies at George Fox University |
Van de Weghe brings fresh material and a fresh perspective...The field of New Testament studies needs this sort of serious engagement with a reportage model of the Gospels. Lydia McGrew
Author, The Eye of the Beholder: The Gospel of John As Historical Reportage |
Luuk van de Weghe breaks some new ground. Most important is his meticulous analysis of names, demonstrating that here Luke is in line with serious historians like Plutarch, Suetonius or Josephus. Rainer Riesner
Professor emeritus of New Testament at the University of Dortmund/Germany |