Johann Christoph "Jan" Assmann (7 July 1938 – 19 February 2024) was a German Egyptologist, cultural historian, and religion scholar.

Assmann studied Egyptology and classical archaeology in Munich, Heidelberg, Paris, and Göttingen.

He is also known beyond Egyptology circles for his interpretation of the origins of monotheism, which he considers as a break from earlier cosmotheism, first with Atenism and later with the Exodus from Egypt of the Israelites.

[4] Assmann suggested that the ancient Egyptian religion had a more significant influence on Judaism than is generally acknowledged.

[5] He used the term "normative inversion" to suggest that some aspects of Judaism were formulated in direct reaction to Egyptian practices and theology.