Hsuan-An was born and raised in Taipei, Taiwan. He earned his B.A. in Arabic Language and Literature form National Chengchi University, where he worked as a teaching assistant of Arabic Syntax and Morphology. In addition, he spent his sophomore year as an exchange student at Kuwait University. During his time in Kuwait, he served as a coordinator for Taiwan’s national delegations in a number of international exhibitions such as the 5^th International Invention Fair of the Middle East. Before starting at UCSB, he served in Taiwan’s army and worked as a judicial administration substitute draftee in Taiwan’s government.

His current research interests involve in global governance, conflict management, and trans-regional studies, specifically East Asian – Middle Eastern relations and interactions. Apart from his academic interests, he is an avid traveler, fascinated with divination and numerology based on the Chinese classic, Yijing, and enjoys visiting art galleries and listening to Japanese Enka and Showa Kayokyoku.