William H. McNeill (born 1917, Vancouver, British Columbia) is a Canadian historian. He is currently Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Chicago.

McNeill's most popular work is The Rise of the West. The book explored human history in terms of the effect of different old world civilisations on one another, and especially the dramatic effect of western civilization on others in the past 500 years. It had a major impact on historical theory, especially in distinction to Oswald Spenglers view of distinct, independent civilisations. McNeill is the son of theologian James T. McNeill and the father of historian, J.R. McNeill . His most recent book, with his son, is The Human Web.

Bibliography

• (2003). The Human Web: A Bird's-Eye View of World History. W. W. Norton & Co Inc. ISBN 0393925684
• (1998). A World History. Oxford University Press; 4th edition. ISBN 019511616X
• (1976) "Plagues and Peoples." Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc., New York, NY, ISBN 0-385-12122-9.
• (1963). The Rise of the West: A History of the Human Community. Chicago.