LIAS is comprised of three research schools with expertise in different areas:

East European Politics is a refereed journal which publishes articles on the government, politics and international relations of the post-communist world.

Do you want to discover a language and culture that is completely different from the Netherlands?

Do you want to discover a language and culture that is completely different from the Netherlands?

In the Bachelor's programme Japanese Studies at Leiden University you will study the rich history and age-old traditions of Japan. Discover the fascinating country of haiku, samurai, geishas and manga.

Do you want to discover a language and culture that is completely different from the Netherlands?

Do you want to discover a language and culture that is completely different from the Netherlands?

Do you want to discover a language and culture that is completely different from the Netherlands?

Do you want to discover a language and culture that is completely different from the Netherlands?

Our AI researchers work closely with other institutions such as Delft University of Technology and Erasmus University.

The expedition commanded by Nicolas Baudin to Tenerife, Mauritius, Australia, Timor and South Africa in 1800-1804 is fully researched in regard to ornithology.

Dating back more than 400 years, Leiden University has the oldest continuous chair of Arabic outside the Arabic-speaking world. Today the MENA region is studied at Leiden from before the coming of Islam up to today from a wide array of disciplines. And Arabic is studied within the diverse linguistic,…

The Khoesan were the first people in Africa to undergo the full rigours of European colonisation. By the early nineteenth century, they had largely been brought under colonial rule, dispossessed of their land and stock, and forced to work as labourers for farmers of European descent.

Natural resources often stretch across borders that separate modern nation states. This can create conflict and limit opportunities for regulated consumption of their goods and services, but also provide opportunities for joint multinational efforts that exceed single country capabilities.

Forgotten Lineages explores the paths through which generations of formally enslaved and their descendants gradually forgot their past of enslavement under Dutch and British imperial rule and became local subjects in Sri Lanka and South Africa. It explores why and how forgetting rather than memory became…

In this paper, Andrea Malaya M. Ragragio and Myfel D. Paluga recast new light on the historical tattooing of the “Pintados,” or the the name by which the inhabitants of the Visayas Islands (in the central Philippines) were called by Spanish documenters in the sixteenth century. This is one of their…

The Centre for Indigenous America Studies (CIAS) at Leiden University is designed to coordinate and promote the teaching and research of Indigenous languages, literatures, cultures and cultural heritage.

This dissertation provides a description of Konso, a Cushitic language spoken by about 250,000 speakers in the South-West Ethiopia.

The project aims at highlighting and strengthening Dutch research into the diversity of the world’s languages from a historic and a cognitive perspective.

Examine and experience the material features and characteristic appearances of medieval manuscripts, annotated books, prints, drawings, photographic albums and much more, in various settings.

This programma, an initiative of the Institute for History in partnership with Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) in Yogyakarta. Aims to study more than 20 kilometers of Dutch archival materials in The Netherlands, Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka and South Africa.

The focus of this programme is the inter-community social relationships and transformations of island networks in the Lesser Antilles across the historical divide.

This is an Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility project of Leiden University’s Faculty of Science with two Armenian universities, Yerevan State University and Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory.

On 30 November, Florian Theissen defended the thesis 'Sincerely believing in freedom: a reconstruction and comparison of the interpretation of the freedom of religion and belief on the Canadian Supreme Court, the South African Constitutional Court and the European Court of Human Rights'. The doctoral…

This project investigates the rich linguistic history of the crucial language groups in East Africa and includes a search for words that indicate earlier lost languages. These outcomes, combined with recent archaeological and genetic research, will contribute to a new understanding of East Africa’s…

Overview of the Asia Programmes offered at Leiden University.

Lecture, China Seminar

This project looks at the ways in which youth in southern Nigeria navigate their lives in a context of experiencing long-term socioeconomic uncertainty and political insecurity (duress).

Master

As a graduate of South and Southeast Asian Studies you will be ready for your next step. You can choose to continue your studies or enter the labour market. Once you have completed this programme, you will be prepared for both options.

Overview of the Leiden Asia staff per area or country.

This handbook is aimed at a wide readership interested in developing an understanding of the political, economic, and social complexity of Eastern Europe. It covers Central Europe, the Baltic republics, South Eastern Europe, and the Western Balkans, as well as all the countries of the former Soviet…

On 8 February 2021 Leiden University celebrated its 446th anniversary.

See more information below.

Political Scientist Katharina Natter (Leiden University) advances theory-building on immigration beyond the liberal state and demonstrates how immigration politics can provide valuable insights into the inner workings of political regimes. Connecting scholarship from comparative politics, international…

Discover the impact of financial products on inequality and conflict in South Africa through Erik Bähres' book 'Ironies of Solidarity', now available in Brazil as IIronias da solidariedade. Explore the role of insurance companies in serving financially disadvantaged African individuals.

If you really want to understand East Asia, you can't overlook Korea. At the Bachelor's programme Korean Studies at Leiden University you will discover a fascinating mix of age-old traditions and modern customs through intensively studying culture, history and language.

Over a billion people live in China, it has the most spoken language in the world and is a major player on the world stage. Do you want to broaden your knowledge about this fascinating and powerful country? Study the language, culture, economy and politics on a high academic level with China Studies…

In the summer of 2021, Lucy Opoka was awarded one of the coveted Meijers PhD positions. In October, she arrived back in Leiden, where she obtained her LLM degree Advanced Studies in International Children’s Rights in 2019. Professor Liefaard interviewed Lucy upon arrival.

On this page you will find more information about the selected projects of the Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) Fund for 2024.

Fieldwork

Asian Studies at Leiden University is unparalleled in the Netherlands and combines the very best of Asia-related research in North-West Europe.

PhD defence

Professor Peter Bisschop, lecturer in Sanskrit and Ancient Cultures of South Asia, has been awarded a grant by the NWO Free Competition to fund his research into the rapid growth of Saivism in the sixth and seventh centuries in South and Southeast Asia. The research project, entitled ‘From Universe…