The Leiden African Studies Centre (ASCL) will become part of the University from 1 January 2016.

Markus Altena Davidsen’s PhD dissertation is the first major study of Tolkien Religion. In it, he analyses the religion that is based on the stories by acclaimed British fantasy author J.R.R. Tolkien. He also discusses how fiction itself can become religious. Davidsen will defend his dissertation on…

Warning colours ensure that predators remember that certain prey are poisonous. But now it appears that the colours of poisonous Panamanian frogs are also influenced by fastidious females: partner choice can also lead to colour change in these frogs, as Leiden researcher Martine Maan has reported in…

Michiel Pronk defended his thesis on 30 March 2016

This project examines the notion of sacred fertility and sacred landscapes, associated rituals and material culture, both archaeological and ethnographic manifestations in the Horn of Africa.

Mr. Ade Jaya Suryani defended his thesis on 28 January 2021

How did the invention and implementation of the lightning rod change the perception of thunderstorms on a scientific, technical, religious and artistic level, in the Netherlands and beyond, during the period 1752-1830?

University lecturer in Chinese and Comparative Philosophy Jingjing Li has been awarded a Veni grant for her research on feminist theories within the Buddhist philosophy of consciousness-only. Jingjing Li explains her plans and the importance of her research.

NIMAR is the Netherlands expertise centre for Moroccan Studies. Starting 2016, NIMAR is a part of the Faculty of Humanities of Leiden University. NIMAR organises lectures, facilitates research and actively adds to the knowledge of Moroccan languages, cultures and society in The Netherlands.

Viviana Massa defended her thesis on 16 December 2018.

Religion, Class, and the Postwar Development of the Dutch Welfare State. Dennie Oude Nijhuis.

Knowledge of Muslim societies is essential to function in a globalised world and to fully understand our own Dutch society. Leiden researchers explore the languages, cultures, religions, legal systems and history of Muslim societies and in this way contribute to a centuries-old tradition.

Humanities, Centre for Linguistics

Lecture, Research Seminar

An investigation into how racial stereotypes were created and used in the European Middle Ages.

Political scientist Corinna Jentzsch (Leiden University) about the organisation of rebel and government auxiliaries in the civil war in Mozambique (1976–1992).

Ann Marie Wilson and Andrew DJ Shield have been recently awarded a Leiden Global Interactions SEED grant to support the launch of a new platform for sexuality studies at Leiden University: the Leiden Queer History Network (LQHN).

In the African Studies BA programme you will obtain in-depth knowledge about Africa and the specific theme of your choice. At the same time, you will develop valuable academic and digital competences, as well as personal skills.

How has interreligious encounter in Ogbómòsó created multiple religious belongings and identities among individuals and groups?

LUCSoR has chairs in Comparative Religion, Islam in the West, Christianity, and Judaism. Main areas of expertise include ancient Mesopotamian religions, the Enlightenment, Islam in the West, and new spiritual movements.

“Winner CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title Award 2016” A Cultural History

Strengthening the cooperation between Moroccan, other African, and Dutch institutions for higher education. This was the focus of a two-day seminar at NIMAR (Netherlands Institute Morocco) in Rabat in July, during which scholars of the African Studies Centre Leiden interacted with colleagues from NIMAR…

In the media, we hear a lot of worrying news from Africa: refugees, attacks, Ebola, starvation, corruption... But Africa is much more than that: it is a continent in transition, with developments occurring at breakneck speed. African Studies scholars from different academic disciplines in Leiden conduct…

Een onderzoek naar de formulering, structuur, rechtshistorische aard en sociale en religieuze achtergronden van Laat-Egyptische (demotische) tempeleden, aangevuld met 70 ongepubliceerde teksten.

This study documents and translates the Saa (Zapotec) cultural heritage of the Bene’ Ya’a/En’ne I’ya peoples, the Zapotec inhabitants of the Sierra Norte of Oaxaca.

Eschatology played a central role in both politics and society throughout the early modern period. It inspired people to strive for social and political change, including sometimes by violent means, and prompted in return strong reactions against their religious activism.

Lecture

Leiden University signed the Amnesty International ‘Let’s talk about YES’ manifesto on 10 March, confirming the university’s commitment to preventing sexual violence. Steps will also be taken to make sure that everyone within the university feels responsible for a culture in which sex is based on equality…

The Netherlands Institute in Morocco (NIMAR) is a Leiden University institute. It is financed by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Promotor: Prof.dr. E.F. Smets, Co-promotor: T.R. van Andel

Why do communities form militias to defend themselves against violence during civil war? Using original interviews with former combatants and civilians and archival material from extensive fieldwork in Mozambique, Corinna Jentzsch (Leiden University Institute of Political Science) explains the timing,…

Regulating Relations: Controlling Sex and Marriage

This book offers a new direction for the study of contemporary Islam by focusing on what being Muslim means in people’s everyday lives.

Resilient Diversity: the Governance of Racial and Religious Plurality in the Dutch Empire, 1600-1800

At the end of March, the first coronavirus infections were detected in southern Africa, which resulted in country after country rapidly closing their borders. Tycho van der Hoog witnessed this process at first hand during his PhD research in Namibia. He analyzes the state of the corona crisis from his…

Learn the newest insights from established researchers.

To what extend can coercive diplomacy coerce a State to abandon its controversial nuclear program? Out of three case studies, namely Iran, Libya and South Africa, Jean Yves Ndzana’s PhD research project aims at studying the conducive conditions of coercive diplomacy.

PhD defence

The project

Ömer Gürlesin defended his thesis on 28 November 2018

‘Can he do it?’ Since the remarkable victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2015 Nigerian presidential elections, this has arguably been the most frequently posed question in Nigerian politics.

North Korean workers designed and built numerous monuments, museums and other buildings in southern Africa. This is clear from research by history student Tycho van der Hoog for his master's thesis. These monuments can be an important source of income for a country that has become quite isolated on…

Computers are becoming so smart that in the future they will perhaps take over the role of judges. In the meantime, experts at Leiden University are examining the question of which standards responsible data science should meet.

Ideology and Christianity in Japan shows the major role played by Christian-related discourse in the formation of early-modern and modern Japanese political ideology.

This multidisciplinary programme offers you the opportunity to study the African continent from many different angles. As a result, you will acquire solid knowledge and understanding of the major historical, cultural, socio-economic and political factors at play in Africa, and learn how to advance this…