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Department of History and Cultural Studies

Main Fields of Research

Antiquity

  • Field archaeology in combination with modern scientific technologies and methods
  • Historical understanding of the development of culture and society and cultural achievements in various regions and periods, from prehistoric and ancient Europe to the New World in South America
  • Cultural transfer

History

  • Continuities and long-term changes, from antiquity to the present
  • Dynamics of knowledge change
  • Global/public history

East Asian Studies, the Arab world, the Middle East

  • Japanese studies, Sinology, Korean studies, all with a social science orientation and reference to the present
  • Relationships and the influence of societies of the Near East and North Africa with regard to culture, law, religion, politics, and the history of ideas
  • Status and role of religious and ethnic minorities
  • Role of Islamic knowledge culture and Islamic law, historical changeability, and global networking among Islamic cultures and societies
  • Languages and literatures of the Middle East and the Far East

Art Studies

  • Contextualization and historicization of individual cultures
  • Art history in a transregional and transcultural perspective, also outside Europe (Africa, Europe, USA, Asia)
  • Art history in a global context
  • Visual cultures, visual communication, cultural techniques

Religion, Ethics, Theology, Jewish Studies

  • Traditions and perspectives of the religious and cultural history of Christianity and Judaism
  • History, literature, and religion of Christianity and Judaism from the Biblical era to the present
  • History and literature of Judaism in the geographical and cultural space of late antiquity, social and intellectual history of the Late Middle Ages and in modern times in Europe and the Middle East
  • Analysis of cultural and religious transformation processes and the importance of religious beliefs in a globalized world
  • Analysis of cultural traditions and updates from non-European non-literate and text-based religions
  • Analysis of ethical rules, norms, and values in human thinking and behavior

Involvement in Multidisciplinary Research Areas:

  • Transregional relationships
  • Cultural dynamics
  • Human-environment interaction
  • Health and the quality of life