CFP: The Long Shadow of “Ostforschung”: Continuities, Ruptures, Perspectives. Lüneburg, 08.10.2026
To mark its 25th anniversary, the Nordost Institute will host an international workshop on 8 October 2026 that examines the historical impact of “Ostforschung,” its ideological foundations, and the continuities and ruptures that shape its legacy into the present. The event also explores the political, epistemic, and societal conditions of this knowledge production and invites scholars from various disciplines to contribute their perspectives on the enduring significance of “Ostforschung” in contemporary Eastern European studies.
At the same time, the workshop will reflect on how closely scientific knowledge production , political interests, and social power relations were intertwined within “Ostforschung.” Confronting this past should help to make current research practices more sensitive to their own assumptions and possible distortions.
“Ostforschung” was closely linked to national, imperial, and colonial projects. Its concepts and categories shaped academic disciplines as well as state and social perceptions. The workshop examines how these knowledge systems emerged, how they became institutionally entrenched, and which continuities and ruptures characterize their histories and their impact. The aim is to reveal the ideological and epistemic influences of “Ostforschung” and to discuss the problems, distortions, and blind spots it has inscribed into contemporary research on Eastern Europe.
The workshop is interdisciplinary in nature and explicitly invites researchers from various fields of the humanities, political science, or economics.
Possible questions include:
- How can historical and interdisciplinary forms of “Ostforschung” be assessed in terms of their political, scholarly, and societal impact?
- Which continuities and breaks characterize the transition from classical “Ostforschung” to contemporary forms of research on Eastern European ?
- What role did individual personalities, academic institutions, and state actors play in constructing and legitimizing “knowledge about the East”?
- How do postcolonial, global, and transnational perspectives influence the critical reassessment of “Ostforschung”?
- What epistemic, ethical, and methodological challenges arise from the continuing legacy of “Ostforschung”?
The workshop will be held in German and English. Please send an abstract (approx. 300 words) and a short CV by March 1, 2026 to: sekretariat@ikgn.de
Kontakt
a.pufelska@ikgn.de
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