Events

October 2026

Fri 16 October 2026

Lecture | The Semantics of ‘OPENING’ Events in Asante Twi

Dorothy Pokua Agyepong (University of Ghana) examines how speakers of Asante Twi conceptualize and linguistically encode opening events by analysing the semantics of relevant verbs and their syntactic behaviour. Part of This Time for Africa! Series

Fri 16 October 2026

Lecture | Governance Technologies & the Performative Reproduction of Delegated Imperial Authority

Governance Technologies and the Performative Reproduction of Delegated Imperial Authority: Multi-Actor Making, Enacting, Contesting, and Reproducing of VOC Rule. The research focuses on the formative decades of the 1620s-1660s in the Cape of Good Hope, Formosa, and Ceylon. 

Fri 16 October 2026

RMO Lecture | The Herculaneum-papyri

Various researchers from Napels and the US discuss how they deciphered hundreds of charred scrolls from the ancient Roman town Herculaneum and what these Herculaneum-papyri entailed. 

Sun 18 October 2026

WML lezing | Hanuman,  Rama, Vishnu: de verhalen van 3 helden

Sanne Dokter-Mersch (Universiteit Leiden) richt zich op de verhalen van Hanuman (uit het Indiase epos Ramayana), maar ook op Rama die binnen het Hindoeïsme gezien wordt als een manifestatie van Vishnu. Ism Studium Generale Leiden.

Sun 18 October 2026

RMO boekpresentatie | Ganymedes

Wouter Rozema presenteert zijn boek Ganymedes, een ‘epische hervertelling meets romantasy’ vol liefde, intrige en verlangens tussen de Griekse goden.

Mon 19 October 2026

Lecture | Emerging medical practices in colonial Malaya

Sandra Manickam gives the Colonialism and Decolonization seminar on The 'public' in colonial public medicine: emerging medical practices in colonial Malaya

Mon 19 October 2026

Lezing | Religie & conflict in Afrika in de context van kolonisatie

Gerrie ter Haar analyseert de relatie tussen religie en conflict in de context van sub-Sahara Afrika, aan de hand van de contextualisering van de christelijke religie in Afrika sinds de Europese kolonisering van het continent. Studium Generale lezing 

Tue 20 October 2026

IIAS Online Booktalk | Afterlives of Maoist Performance Culture in Beijing’s Public Parks

Lisa Richaud (KU Leuven) presents her recent monograph, Casual Assemblies: Afterlives of Maoist Performance Culture in Beijing’s Public Parks. Casual Assemblies explores the paradox of political messaging in the capital’s heart, framed as mere fun or self-entertainment.

Tue 20 October 2026

NINO Lecture | Roman Pharaohs

Drawing on a varied range of sources from the reigns of Augustus (30 BC–AD 14), Nero (AD 54–68) and Domitian (AD 81–96), Nicola Barbagli shows the different ways in which the emperor was represented in written and visual media, and address how and by whom imperial power was negotiated in Egypt under the first emperors.

Tue 20 October 2026

KITLV Lecture | Vagabond guerrillas & vigilantes

Peter Keppy’s study of vigilantism and its transformation in Central Java reveals a paradox: to build a just, democratic state and restore security, authorities relied on colonial-era vigilantism while introducing volunteer militias to fight crime and rebellion.

Wed 21 October 2026

Lezing | Een reis door de Goddelijke Komedie

Prof. Franco Nembrini, schrijver, docent en bevlogen kenner van Dante’s werk, neemt het publiek mee langs de personages, verzen en grote thema’s van de Goddelijke Komedie. Lezing in het Italiaans met een live simultaan vertaling in het Nederlands.

Thu 22 October 2026

ASCL Seminar | African-European cooperation in a multipolar world order

Africa’s growing economies are attracting global investment, raising questions about fair and sustainable partnerships with Europe. This event examines the promises and perils of European strategic autonomy by incorporating African perspectives. 

Thu 22 October 2026

Lezing | De horror paradox: wat is er leuk aan griezelen?

Hoe kan het dat we plezier halen uit ons bang (laten) maken? Wat gebeurt er in je lijf en je brein als je bang bent en heeft angst nut? Zulke vragen worden bekeken vanuit de psychologie,  literatuurwetenschappen, poëzie, muziek en het theater, in deze Studium Generale lezing

Thu 22 October 2026

Book Launch | Identity & Climate Change in Contemporary Photography

How is contemporary photography reshaping our view of Dutch land, water, history and identity in a time of climate change? Maartje van den Heuvel and Liz Wells have conversations with artists featured in the book 'Identity and Climate Change in Contemporary Photography: Reframing Netherlandish Landscapes'

Thu 22 October 2026

Symposium | papieren van de Revolutie

De Universitaire Bibliotheken Leiden organiseert het Sneevliet Symposium - papieren van de Revolutie. Onderzoekers, archivarissen en activisten vertellen over hun ervaring met archiefmaterialen over Sneevliet en de Nederlandse vakbeweging.

Fri 23 October 2026

Lecture | Islamic Aid & Gulf States in Contemporary Crises

Altea Pericoli examines how Islamic values and Gulf State aid policies shape humanitarian aid, focusing on the Syrian response from 2015 to 2023.

Fri 23 October 2026

Symposium | Tussen (eind)tijd en eeuwigheid

Een symposium over het verleden, het heden en de toekomst van (Leids) Kerkhistorisch Gezelschap S.S.S. ter gelegenheid van het 125 jaar bestaan van het genootschap.

Sat 24 October 2026

RMO Event | Op pad met Doggerland-experts

Speuren naar aangespoelde overblijfselen uit het verre verleden tijdens de strandstruinmiddag. Op verschillende plekken langs het strand van De Zandmotor (bij Kijkduin/Den Haag) zijn archeologen en Doggerland-experts aanwezig om de vondsten tijdens deze middag strandstruinen te bekijken en te interpreteren

Mon 26 October 2026

ASCL Seminar | Nuclear Power and Decolonisation in Africa

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In the mid-1900s, the nuclear age began as colonial empires ended, marking two major global shifts. Using Europe and Africa as case studies, Chloë Mayoux explores how the nuclear age shaped global relations during decolonisation.

Mon 26 October 2026

Panel Discussion | The 1956 Hungarian Revolution and Freedom Fight in a Global Context

In 1956, Hungary rose up against Soviet oppression in a historic fight for freedom and independence. Uncover the story of this revolution and its profound international impact, including on The Netherlands, featuring prominent Hungarian researchers living in the Netherlands, accompanied by film segments.

Mon 26 October 2026

RMO online lezing | De archeologie van Oman

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 Sam Botan (archeoloog en promovendus aan de Universiteit Leiden) vertelt over de archeologie van Oman en de belangrijkste archeologische sites van het land.

Mon 26 October 2026

Lecture | The Origins of War and Peace in the Human Species

Hugo Meijer explores why and how humans developed the conflicting tendencies for war and peace, drawing on research from thirteen disciplines.

Tue 27 October 2026

IIAS Book Launch & Roundtable | Mobility, Memory, Landscape & Livelihood in the Everyday Urban

Roundtable discussion and book launch within the Humanities Across Borders programme. Explore how The Hague and its communities can become more visible and understandable to students, educators, policymakers, the municipality and residents.

Tue 27 October 2026

Lecture | Labour Market Discrimination Across Immigration Regimes

How do immigration regimes shape the mechanisms through which migrants encounter labour market discrimination? Sara Bojarczuk compares Poland and the Netherlands in this lecture by the Leiden Political Economy Group

Wed 28 October 2026

Lecture | Disgust, Compassion, and Laughter in Medieval Japan

Rajyashree Pandey (University of London/University of Edinburgh) analyses the many meanings assigned to faecal matter in the diverse Buddhist and literary narratives of medieval Japan. 

Wed 28 October 2026

Lecture | The Time Course of Tone Encoding in Mandarin Speech Production & Perception

Yiran Ding explores how the brain processes tones and speech sounds when people listen to and produce Mandarin, revealing when different language features are recognized and planned.

Wed 28 October 2026

Lecture | Extraction and Empires: A history that hasn't ended

How did resource extraction build empires, and how much has really changed since? Prof. Catía Antunes traces the long history of how empires sustained themselves through the extraction of resources, drawing on striking examples across the centuries. 

Thu 29 October 2026

RMO Lezing & Modeshow | In pracht gehuld

Egyptoloog Karel Innemée en designer Paulina Matusiak vertellen over de Nubische ceremoniële kleding die te zien is in de Galleria-expositie. Gevolgd door een modeshow met de vijf gereconstrueerde, spectaculaire kostuums uit de expositie.

Thu 29 October 2026

Book talk | Britain, Détente, and the Helsinki CSCE: Fathers of the Final Act

From Cold war neutrality to EU pragmatism: Finland, non-alignment and the politics. Seminar by Kai Hebel, Leiden University, Co-organised by the Cold War Research Network 

Thu 29 October 2026

Lecture | How does multilingualism shape the brain?

Olga Kepinska introduces a new framework for quantifying multilingual experience that captures the typological relationships between languages, rather than treating all language combinations as equivalent.

Thu 29 October 2026

Lezing | Leven en werk van Fiep Westendorp

Alumna van Universiteit Leiden, uitgever en schrijfster Annette Portegies is te gast in de reeks Letter en Geest. Zij vertelt over haar recent verschenen boek 'Fiep – Leven en werk van Fiep Westendorp'.

Thu 29 October 2026 - Fri 30 October 2026

Symposium | The grammar of reparation

Scholars explore the complex entanglements between narrative/narration and questions of repair, reparation, and restitution. What is the grammar of reparation? In Amsterdam.

Thu 29 October 2026

NINO lezing | Een jaar in Babylon

De culturele context van de Cyruscilinder. Daan Nijssen, MA (Oudheidstudies, VU) bekijkt de gebeurtenissen vanuit het perspectief van de Babyloniërs, toen Cyrus de Grote het Babylonische Rijk na slechts één veldslag in 539 v.Chr. veroverde.

Fri 30 October 2026

Seminar | DeNationalizing the Middle East: The Armenian Case

Histories connected seminar with Tsolin Nalbantian, Associate Professor of Modern Middle East History. She focuses on diasporas, minorities, and the modern political and social history of Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, and the Caucasus.

Fri 30 October 2026

Conference | Pardon my French?

The French language played a key role in trade, diplomacy, science and public opinion, and developed into an international prestige language. This workshop shows sociolinguistic perspectives on historical contact with French that brings together innovative and data-driven research papers. 

Fri 30 October 2026

Symposium | Werken met Wolkers

Het archief van Jan Wolkers (1925-2007) bevat onder andere zijn dagboeken, foto’s, brieven, kunstwerken en typemachines. Het archief is nu geordend en wordt officieel toegankelijk gemaakt voor het publiek.

November 2026

Sun 1 November 2026

WML Event | Día de Muertos

Beleef de kleurrijke Mexicaanse viering van Dag van de Doden. Families staan stil bij overleden dierbaren en vieren hun herinneringen met bloemen, muziek, geuren en favoriete gerechten. Herinneren hoeven niet verdrietig hoeft te zijn, maar kunnen ook een feest van liefde, verbinding en leven zijn. 

Mon 2 November 2026

Lecture | Motivation, Family Language Policy and Structural Conditions

Siyuan Li, guest researcher at the Leiden University Centre for Linguistics, talks about understanding attitudes towards Birth-Language Learning among Chinese Adoptees in Spain. 

Tue 3 November 2026

Lecture | Male sexuality in Cyprus: nationalism, colonialism & public discourse

Savvas Skoufaridis researches how public views on male sexuality in Cyprus from 1939 to 1974 reflected tensions between British colonial rule and the development of national identity.

Tue 3 November 2026

Lezing | Mexicaanse transnationale perspectieven

Cristina Rivera Garza, een van de belangrijkste hedendaagse stemmen in de Latijns-Amerikaanse cultuur, verzorgt de Spinozalezing. 

Tue 3 November 2026

Lecture | Space for Dialogue in a Chilling Climate of Polarization

While universities promote progressive ideas, many voters are moving to the right, and cities remain segregated despite more inclusive language. In his recent book, Against Symbolic Liberalism: A Plea for Dialogical Sociology, Sari Hanafi explores how liberals themselves have distorted liberal principles.

Wed 4 November 2026 - Fri 6 November 2026

Conference | Writing Numbers In Papyri

The conference Writing Numbers in Papyri: Scribal Training, Representation and Use is part of the series ‘Papyri in a Changing World’. The theme of Writing Numbers in Papyri is how numbers were written and used in texts written on papyri, how scribes shaped, learned and corrected numbers, and how written numbers were influenced by intercultural contact.

Wed 4 November 2026

Hybride Lezing | De Tempel van Isis in de Egyptische havenstad Berenike

Olaf Kaper vertelt tijdens deze Merlijnlezing over nieuwe opgravingen op de grens van het Romeinse Rijk. Berenike is een haven aan de Rode Zee, daar is de hoofdtempel, gewijd aan de godin Isis, opgegraven met spectaculaire resultaten. 

Thu 5 November 2026

ASCL seminar | Negotiating humanitarian access in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Myfanwy James (London School of Economics and Political Science) explores how global endeavours are built on personal networks, knowledge and skills of local humanitarian workers who are rarely given credit. 

Thu 5 November 2026

Lecture | Bivalence, Fidelity, and Large-Cardinal Reflection

Beau Mont gives a LTP Colloquium Lecture for Philosophy, named "Bivalence, Fidelity, and Large-Cardinal Reflection: Variations on a Kreiselian Theme"

Thu 5 November 2026

IIAS online Booktalk | Early Cinema in Hong Kong

The Colonial Screen. In this online book talk, Prof. Emilie Yueh-yu Yeh explores the exhibition, regulation, reception, and social role of motion pictures in Hong Kong, from the arrival of the cinematograph in 1897 to its emergence as a South China film hub in the late 1920s.

Mon 9 November 2026

RMO Online Lezing | De archeologie van Sicilië

René van Beek (oud conservator Allard Pierson Museum) vertelt over de archeologie van Sicilië en de sporen die een grote diversiteit aan culturen er achterliet. Online lezing ism reisorganisatie Djoser.

Tue 10 November 2026

RMO Hybride Lezing | Studentenleven in de Middeleeuwen

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Annemarieke Willemsen schetst hoe het studentenleven aan universiteiten in Europa tussen 1200 en 1600 eruitzag, gebaseerd op archeologische, kunsthistorische en geschreven bronnen. 

Wed 11 November 2026

Lecture | Who Pays the Price? Regional perspectives

What are the global effects of the extraction of critical raw materials on regions world wide? A look at how the run on critical raw materials affects regional and local communities. Jeleel Balyaminu and Soledad Valdivia Rivera help to draw parallels between Latin-America and Africa. 

Thu 12 November 2026

IIAS screening & discussion | Memories of Timor

The film Ingatan dari Timor follows an Indonesian undergraduate student, Zizi, from Malang to Timor-Leste when she was conducting her thesis research on Indonesia’s history in Timor-Leste. Producer Rita Padawangi moderates the Q & A afterwards.

Thu 12 November 2026

Lecture | Reproduction, Refabrication, and the Modern Market for Ukiyo-e Prints

Julie Nelson Davis (University of Pennsylvania) explores in this talk 'The Trouble with Takamizawa' how reproductions of Japanese ukiyo-e prints challenged ideas of authenticity and originality in the modern art market.

Sat 14 November 2026

WML Rondleiding | Tijd voor Papoea Tour

Verdiep je in Papoeakunst en -cultuur tijdens de Tijd voor Papoea Tour. Een rondleiding vol verhalen en inzichten die nieuwe perspectieven biedt op kunst, cultuur en makerschap. 

Sun 15 November 2026

Wereldwandeling | Sporen van de Slavernij in Leiden

Aan de hand van deze wandeling door de straten van de historische binnenstad van Leiden, leer je meer over de geschiedenis van de Nederlandse slavenhandel en slavernij, lopend langs gebouwen waar handelaren, tot slaafgemaakten, en voorvechters voor de afschaffing van slavernij woonden.

Sun 15 November 2026

WML lezing | Samí art, narratives, land & power

Suze van der Poll (Universiteit van Amsterdam) bespreekt hoe kunst en literatuur aan kan zetten tot gedragsverandering en een stem geeft aan ongehoorde betrokkenen.

Tue 17 November 2026

Lecture | Social Welfare, Education and Gender Relations in South Asia

Is education empowering for girls in poor countries, or is its impact limited by family control, social inequality and gender expectations? Ritanjan Das looks at The Empowerment Paradox in this lecture of the Political Economy Group.

Tue 17 November 2026

IIAS hybrid Lecture | Artist Residencies as (Trans-)Infrastructure in Taiwan & Asia

Beyond the Residency. Hsiao-Chi Chu examines how artist residencies can foster care, connection, and resilience as (trans-)infrastructure.

Tue 17 November 2026

Lunch talk | Deaf and blind individuals in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Jelena Seferovic (Institute of Contemporary History Slovenia) discusses how treatment of deaf and blind individuals in Bosnia and Herzegovina from the Interwar Period to Socialism moved from neglect to care.

Wed 18 November 2026

Lecture | Closing the Loop: A sustainable future

How can we create a just and sustainable future? This lecture looks into the more technical aspects of critical raw materials. If these materials continue to remain essential, how can we extract them in a sustainable way?

Wed 18 November 2026

RMO Lezing | Onderzoek in Artaxata

Prof. dr. Achim Lichtenberger vertelt over geofysisch en archeologisch onderzoek in Artaxata, de oude hoofdstad van Armenië in de Romeinse tijd. Samen met Armeense wetenschappers en specialisten deed hij onderzoek naar de stad zelf, een Romeins aquaduct en een zeer vroege kerk.

Mon 23 November 2026

RMO Online Lezing | De archeologie van India

Alexander Reeuwijk (schrijver en reiziger) geeft toelichting over de archeologie van (Zuid-)India en de zoektocht naar de Romeinse havenstad Pudouke. Online lezing ism Reisorganisatie Djoser

Mon 23 November 2026

RMO online lezing | De archeologie van India

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Alexander Reeuwijk (schrijver en reiziger) vertelt over de archeologie van (Zuid-)India en de zoektocht naar de Romeinse havenstad Pudouke.

Thu 26 November 2026 - Fri 27 November 2026

NINO Conference | Resilience and adaptation in ancient West Asia

Diverse scholars discuss different forms of resilience manifestations across ancient West Asia.

Thu 26 November 2026

NINO Conference | Resilience and Adaptation in Ancient West Asia

This conference aims to bring together scholars from a broad academic background, including that of regions other than the Ancient Near East, to integrate state-of-the-art theoretical and archaeological thinking on resilience in the ancient world.

December 2026

Thu 3 December 2026

Lecture | Tokugawa Ieyasu ( Japanese samurai) as Medicine King

In this lecture Timon Screech (Nichibunken Kyoto) looks at the ongoing worship of Tokugawa Ieyasu (a Japanese Samurai and first Shogun) as healer throughout the Japanese history from 1603 to 1868 (the edu period).

Thu 3 December 2026

Lecture | Tokugawa Ieyasu as Medicine King

Tokugawa Ieyasu died in 1616 and was deified twice. The first had made him a stand-alone kami (Shinto god), but the second redefined him as the Buddha of Medicine. Timon Screech discusses the ongoing worship of Ieyasu as healer throughout the Edo Period (1603-1868).

Mon 7 December 2026

RMO online lezing | De archeologie van de Zijderoute

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 Sigrid van Roode (archeoloog, etnograaf en sieradenhistoricus) vertelt over de archeologie van de Zijderoute, van Kirgizië tot Turkmenistan, en van Alexander de Grote tot Timoer Lenk.

Tue 8 December 2026 - Wed 9 December 2026

Conference | Shiʿi manuscripts and archives from the medieval and early modern periods

Join scholarly conversations on manuscript and archival production in Shiʿi communities across the Islamic world.

Fri 11 December 2026

WML Rondleiding | Tijd voor Papoea Tour

Verdiep je in Papoeakunst en -cultuur tijdens de Tijd voor Papoea Tour. Een rondleiding vol verhalen en inzichten die nieuwe perspectieven biedt op kunst, cultuur en makerschap. 

Sun 13 December 2026

Wereldwandeling | Sporen van de Slavernij in Leiden

Aan de hand van deze wandeling door de straten van de historische binnenstad van Leiden, leer je meer over de geschiedenis van de Nederlandse slavenhandel en slavernij, lopend langs gebouwen waar handelaren, tot slaafgemaakten, en voorvechters voor de afschaffing van slavernij woonden.

Wed 16 December 2026

NINO hybrid lecture | The development of Old Assyrian studies

Prof. Dr Mogens Trolle Larsen (University of Copenhagen) presents the scholarly process that led to the development of the academic discipline of Old Assyrian studies.

Mon 21 December 2026

RMO online lezing | De archeologie van Marokko

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RMO-conservatoren Suzan van de Velde en Jasper de Bruin vertellen over de archeologie van Marokko in de Klassieke oudheid.

January 2027

Wed 13 January 2027 - Fri 15 January 2027

Conference | The Institutional Embedding of Shiʿi Imams

This conference seeks to illuminate the embedding of imams (and uncanonised candidates for imamate) as actors within their social, institutional and historical context before the canonization of an unbroken line of Twelve imams (260/874).

Sun 17 January 2027

Wereldwandeling | Sporen van de Slavernij in Leiden

Aan de hand van deze wandeling door de straten van de historische binnenstad van Leiden, leer je meer over de geschiedenis van de Nederlandse slavenhandel en slavernij, lopend langs gebouwen waar handelaren, tot slaafgemaakten, en voorvechters voor de afschaffing van slavernij woonden.

Fri 29 January 2027

NINO Annual Meeting | Makers, Materials & Us. Crafts and Industries in the Near East

This Annual Meeting is a gathering of advanced students and researchers in the field of Near Eastern studies – spanning antiquity to the early modern period. It offers a lively forum for sharing current projects, discussing new ideas, and connecting with colleagues across disciplines. This year hosted by Radboud University

February 2027

Sun 21 February 2027

Wereldwandeling | Sporen van de Slavernij in Leiden

Aan de hand van deze wandeling door de straten van de historische binnenstad van Leiden, leer je meer over de geschiedenis van de Nederlandse slavenhandel en slavernij, lopend langs gebouwen waar handelaren, tot slaafgemaakten, en voorvechters voor de afschaffing van slavernij woonden.

March 2027

Sun 21 March 2027

Wereldwandeling | Sporen van de Slavernij in Leiden

Aan de hand van deze wandeling door de straten van de historische binnenstad van Leiden, leer je meer over de geschiedenis van de Nederlandse slavenhandel en slavernij, lopend langs gebouwen waar handelaren, tot slaafgemaakten, en voorvechters voor de afschaffing van slavernij woonden.