This project investigates which metaphors are problematic in machine translation, when, why, and for whom.

The master's specialisation Economic and Consumer Psychology consists of three main parts: the mandatory and elective courses, a thesis and an internship.

This project investigates the causes of the major archaeological change in the period of 40.000-20.000 BC in South Africa.

This network brings together scholars whose work explores how contemporary frameworks of crisis produce experiences of the present, rehash or disrupt established narratives of the past, and broker specific outlooks on the future. We collaborate in studying these crisis-scapes and exploring how they…

Nearly all university buildings at the Leiden Bio Science Park will be open and operating again as of Wednesday 24 May. Last night a team worked hard to restore the power to the buildings in phases and this was successful. Students and staff can work and study there again.

Lucia Langerak was awarded a Master’s degree in Egyptology with cum laude honours in 2018. Her bachelor’s degree was also with cum laude honours. ‘I’m an exceptional Egyptologist, if only because I’ve never been to Egypt.’ She is now the coordinator of the Access & Support Platform at the University…

On February 10, 2026, emeritus Professor Dr. Takamitsu Muraoka (1938–2026) passed away, one day after celebrating his 88th birthday. From 1991 until his retirement in 2003, he held the chair of Hebrew Language and Culture, Israelite Antiquities, and Ugaritic at Leiden University.

Lecture, Com(parative) Syn(tax) Series

In the very first Korean class that teacher Eun-ju Kim taught, there were already students with dyslexia. With a background in special education and clinical developmental psychology, she developed a new method to help them, partly based on teaching methods from Dutch first language education.

Two years after launching an ERC Starting Grant to investigate cultural stereotyping in European Union governance, Adina Akbik and Christina Toenshoff at Leiden University are now publishing their first major findings. Looking at public opinion across the EU, the researchers show that cultural stereotypes…

During the two-year History Research Master's programme you will learn from inspired academics and learn how to conduct high quality research.

Electrons that spin synchronously around their axis, turn out to stay superconducting across large distances within magnetic chromium dioxide. Electric current from these electrons can flip small magnets, and its superconducting version could form the basis for a hard drive without energy loss. Publication…

Dana Rademaker has won the Unilever Research Prize, which she received together with 2,500 euros at the Unilever’s Foods Innovation Centre on 12 December. She received the prize for her master’s thesis, which she wrote last year for the master’s programme Chemistry.

On 1 March Armin Cuvyers was interviewed on BNR national radio on Brexit, the Draft Withdrawal Agreement of the Commission and the key Brexit speech by Theresa May planned for 2 March.

On 18 October, Armin Cuyvers, Associate Professor of European Law at the Europa Instituut, spoke at the Law School of Sydney University on reconciling political drama and legal realities in Brexit.

’25 years of fatal violence’, a collaboration of dr. Marieke Liem and prof.dr.Lenneke Alink about murder and manslaughter in the Netherlands, has received a research grant by the Leiden University Fund.

Leiden University is currently experiencing network problems due to ongoing attacks on the SURF network used by Leiden University. As a result, certain systems may be poorly accessible or unavailable. The ISSC is working hard to resolve the issues as soon as possible however, in doing so, the ISSC is…

Paul Brakefield, Professor of Evolutionary Biology at the Institute of Biology in Leiden (IBL) has been awarded an ERC Advanced Grant for his research. He will receive 2.5 million euro to develop his research programme over a period of five years.

Het onderzoeksproject heeft als doel ouders te helpen hun kleuters gezonde eetgewoonten aan te leren door het bevorderen van sensitieve voeding tijdens de fase wanneer peuters kieskeurig met eten worden.

Bone remains that are thousands of years old are often too fragmented to be identified. PhD candidate Frido Welker is the first person to be able to distinguish human bones from one another on the basis of old proteins. PhD defence 18 May.

Brain research and statistics are advancing our understanding of language and language acquisition. Linguists are still essential, however, says Professor of Dutch Linguistics Sjef Barbiers. Inaugural lecture on 8 December.

On Monday 18 March at 10:45 a deadly shooting took place on the 24 Oktoberplein in Utrecht, killing three people and severely injuring five others. Leiden University expresses its solidarity with the families left behind in the wake of this horrendous and regrettable incident. Several researchers of…

Author Bibi Dumon Tak will be the new writer-in-residence at Leiden University from autumn 2020.

In het onderzoek van docent Martijn Nouwen wordt voor het eerst aan het grote publiek blootgelegd hoe de ‘geheime’ Europese Gedragscodegroep er niet in is geslaagd om verschillende vormen van schadelijke belastingconcurrentie uit te bannen.

The film Blade Runner as part of the law curriculum? It’s not that weird to Maartje van der Woude, Professor of Law and Society, and Frans-Willem Korsten, Professor of Literature, Culture and Law. ‘The film raises a fundamental question: what’s a human and what’s not?’ From the next academic year onwards,…

The Institute for History announces vacancies for three PhD positions on Rethinking Disability: the Global Impact of the International Year of Disabled Persons (1981) in Historical Perspective and one PhD position to conduct research on the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC).

Youth care in the Netherlands needs to change. A new alarming inspection report says that children’s safety is not guaranteed. Mariëlle Bruning, Professor of Child Law, warns in an Argos podcast: ‘We have a duty to protect children.’

The universities of Delft, Leiden and Rotterdam are working together to show their students what artificial intelligence (AI) means for their own field. Three AI minors will start in the 2022 – 2023 academic year and will answer questions such as: ‘How best can you use AI in your research discipline?’…

Leiden researchers found a way to measure the tiny forces exerted by pericytes, one of the most elusive, hard to research cell types, which occur in tiny blood vessels. Building on this fundamental science, researchers may eventually find treatments for medical conditions like ischaemia.

Software engineers hard to find.

Conference

Emeritus Professor Ben Lugtenberg received ‘The Arima Award for Applied Microbiology’ from the IUMS (International Union of Microbial Societies) for his life-time contributions to this field.

The building is far from finished, but the former ministry of Internal Affairs is looking more and more like the Academic building for the locations of the University of Leiden in the Hague that it has to become. This week I got a tour behind the scenes of the gigantic project, where I was able to see…

What is the role of academia in solving societal problems such as the corona crisis? Rector Magnificus Carel Stolker spoke about this at the opening of the academic year on 31 August.

Cijfers van Binnenlandse Zaken laten zien dat de wachtgeldregeling voor politici, in tien jaar tijd – door drie gevallen kabinetten - vijf keer groter is geworden. Barend Barentsen, deskundige in sociaal zekerheidsrecht, zegt in het FD dat dit ‘schuurt met de regeling om steeds meer versoberingen in…

A number of the Leiden University Libraries websites are currently difficult to access.

We are currently experiencing a technical issue with the HRM system, which is temporarily unavailable. We are working hard to resolve this issue and will come with a fix as soon as possible.

There is currently a disruption that prevents network access.

While we are working hard to prepare an exciting and coronaproof course program for 2020-2021, it has been decided to postpone the Medieval Studies Day, that would normally take place in the fall of 2020, until the fall of 2021.

‘Make more room for nature on farmland and you'll be surprised at the result.' This was the advice from Geert de Snoo in his Dies lecture.

What is the relationship between humans and nature like? And how can we use it to tackle climate problems? In the Master Honours Class ‘Planet in Peril’, students approach climate issues from the perspective of the humanities. ‘Things are not always as one-sided as they seem.’

Many problems in criminal law can be predicted by the academic world and using knowledge from criminal law practice, says criminal lawyer Professor Patrick van der Meij.

Are you interested in ancient Egypt, the rich cultural heritage of Mesopotamia or bliblical Hebrew and Aramaic? Students of all faculties can follow electives of Ancient Near Eastern Studies without prior knowledge or special entry requirements. Archaeology student Annely Arends talks about her expe…

Dr Ionica Smeets, one of the well-known ‘Maths girls’, has been appointed part-time Professor of Science Communication at Leiden University with effect from 1 July. Over the coming five years she will carry out research on science communication, how the subject is taught and how to raise students’ enthusiasm…

This month marks the two-hundredth anniversary of the deciphering of Egyptian hieroglyphic writing. NINO, the Language Museum, Things that Talk and the National Museum of Antiquities are seizing the opportunity to organise the first Week of Ancient Writing.

With thunderous applause, Elanor Boekholt-O'Sullivan is received at the Lorentz Hall of the Kamerlingh Omnes Building. She gazes into the hall with a smile on her face, even though the applause makes her feel slightly uncomfortable. She gets to enrich the students of the Leiden Leadership Programme…

Metamaterials have properties that depend on their shape and architecture. Researchers at AMOLF, Leiden University and Tel Aviv University have found a new way of designing these metamaterials and their properties by deliberately incorporating small errors. They publish their results today in Nature…

Alireza Nouri comes from Tehran, Iran, and is currently in his third year of the bachelor’s in International Studies at Campus the Hague.