Making sense of the world around us depends on the fundamental ability to parse the world into distinct objects and keep track of them. This process is defined as object individuation. Research indicates that it is not always easy for infants.

The Academic Language Centre is part of the Leiden University Centre for Linguistics (LUCL) and provides language services to students and staff of Leiden University and the Leiden University Medical Centre.

Our programmes are known for our scientifically based education and for our open atmosphere.

Our programmes are known for our scientifically based education and for our open atmosphere.

The master’s in African Studies at Leiden University is an advanced area studies qualification that combines world-class scholarship with practice-based learning.

The master’s in East Asian Studies, a specialisation within the master's of Asian Studies, combines an exceptional range of courses with advanced language training and outstanding resources and expertise.

The Classics Master, a specialization of the Classics and Ancient Civilizations program at Leiden University, gives you the opportunity to study the Greek and Roman world with a focus on Greek and Latin language and literature.

This master’s programme combines advanced levels of philosophical analysis with the study of non-Western sources, in particular Chinese, Indian, and Arabic sources.

This book explores the links between maritime trading networks around Europe, from the Mediterranean and the Atlantic to the North and Baltic Seas.

The Nietzsche-Wörterbuch (NWB) has evolved into a long-term, multi-volume work on a global scale with around 30 contributors from a range of disciplines located all over the world

This doctoral project, entitled Sinophone as Method: Reimaging Chinese Cinema in the Global Era, aims to explore the intricacies of knowledges and practices with regard to notions of China, Chinese, and Chineseness.

The Leiden University Centre for Digital Humanities regularly offers events and workshops related to all aspects of digital humanities. Events are aimed at connecting scholars from across Leiden's Faculties with a research interest in all digital aspects of their chosen subject area.

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.

Within this minor program, not only can you enhance your proficiency in French, but also delve into the recent history and culture the Francophone world, from Canada to the Maghreb and the Caribbean.

Ellipsis is a frequently used sentence-shortening device. It allows us to leave out material that is evident from the (linguistic) context. Even though the elliptical material is not pronounced, elliptical sentences are not perceived as incomplete.

Every year YAL welcomes new members to its community. Below you will find an overview of the expansion of the past few years.

How did early modern people find out about new knowledge? And did that make them more willing to accept innovation? In the coming years, we will study how and to what effect, new knowledge anchored among the wider public in the early modern Low Countries.

The special issue on “Quo Vadis, Pragmatics?” is the result of a lively discussion among members of the editorial board of the Journal of Pragmatics triggered by the most recent revision of the journal's scope statement. The 11 contributions that make up this special issue cover a rich suite of themes,…

Baleseng Maeneche (University of the Western Cape) has won the Africa Thesis Award 2024 with a master's thesis on media representation of male perpetrators of violence against women and children in South Africa. Her research challenges dominant narratives and emphasises the need for fair media representation…

Leiden University is a unique international centre for the advanced study of languages, cultures, arts, and societies worldwide, in their historical contexts from prehistory to the present.

Many of our staff and students have won an award, received a grant, obtained an academic fellowship for their quality or have been socially engaged due to their specific expertise. See below for an overview per year.

Are we going vegetarian this year? Shall we keep the dessert the same? Where do I find inspiration for a festive meal during the holidays? For readers who like to postpone these questions, for those who like to tell a good story with their culinary contribution, or for those who simply want to know…

The Horizon programme 'Eurasian Empires: integration processes and identity formations' started September 1st 2014. The six PhD students and two Postdocs introduce themselves.

Visual art today is strongly interlinked with today’s society, a connection which is reinforced and deepened by social and other media. In Arts, Media and Society you will explore this relationship and analyse how it reflects and impacts the issues of our time, while also learning practical and academic…

The Dutch universities are shocked by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and empathise with all those affected by this act of aggression. Leiden University also calls for solidarity with and support for all those affected by the war.

From BBC film shootings to a video of snowy Leiden and from bikes in the canal to our birthday, the Dies Natalis. This was our year in 12 Facebook posts!

Pavel Durov, CEO of chat and messaging app Telegram, was arrested in France last week. The Russian tech billionaire flew into Paris by private jet and was arrested on suspicion of cybercrimes. Telegram allegedly facilitates criminal activities such as money laundering. This raises the question of how…

For many Indonesian alumni, studying in Leiden or The Hague was a life-changing experience. This is what they told a delegation from Leiden during its recent visit to Indonesia. On their return to Indonesia, some of these alumni set up the Ikali alumni network. But why did they go to Leiden in the first…

Prof. dr. Lisa Cheng has been nominated for the Regional Chair at the University of Nantes (France).

Barend Beekhuizen's dissertation has won the 2016 AVT/Anéla (Dutch Linguistic Association and Society for Applied Linguistics) dissertation prize!

You can find an overview of events organized by the Platform for Post-Colonial Readings below.

Knowledge and culture subproject 3:

These are trying times for Ukraine. The armed conflicts with Russia in Donbass and Crimea have still not come to an end after starting in 2014. Ukranian minister of Foreign Affairs Pavlo Klymkin came to The Hague on February 2nd to discuss these current issues with Leiden students. ‘Ukranians will always…

On Saturday 25 June, the Europa Institute of Leiden University hosted the 61st Leiden-London Meeting, an annual event organized jointly by the Europa Institute and the British Institute of International and Comparative Law (BIICL). This year’s meeting had “Interdependence, cooperation and strategic…

Ingrid Tieken, Professor at the English Department of Leiden University, has been awarded a Vrije Competite grant by NWO.

Barend Beekhuizen's dissertation has been nominated for the annual AVT/Anéla (Dutch Linguistic Association and Society for Applied Linguistics) dissertation prize!

The Faculty Board has reappointed Gijsbert Rutten as the Director of Studies for the Leiden University Centre for Linguistics.

‘There is often a strong emphasis on the differences with Asia when actually there are so many similarities on all sorts of levels. Parents in Asia deliberate just as much about which school they should send their child to,’ says Frank Pieke, Professor of Modern China Studies. The opening conference…

How did the Arabs manage to maintain an empire based on Islamic principles for three hundred years? Arab expert Petra Sijpesteijn and her team will be examining this question over the coming five years, focusing on the correspondence of ordinary people. The research is being funded by an ERC Consolidator…

On this page you can find information on past events, either organized or funded by SAILS.

Lecture, Sociolinguistics & Discourse Studies Series