Einführung - DFG Graduate School 1412

Introduction

The analysis of South-Eastern-Europe’s societies with regards to Western Europe is the centre of attention  of the Graduate school 1412 »Cultural Orientation and Social Structures in South-East-Europe«. This project combines individual research plans, which focus on different aspects of this issue. The international College with its location in Jena and Erfurt  has been funded by the DFG and the Thuringian Federal State since 2006.

Since the decline of the Ottoman Empire the South-East-European Countries have stood between orientating themselves towards the "West" and their cultural heritage. This struggle has dominated academic discourse as well as social, cultural, religious and political developments and also our conception of South-Eastern-Europe itself.

The geographical focus of the Graduate school has been on those countries, which from the Middle Ages until the 19th century obtained their cultural mark from Byzantium and the Ottoman  Empire i.e. Bulgaria, Serbia, Macedonia, Bosnia, Albania, Greece, Cyprus and Rumania. Neighbouring countries such as Hungary, Croatia, Slovenia or Turkey are considered in comparisons and transnational questions.  In view of the EU enlargement and questions  of minorities these peripheral countries are also scrutinized in some examinations.

The interdisciplinary orientation of the Graduate School enables a wide range of professional access to this topic. The areas covered include Linguistics, Literary and Cultural  Studies, Ethnology, Sociology, History and Political Science.