Estonian Institute of Humanities  

(EHI) was founded in 1988, during the Estonian singing revolution, as an alternative to the ideologically biased higher education in humanities in the Estonian Socialist Soviet Republic. Originally initiated by the Estonian Writers’ Union, the EHI was among the very first independent institutions of higher education in Central and Eastern Europe. The first students were admitted in 1989.

The institute is now only somewhat larger than at its initiation. There are altogether around 500 students and 40 employees. The Institute offers both graduate and post-graduate education in humanities (such as literature, language and area studies, philosophy, and cultural studies) and sociology. The main language of tuition is Estonian.

In 2005 EHI was merged with the emerging Tallinn University. The EHI will continue as a separate unit within the large university.