Institute of History, Archaeology and Art History

The Institute of History, Archaeology and Art History was established in 2015, based on the Tallinn University Institute of History (founded in 1947, joined Tallinn University in 2005). The Institute conducts research in History, Archaeology, Art History, Ethnology and Environmental History, as well as in the history of these disciplines. The institute also actively studies mnemohistory.

Among the main tasks of the Institute is to carry out large-scale research projects, financed by the Estonian Ministry of Research and Education: “Estonian Environmentalism in the 20th century: ideology, discourses, practices“ (PRG908, project leader Ulrike Plath, duration 2020–2024) and “Digital Livonia: For a Digitally Enhanced Study of Medieval Livonia (c. 1200–1550)“ (PRG1276, project leader Marek Tamm, duration 2021–2025). The staff also participates in several other research projects and in the TLU Centre of Excellence in Intercultural Studies.

The Institute coordinates the activity of two scholarly networks – the Centre for Medieval Studies and the Centre for Environmental History. These networks unite not only academic staff and graduate students of Tallinn University, but also specialists from other Estonian universities, museums, archives, etc.

The Institute has good connections to several international scholarly networks (e.g. CARMEN) and to scholarly institutions in Estonia and abroad. The Institute carries out archaeological, ethnological and art historical fieldwork, participates in the publishing of peer-reviewed journals (Acta Historica Tallinnensia, Forschungen zur Baltischen Geschichte, Estonian Journal of Archaeology, Archaeological Fieldwork in Estonia, and others), is active in the popularization of scholarly research and participates, together with other institutions, in granting the annual award for the best Estonian-language publication in history.

Contact

Marek Tamm, Head of the Institute