It is a tragic fact that mass atrocities have been, and are being, committed across the world. The international community, while condemning these acts, often stands idly by. This conundrum raises a host of empirical, legal, and normative questions regarding the role of public opinion in responding…

Where does the urge to collect come from? What are the explicit or underlying reasons for gathering large amount of objects?

On 21 February 2019, Ruben Zandvliet defended his thesis 'Trade, Investment and Labour: Interactions in International Law'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. dr. N.J. Schrijver.

Are you curious about how economics, law and governance shape our society? At Leiden University, you’ll explore financial systems, public administration, international relations and legal frameworks. From international law to public policy, from global diplomacy to financial regulation: you’ll learn…

Despite the wealth of historical literature on the Second World War, the subject of religion and churches in occupied Europe has been undervalued.

The institute is funded by the Ministries of Education, Culture and Science and of Foreign Affairs and by Leiden University. To safeguard the institute’s independence and interests in Morocco, it is part of the Netherlands Embassy in Rabat under Moroccan law. The institute performs its tasks under the…

Cell adhesion signaling

On 8 February, the Leiden University Fund officially launched the LUF Children’s Fund. For one year, we will support research projects by Leiden scientists aimed at creating a better future for vulnerable children.

Are you curious about how economics, law and governance shape our society? At Leiden University, you’ll explore financial systems, public administration, international relations and legal frameworks. From international law to public policy, from global diplomacy to financial regulation: you’ll learn…

When a star gets too close to a supermassive black hole, it is torn apart by strong tidal forces in a tidal disruption event (TDE).

The Excellence of the Arabs is a spirited defense of Arab identity—its merits, values, and origins—at a time of political unrest and fragmentation, written by one of the most important scholars of the early Abbasid era.

Overkleeft

This dissertation focuses on the production and consumption of a mediation show in China that collaborates with the local Justice Bureau and broadcasts on an entertainment channel—exploring answers to questions raised from the mentioned entertainisation, social and political, and cultural issues.

Global health governance is at a crossroads. As the world reckons with the existential threat of planetary crises (climate change, loss of biodiversity and pollution), international policy frameworks struggle to keep pace with a rapidly changing landscape in global health and public health.

Discover the MSc The Politics of Artificial Intelligence at Leiden University: analyse who designs, controls and benefits from AI while using core Political Science theories to address regulation, ethics and global impact.

The rise and fall of Dutch Brazil (1624-1654) was a major news story in early modern Europe, and marked the emergence of a

In the last two decades, there have been heated public and scholarly debates in France, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands on the violent end of empire. Nevertheless, the broader comparative investigations into colonial counterinsurgency tend to leave atrocities such as torture, execution, and…

Central to this research is the Urban Future-project, which consists of a large archive of artworks made from 2002 until now.

In this project, researchers and lecturers from LUCAS, ICLON and UBL join forces to publish expertise and experience in the field of machine learning and AI as open learning materials for secondary education.

Understand how the economy works and shapes today’s challenges

This project traces how, why, and under what circumstances scholars invoked the trope of “dogmatism,” especially in controversies. Relevant controversies from various fields, periods, and countries will be subjected to in-depth rhetorical analysis.

Debate, Academic Roundtable

Lecture, Global Questions Seminar

What is the nature and scope of violence? Who offends, and in what context? Who are the victims? And how can we design suitable intervention and prevention strategies? In this track, you will be familiarised with the many faces of violent offending, to provide the knowledge and tools to understand,…

As Lila Abu Lughod pointed out in 1989, North Africa has been one of the geographical ‘zones of prestige’ for the development of canonical approaches and crucial theoretical debates regarding the comparative study of Islam.

This dissertation examines the European Union’s response to the growing problem of disinformation. It uses this case to critically analyse how societies interpret and manage information challenges such as ‘fake news’ and propaganda.

Promotores: A.H. Meijer, H.P. Spaink

On 25 January 2024 H.J. Pak successfully defended a doctoral thesis and graduated.

Cryptocurrencies have exploded onto global financial markets, with the value of a single bitcoin growing from around 800 USD in 2016 to 67,000 USD in 2021.

Moving Romans offers an analysis of Roman migration by applying general insights, models and theories from the field of migration history.

Article by Ana Dragojlovic and Annemarie Samuels in the Open Encyclopedia of Anthropology.

Stella Morgana defended her thesis on 31 March 2021

This dissertation provides a formal description of the relationship between diatopic/diachronic micro-variation and phonologization through analysis of the phonetic/phonological properties of unstressed vowel reduction and vowel insertion in two Northern Italian dialects.

This book examines the history of The Netherlands in a way that connects global processes to local developments.

As a Leiden University student, you’re part of Una Europa: an alliance of 11 leading research universities. This means access to a vibrant international community with many opportunities to study, gain work experience, and develop your leadership skills.

We are interested in understanding the mechanics of soft materials, of which biological materials are prominent examples.

Mechanical metamaterials are man-made materials which derive their unusual properties from their structure rather than their composition.

The Khoesan were the first people in Africa to undergo the full rigours of European colonisation. By the early nineteenth century, they had largely been brought under colonial rule, dispossessed of their land and stock, and forced to work as labourers for farmers of European descent.

The Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science (LIACS) is a centre of excellence for multidisciplinary research and education in computer science and artificial intelligence (AI).

On 2 Juni 2021, Maarten Manse defended his thesis 'Promise, Pretence and Pragmatism: Governance and Taxation in Colonial Indonesia, 1870-1940'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. R. Arendsen.

Reconfigurations of Practice, Community and Authority in Contemporary Aceh

On Wednesday 25 June 2025 Dechun Zhang successfully defended a doctoral thesis and graduated.

Restructuring and insolvency laws play a pivotal role in addressing the often conflicting interests of stakeholders of financially distressed companies. Whereas financial distress is an inherent risk of entrepreneurship in market-based economies, legal tools serve an important role to ensure an orderly…

Intrigued by the way cells autonomously regulate their fate, we strive to understand and visualize cellular processes as the basis of Cell Signaling.

Promotores: G.A. Persoon, H.H. de Iongh

The BOCA project explores new forms of communicating academic knowledge as a way to strengthen the connection between the university and society. The project was awarded a Kiem seed grant and is led by Daniela Vicherat Mattar (FGGA/LUC) and Nanne Timmer (FGw/LUCAS).

Day-to-day activities are important in the development of social identities, the establishment of social standing, and the communal understanding of societal rules. This perspective is broadly referred to as practice theory and relates to the power of an overarching social structure and the individual…