Welcome to the Department of Cultural and Social Anthropology

The Department of Cultural and Social Anthropology in Marburg is engaged in both teaching and research. In connection to the current research activities of the department, students can pursue their own research interests and ideas through participation in research projects, research teams and colloquia.

The department offers a bachelor’s program in comparative cultural and religious studies as well as a MA and PhD level education in cultural and social anthropology.

The programs aim to provide state-of-the-art anthropological knowledge. Education and research prepare the students for the independent study of processes of socio-cultural transformation, their causes, dynamics and impact on the local, regional, national and transnational levels. Main systematic approaches are the anthropology of conflict and of the environment.

The department’s main regional foci are Latin America and the Caribbean as well as Southeast Europe and the Caucasus. Its particular interest in Lowland South America makes the department unique within German-speaking anthropology.

Another distinctive feature is the department’s ethnographic collection. Courses on material and visual culture constitute a regular element of the curriculum.