Van Vark defended her dissertation 'Separation and immersion: the changing role of the armed forces in Northwestern liberal democracies’ on 17 October 2025. The doctoral research was supervised by Maartje van der Woude and Erwin Muller.

The Persian Empire (539-330 BCE) was the first world empire in history. At its height, it united a territory stretching from present-day India to Libya - and it would take 2,000 years before significantly larger empires emerged in early modern Eurasia. This territorial sweep is both a source of fascination…

This dissertation focuses on a new field of artistic research in which a visual artist takes on the role of researcher. The main research question is whether performance art integrated in an ecumenical service, combined with artistic directions from the artist, can enhance the religious experience of…

This lecture will be hosted on Thursday, 8 January 2026 at 6:00 pm.

On 15 February 2024, Alexandros Sarris defended the thesis 'International Law and Governance of the Arctic in an Era of Climate Change'. The doctoral research was supervised by Nico Schrijver and Freya Baetens.

Matthias Haentjens, Jouke Tegelaar and Dorine Verheij have recently published the chapter Financial Market Regulation and Supervision in the new volume of the prestigious The Law of the European Union (previously Kapteyn and VerLoren van Themaat).

The focus of the described research in this thesis is on the oxidative stress response (Nrf2 pathway). The aim of the research presented in this thesis is to obtain more information concerning microRNAs which are involved in the Nrf2 pathway, to determine and evaluate the application of microRNAs for…

This thesis describes the functional analysis of the Arabidopsis AHL15 gene.

Bacteria have the ability to alter their morphology in order to adapt to changing environments.

Assessment of teaching is currently becoming more and more common practice. As such assessment is generally based on complex, qualitative data from multiple sources (e.g., lesson plans, video-taped lessons, written reflections of the teacher on his or her performance), the overall quality of the assessment…

In this dissertation iron-based homogeneous catalysts were synthesized, characterized and investigated for water oxidation activity.

Streptomyces bacteria are a valuable source of natural products, many of which are used in the clinic or in biotechnology.

On 28 June, Jakob Tobing defended the thesis 'The essence of the 1999-2002 constitutional reform in Indonesia: remaking the Negara Hukum. A socio-legal study'. The doctoral research was supervised by Jan Michiel Otto and Adriaan Bedner.

This 862-page monograph is a grammar of Thangmi, an endangered Tibeto-Burman language spoken in the districts of Dolakha and Sindhupalcok in central-eastern Nepal.

Demonstration experiments are a potentially powerful instrument to improve the micro-macro thinking of students in secondary education. Therefore we want to design a practical and generative approach to assist teachers to develop lessons with a demonstration experiment.

The organising committee of the congress 'Social Benefits of Higher Education' has decided to postpone the congress.

In this course, you will explore the organs involved in our food digestion and discover the common causes of abdominal and pelvic pain. The latest graphics and animations will give you new insights and understandings of this part of the body.

A Selection of the Poems of Sir Constantijn Huygens (1596-1687) was published in July 2015, edited and translated by Adriaan van der Weel and Peter Davidson.

This research aims to investigate how different social forces interact with hydropolitics in the Eastern Nile Basin and what are the constraints of engagement.

Worldwide resurgence of pertussis necessitates the need for improvement of pertussis vaccines and vaccination strategies.

How did disability become a global concern? In this project we will identify the contribution of international agencies, governmental and non-governmental organizations and, just as importantly, disabled people themselves, to the IYDP and by showing the connections, interactions and entanglements between…

Many of our staff and students have won an award, received a grant, obtained an academic fellowship for their quality or have been socially engaged due to their specific expertise. See below for an overview per year.

In December 2024, the book Redressing Fundamental Rights Violations by the EU: The Promise of the ‘Complete System of Remedies', edited by Melanie Fink, was published fully open access with Cambridge University Press. The EU prides itself on having created a legal system that puts the individual at…

The World of the Fullo takes a detailed look at the fullers, craftsmen who dealt with high-quality garments, of Roman Italy. Analyzing the social and economic worlds in which the fullers lived and worked, it tells the story of their economic circumstances, the way they organized their workshops, the…

Imami Shiʿism was a key part of the turbulent thesis and antithesis which formed Islam, and it remains greatly influential today. The aim of the ImBod project is to write the first comprehensive social history of the Imamate.

This paper series is the result of two rounds of PhD workshops organized by the editors at the TMC Asser Institute and Leiden University in 2024 on ‘The legal implications of the EU’s geopolitical awakening’, with the generous financial assistance of the Municipality of The Hague.

The project aims to explore Eurasian elk's role in the ecosystems of the past and its relationship with humans through analysis of its distribution and habitat in the Netherlands.

Promotor: Prof.dr. B. van de Water, Co-promotores: L.T.M. van der Ven, A.S. Kienhuis

Homicide engenders broad moral concerns in society, and its aftermath can be understood as a barometer for criminal justice policy. Of all homicides committed, however, only some lead to arrest, to prosecution and ultimately to conviction in court.

The goal of our research is to analyze Natorp’s redefinition of the distinction between intuitions and concepts in relation to his conception of the method of philosophy. We will exhibit the connection between the way in which Natorp redefines the Kantian dichotomy and his conception of the method of…

Mining the unusually rich diaries, memoirs, and poems written by Netherlandish Catholics, Judith Pollmann explores how Catholic believers experienced religious and political turmoil in the generations between Erasmus and Rubens.

Renate Dekker defended her thesis on 7 November 2017.

This volume brings together experts on the history of the various revolutionary Sister Republics.

Why are professors still warning their students against dogmatism, prejudice, pedantry, and other centuries-old vices? What explains the persistence of these scholarly vices across the ages?

After a turbulent Covid year, the well-being of our students and staff has the highest priority. How can we prevent physical and mental health problems? This was the key question at the Opening of the Academic Year in Pieterskerk in Leiden on 6 September.

A platform to research memory and culture in the Muslim world. This programme explores the ways modern memory studies methodologies can be applied to pre-modern Muslim societies to reveal the uses of the past and senses of tradition in diverse contexts of Muslim thought.

Frans Stoelinga defended his thesis on 19 November 2020.

The research in the framework of the Jean Monnet Chair is focused on the following points.

Mathematical and computational analysis of the dynamics of polar transport of the plant hormone auxin.

Philology and Manuscripts from the Muslim World

The application procedure is broken down into three parts.

Staff exchanges are an extremely enjoyable way to discover other education systems, gain international and intercultural experience, develop new professional skills and network with foreign colleagues.

This research deals with the royal houses of the Vijayanagara Empire and four of its successor states: Ikkeri, Tanjavur (under both the Nayaka and Bhonsle rulers), Madurai, and Ramnad. This study is thus concerned with dynastic politics and imperial legacies in south India between the 14th and 18th…

Student and staff societal engagement at Leiden University College (LUC) extends beyond The Hague, with projects addressing pressing issues such as climate change, fake news, and social inequality through field courses, partnerships, and advisory roles.

Africa is fascinating! In today’s globalised world, the continent plays an increasingly important role in international, social and cultural developments. Would you like to explore the many sides of Africa and its impact on the rest of the world, while also learning one of its languages? Our African…

Colonialism Inside Out: Everyday Experience and Plural Practice in Dutch Institutions in Sri Lanka (c. 1700-1800)