LIAS aims to advance the globally conscious vision of area studies, both within and outside the academic community. Focusing on Asia and the Middle East, the institute is a meeting place of multiple fields of inquiry, theories and methods, historical periods, and areas.

The MA Southeast Asian Studies at Leiden University explores Southeast Asia in-depth and from the perspective of its history, literature, media, culture, religions, philosophy or philology.

Study information

From the 1920s on, popular music in Southeast Asia was a mass-audience phenomenon that drew new connections between indigenous musical styles and contemporary genres from elsewhere to create new, hybrid forms. This book presents a cultural history of modern Southeast Asia from the vantage point of popular…

South and Southeast Asia, a region that includes India, Indonesia, and seventeen other countries, is one of the world’s most dynamic and diverse areas. Are you interested in speaking one of the region's major languages and understanding its history, culture, and current affairs? Then this is the bachelor's…

Southeast Asia is a term to denote a collection of at present eleven nation-states with an enormous diversity in languages, cultures and religions. Muslims can both take a majority and a minority position.

Through language and culture, history, anthropology, and sociology, we delve into the countries, populations, and societies of South and Southeast Asia. From this perspective, we address global issues such as migration, heritage, and colonialism.

Investigating epistemic and ethical practices in medical experimentation on humans in the colonial period in Southeast Asia.

Balsaminaceae is a diverse plant family characterized by a huge floral morphological diversity.

Research how ‘custom’, ‘traditions’ and ‘heritages’ take on new meanings in the uplands of South and (mainland) Southeast Asia.

Solar energy harnessed by plants and algae has great potential to be converted into biofuels for future generations.

This thesis describes a study from both a theoreticaL and an experimental point of view.

This PhD project investigates the forms, functions, meanings, and socio-cultural values embedded in Palenda, in order to understand how it reflects and shapes the worldview of the Muna people (Mieno Wuna) through metaphor.

Does foreign aid promote human rights?

This dissertation investigates A'-dependencies in Standard German, Zurich German and Dutch where the dislocated constituent is indirectly, i.e. not transformationally, related to the position where it is interpreted. The analysis is carried out within the Principles & Parameters framework.

Promotores: F.H.J. Redig, W.T.F. den Hollander

'The Routledge Handbook of Civil and Uncivil Society in Southeast Asia' explores the nature and implications of civil society across the region, engaging systematically with both theoretical approaches and empirical nuance for a systematic, comparative, and informative approach.

How are contemporary art practices from Southeast Asia negotiating notions of art and tradition?

Who were the main artists and producers who generated new forms of popular music? What was the music like that was produced by artists in particular urban settings? How were particular lifestyles articulated to identify new audiences and what does this reveal about the way popular music contributed…

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…

Tero Alstola defended his thesis on 21 December 2017

On the 16th of June Patrtick Harrison successfully defended a doctoral thesis and graduated.

On 10 June 2021, Merinda Stewart defended her thesis 'Freedom of Overflight: A Study of Coastal State Jurisdiction in International Airspace'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. P.M.J. Mendes de Leon en Prof. J.J. Rijpma.

How do Humanitarian Response Organizations (HROs) and Virtual & Technical Communities (V&TCs) collaboratively govern disaster sensemaking processes, and what challenges shape the effectiveness of these collaborations between 2010 and 2016?

β-Lactamases are enzymes that can break down β-lactam substrates, such as antibiotics, preventing the use of these antibiotics for the treatment of various infectious diseases. However, some compounds, β-lactamase inhibitors, can block these enzymes allowing for possible treatments using a combination…

This dissertation defends the existence of a type of movement that has so far been considered not to be possible, namely, movement of a bare head to a specifier position over arbitrarily long distances.

What is students’ engagement in problem-based learning (PBL) and case-based learning (CBL) in teacher certification programs?

On Wednesday 11 June 2025 Steffie van Gompel successfully defended a doctoral thesis and graduated.

Kathryn Emerson defended her thesis on 28 June 2016

Like a mixture of oil and water, lipid membranes separate into two liquid phases.

This thesis is a sample-based typological study of formal and semantic patterns in terms for a selection of referring (

On the largest scale, the Universe resembles a cosmic spiderweb. Most galaxies coexist in small groups within the threads of this web. At the nodes of the threads are enormous groups of galaxies forming the largest structures in the universe still held together by gravity: clusters of galaxies.

This study endeavors to reconstruct Plato's theory of change and motion. The diverse perspectives of pre-Socratic philosophers regarding change and motion provide the context for Plato’s exploration of his theory.

On 20 September 2023 Mark van de Water successfully defended a doctoral thesis and graduated.

Whilst government’s ability to design ‘context-specific’ regional innovation policy is generally assumed to depend on the region’s decision-making power, the aim of this study is to investigate how regional government matters. In order to open up the black box of policy design, the study develops a…