About the Institute
The Lithuanian Institute of History is a state research institute, a public legal entity operating as a state-budget institution, which conducts long-term Lithuanian studies and their social and cultural development, and which has the status of special national importance.
Mission
The mission of the Institute is to study the development of the Lithuanian nation, the society of Lithuania, its culture, economy and statehood, to collect, systematise, and disseminate the documentary and intangible historical heritage through the development of fundamental and applied research; to contribute to the creation of civic society, the formation of historical culture and critical discourse in society, and the preservation of cultural identity through the results of its research; together with universities, to train researchers in history and ethnology to shape the strategy of the history and ethnology of Lithuania, to participate actively in the creation of a knowledge society, and to broaden links with the international research space.
Current Priorities of the Institute Include:
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Directions of fundamental research on the state and society of Lithuania:
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to update conceptually the research on the statehood of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania;
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on the basis of the post-colonialist paradigm, to investigate the peculiarities of totalitarian and post-totalitarian regimes;
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applying the methods of historical, archaeological, ethnological and anthropological research, to investigate the response of societies, communities, groups, and individuals to changing natural and social environments and humanitarian crises, and to the political, social, cultural, and value conflicts caused by societal changes;
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to produce synthetic works summarising the research exerting the strongest impact on society’s historical memory.
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The direction of research on the development of Lithuanian cities:
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to conduct research into the history of Vilnius; to complete and publish a multi-volume history of the city.
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The direction of accumulation, research and dissemination of historical and cultural heritage of Lithuania:
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to conduct research into and publish the Lithuanian Metrica and other sources on the history of the state and society of Lithuania; to pay special attention to the digitisation of the published sources.
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The direction of the dissemination of expert knowledge about past events, processes, and phenomena in the public space of Lithuania:
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to initiate various cultural-educational publicity projects with leading national memory institutions and media outlets, to create prerequisites for a dialogue between different memory groups discussing complex, traumatic, and ambiguous issues of the past, and to work actively for the preservation of the diversity and expression of memories.
Research Directions
Scholars at the Lithuanian Institute of History conduct research in the following research directions: history and archaeology (H 005), ethnology (H 006).
Together with the Faculty of History of Vilnius University, the Lithuanian Institute of History implements the third level (doctoral) studies in history and archaeology (H 005) and together with Vytautas Magnus University (Kaunas) and Klaipėda University in ethnology (H 006).
