Languages and Cultures of the Silk Road (Silk Road)
"Languages and Cultures of the Silk Road" provides a structured three-year doctoral program for doctoral candidates in the fields of Iranian Studies, Turkic Studies, Central Asian Studies and East Asian Art History. We supervise dissertations that emphasize linguistics, philology, editing and literary criticism as well as archaeology and that deal with historical or cultural and religious studies. This educational program also makes the resources of the Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften (BBAW) available and particularly its Turfan Studies project. Together with the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin the BBAW attends the world-wide richest collections of texts belonging to the ancient cultures the Silk Road found at the oasis of Turfan. These texts are written in numerous languages (Chinese, Sanskrit, Tocharian, Old Turkish, Middle Iranian languages, Tibetan languages, Mongolian language, Syriac et al.) and mainly deal with religious subjects (Buddhism, Manichaeism and Christianity), although there are also some secular texts among them (e.g. treaties in Old Turkish, monastic invoices in Tocharian); the texts are dated from the 3rd to the 14th century.
Members of the managing committee
Prof. Dr. Desmond Durkin-Meisterernst (BBAW/FUB) (chairman)
Prof. Dr. Alberto Cantera Glera (FUB)
Prof. Dr. Ingeborg Baldauf (HU)
Prof. Dr. Mayke Wagner (DAI/FUB)
Prof. Dr. Abdurishid Yakup (academic associate)
Dr. Regina Attula (coordinator)
Mette Bangsborg Thuesen M.A. (FUB) (student representative)
Disciplines in which doctoral studies will be possible from WS 2023/24 onwards
Freie Universität Berlin
- Institute for Ancient Near Eastern Archaeology
- Institute of Iranian Studies
- Institute of Prehistoric Archaeology
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
Information on requirements for admission as a doctoral student in your chosen field can be obtained from the relevant doctoral office (Promotionsbüro) of the relevant faculty (at the Humboldt-Universität) or department (at the Freie Universität). Please bear in mind: the doctorate regulations of the relevant faculty/department determine whether persons chosen to act as supervisor are eligible to serve as reviewers of the dissertation.
You can find more information in the FAQ.