Research institutes

Centre for Manichaean Research

The Centre for Manichaean Research was founded in 1990 with the purpose of producing an annotated edition of the oldest existing Manichaean writings, discovered in 1929 in seven codices dating back to the fourth century AD. As part of a much larger international project, the researchers in Münster are studying the Coptic-Manichaean psalm book which is presently kept at the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin. Centre for Manichaean Research [de]

Archaeology diagonal

Established in 2011, Archaeology diagonal is a network of archaeological disciplines at the University of Münster. By means of exchange and collaboration, it aims to reconstruct the civilisations of the past from Northern Europe to the Sahara, from the Iberian Peninsula to South Asia from the times of early human settlement to the Middle Ages. Archaeology diagonal [de]

Asian Studies Center

The Asian Studies Center was founded in 2024. It aims at networking scholars, students, and employees at the University of Münster who are interested in Asia, who do research on Asia or who come from Asia, in order to bundle their wide-ranging interests and competencies and make use of otherwise unknown synergies. Asian Studies Center

Centre for Aldous Huxley Studies (CAHS)

The Centre for Aldous Huxley Studies was founded in 1998. It serves as the central office and administrative body of the international Aldous Huxley Society (AHS). The tasks of the CAHS include producing a text-critical edition of Huxley’s works, editing his unpublished correspondence and lectures, and establishing and maintaining a research library. Centre for Aldous Huxley Studies (CAHS)

Centre for Multilingualism and Language Acquisition (CEMES)

The CEMES is a sub-department of the Institute of German Language and Literature. Its task is to coordinate the courses of the DaZ module (German as a second language for pupils with an immigrant background) and organise the module examinations. In addition, it bundles the research activities which focus on multilingualism and language acquisition at the Faculty of Philology and offers training and continuing education courses to teachers in all subjects in the area of DaZ. CEMES [de]

Centre for Low German (CfN) [de]

The CfN is a cross-disciplinary research centre, at which academics work and collaborate on the study of Low German. One of its central goals is to increase public awareness of the fact that Low German is an integral part of northern German culture, history and identity. Centre for Low German [de]

Centre for Rhetoric, Communication, and Theatre Practice (CfR)

The CfR oversees diverse research projects in the areas of oral communication, theatre and media pedagogy, and conducts research on all areas of oral presentation (breath, voice, speech and conversational rhetoric, aesthetic communication and media speech). Students of the Faculty of Philology can gain an important additional qualification by earning the “Oral competency” certificate at the CfR. Centre for Rhetoric [de]

Centre for Language in Interaction (CeSI)

The CeSI is a research institute of the Institute of German Language and Literature dedicated to addressing research issues involving the empirical study of the use of language. Linguistics students (particularly those of German Linguistics) may participate in research projects at the CeSI during their bachelor’s and master’s degree programmes. CeSi [de]

Ehrenpreis Centre for Swift Studies

The Ehrenpreis Centre for Swift Studies was established as an independent institute of the University of Münster in 1986 following the death of the renowned Swift researcher Irvin Ehrenpreis. His estate created the foundation of the library. The Centre’s purpose is to promote the study of works by Jonathan Swift in the form of texts, commentaries and interpretations. Its collection contains the entire breadth of literary criticism of Swift’s works produced since 1750. Ehrenpreis Centre

Research Centre Old Sudan

This research centre strives to initiate and coordinate archaeological and cultural-historical activities related to Old Sudan. Its research does not limit itself to any chronological parameters, but rather aims to study the people in the cultural region of Old Sudan from the Palaeolithic era to the pre-modern period. Research Centre Old Sudan [de]

Forum for Foreign Language Education

The Forum was founded in 2019 and is a cooperation of the Didactics at the English Department, the Institute of Dutch Philology and the Department of Romance Studies. The Forum’s purpose is to promote young academic talent and to strenghten exchange with school practice. Forum for Foreign Language Education [de]

Forum for Life Writing Research

The Forum for Life Writing Research was established as an interdisciplinary research institute in 2015. It addresses current lines of academic discourse and impulses from other disciplines, and actively participates in developing new topics of research interest with regard to “life writing”. Forum for Life Writing Research

Leibniz Prize Research Group "Arabic Literature and Rhetoric from 1100 to 1800" (ALEA)

The Leibniz Prize research project group ALEA at the Institute of Arabic and Islamic Studies is devoted to studying Arabic literature and rhetoric from past centuries – a field of study which has received little attention in recent years. ALEA [de]

Writing-Reading Centre (SLZ)

The SLZ is a university-based institute which sees itself as a vibrant location of writing culture in all of its media-based manifestations. The centre serves as a platform for communication between academics, teaching and practice, and significantly contributes to promoting key qualifications in scholastic, university, professional and everyday life. SLZ [de]

CRC "Law and Literature"

The Collaborative Research Centre 1385 "Law and Literature" focuses on crucial questions concerning the relation between law and literature, the corresponding academic fields and disciplines, as well as their respective impact on culture and society. The CRC includes the following disciplines from the faculties 03 and 09 at the University of Münster: literary studies, law, Jewish studies, Slavic studies, Arab and Islamic studies; as well as the Institute for English and American Studies at the University of Osnabrück. CRC 1385

TRANSLAPT (TRANSLation: Arabic – Persian – Turkish)

In a multidisciplinary approach, this junior research group is investigating the transregional transfer of knowledge between 1400 and 1750 holistically for the first time. In doing so, the focus lies on translation as a concept, process and product in a large portion of the Islamic world. The aim is to reveal the central role of Ottoman-Turkish translations of texts in Arabic and Persian as part of the dissolution processes of cultural and literary ambiguity between Sunni and Shia Islam, without a clear understanding of which the intellectual-historical developments in the region cannot be fully comprehended and appreciated.

TRANSLAPT (TRANSLation: Arabic – Persian – Turkish)

Europa-Kolleg

The Europa-Kolleg was a literary research association that investigated the relationship of identity and difference in the literary images of Europe. Researchers explored to what extent literature can play a role in political controversy and provide a crisis-plagued Europe with new ideas.