Save the Date: Baltic Studies Summer Institute June 14-August 6

The Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia (CREECA) and the Department of Scandinavian Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison will host the Baltic Studies Summer Institute (BALSSI) this summer: June 14-August 6, 2010.

First-year intensive Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian language courses will be offered during the session. Pending sufficient enrollment, second-year intensive courses in those languages will be offered as well.

BALSSI 2010 will also include lectures (in English) on Baltic history and culture and a rich program of cultural events and field trips related to the Baltic countries.

Information and application materials are available on: www.creeca.wisc.edu/balssi

Thanks to a generous grant from the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS), the program fee for first-year Estonian will be waived for graduate students specializing in East European studies in any discipline.

BALSSI is sponsored by a consortium of 12 U.S. universities and receives additional support from the Association for the Advancement of Baltic Studies and the Lithuanian Foundation. 

For more information, please contact Nancy Heingartner, BALSSI program coordinator, balssi@creeca.wisc.edu or (608-262-3379)

Category: Area Studies
Tags: , ,

Hot off the press: Scandinavian Studies newsletter

The Scandinavian Studies Department Newsletter is now available.

This issue reflects on the life of the legendary Professor Niels Ingwersen, news about visiting Fulbright Professor Kirsten Thisted and reflections on the department's history.

Category: Area Studies
Tags: ,

Lecture: "Greenland's Way to Self-Government"

Visiting Fulbright Professor, Dr. Kirsten Thisted (University of Copenhagen, Denmark) will give a free lecture "Greenland's Way to Self-Government" on Wednesday, November 18th at 7pm, Room 1418 Van Hise. The lecture will be followed by a reception and a chance to talk to the presenter.

On June 21, 2009 — the 30 year anniversary for Greenlandic Home Rule — the Act on Greenland Self-Government took effect.

Greenland is still a part of the Danish realm, but the Self-Government Act recognizes the Greenlanders as a people according to international law, makes Greenlandic the official language of Greenland, gives Greenland a say in international affairs, and expands Home Rule to 30 areas, including police, courts, and the coast guard. 

[Read More]

Category: College Updates
Tags: , ,

Fulbright Scholar brings Greenland expertise to Scandinavian Studies

The Department of Scandinavian Studies is proud to have a visiting Fulbright Scholar on campus this year.

Professor Kirsten Thisted specializes in Greenlandic literature and her work includes several books and articles about the oral tradition and the modern written literature.

Thisted – who taught at Ilisimatusarfik, the University of Greenland in Nuuk – is an associate professor at the Minority Studies Section in Institute of Cross Cultural and Regional Studies at the University of Copenhagen.

[Read More]

Category: Area Studies
Tags: , , ,

Baltic Studies Summer Institute now underway

The Center for Russia, East Europe and Central Asia (CREECA) and the Department of Scandinavian Studies launched the 2009 Baltic Studies Summer Institute (BALSSI) on June 15, 2009.

This eight-week program, supported by a consortium of U.S. universities, provides instruction in intensive elementary Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian languages.

[Read More]

Category: Area Studies
Tags: , , ,

Scandinavian Studies, CES welcomed 200 participants to April conference

The Department of Scandinavian Studies and CES welcomed more than 200 participants to the 99th Annual Society for the Advancement of Scandinavian Study (SASS) conference in late April.

Tom Loftus, former Ambassador to Norway, welcomed keynote speaker Nils Gaup, the renowned Norwegian writer and filmmaker whose films feature Sami, the native language of Lapland. 

[Read More]

Category: Area Studies
Tags: , ,