More Information on the Hephthalites, the German Archaeological Institute, Eurasian research in Germany and the George Forster Research Scholarship
The Hephthalites
The Hephthalites, or White Huns, a confederation of tribes of uncertain origin, founded an empire in Central Asia during the 5th and 6th centuries A.D. The territory they ruled included regions that today belong to Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and China. In many battles the Hephthalites conquered the powerful Sassanid Persian Empire. The enduring war between the two cultures forms the important backdrop to the Persian epic Shahnameh, the life work of the poet Ferdowsi. The Hephthalite Empire was destroyed between 560 and 563 A.D. by an alliance of Gökturks and Sassanids. Afterwards the White Huns left no mark on history and the remnants of their culture were absorbed by various tribes in the region. The Hephthalites are described very differently in historical sources. The name they used to refer to themselves is not known. The name Hephthalites that is used in modern research originally stems from Byzantine parlance.
German Archaeological Institute
The German Archaeological Institute (DAI) was founded in 1829 and is based in Berlin. It is a federal agency operating under the auspices of the German Federal Foreign Office. Some 250 DAI staff, including roughly 120 researchers, work in 16 departments, branch offices and commissions in Europe, Africa and Asia. The DAI’s core duties include archaeological research, the dialogue of cultures and academic networking. The institute calls its scholarships “guest invitations”: visitors are able to work on their projects for one to two months while living at the institute’s guesthouse. The DAI also acts as host to holders of scholarships awarded by the Humboldt Foundation, the DAAD and other institutions. Study and travel scholarships are also granted to young German researchers.
The website of the German Archaeological Institute offers a great deal of information about the research work of its individual departments.
Website of the German Archaeological Institute
The DAI on diplo.de:
Eurasian research
German Eurasian research has a long and notable tradition. In the late 19th century its pioneers included Rudolf Virchow, the famous physician and pathologist at the Charité in Berlin. The Eurasian Department at the DAI was founded by Hermann Parzinger in 1995 with the intention of developing Eurasia as an area for research after the end of the Cold War. The department is especially interested in the social and political implications of early technologies, such as pottery and metalworking, in sedentism and early agricultural ways of life. Since 2003 Prof. Dr. Svend Hansen has been director of the department, which employs eight full-time researchers.
Alexander the Great: Opening up the World. Asia’s Cultures in Transition
The current exhibition at the Museum of World Cultures of the Reiss Engelhorn Museums in Mannheim was put together in collaboration with the Eurasian Department of the German Archaeological Institute. It will be on display until 21 February 2010.
Georg Forster Research Scholarship
Every year the Humboldt Foundation awards some 60 Georg Forster Scholarships to postdoctoral students and experienced researchers from developing and emerging countries. It is a requirement that applicants have above-average qualifications, their work must demonstrate independent research excellence and they have to be able to prove several years of research activity. The Humboldt Foundation enables scholarship-holders to engage in a long-term research project in cooperation with a host at a research establishment in Germany of their own choice.
Detailed information about the application requirements for a Georg Forster Research Scholarship for postdoctoral students and experienced researchers is available here.
Last updated 31.10.2009