leidenanthropologyblog

Dr. Erik de Maaker is Associate Professor at Institute of Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology, Leiden University.

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Looking back on the second Leiden Anthropology Conference

When CADS convened the first Leiden Anthropology Conference in 2020, the Institute of Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology – home to 57 people – aimed to create a community for the one hundred anthropologists or so working in the Leiden and The Hague faculties, museums, research institutes, and PhD programs.

Cristina Grasseni + 4 others • 30-04-2026

Remembering Sabine Luning

On 6 March 2025, our beloved colleague Sabine Luning passed away. In this blog, we share some of the speeches of colleagues, students, interlocutors, and friends presented at a commemoration in the summer of 2025.

Ratna Saptari + 3 others • 29-10-2025

Futuring Heritage: Conservation, Community and Contestation

‘Futuring Heritage: Conservation, Community and Contestation in the Eastern Himalayas’ is a project funded by the Dutch Research Council (NWO). In the eastern Himalayas, agency is not just attributed to humans, but also to animals, plants, rocks, rivers, mountains, spirits and deities, often in a combination thereof.

Erik de Maaker • 17-09-2025

Decentring Heritage through Una Europa

What does ‘heritage’ mean for different stakeholders? How can we problematise and decentre heritage from a multi-disciplinary perspective?

Megan Rodrigues + 1 other • 17-04-2025

Making sense in times of uncertainty: ‘models of’ and ‘models for’ the covid-19 pandemic

The rapid spread of covid-19 creates fear and uncertainty, triggering an acute need for theories built on trusted knowledge. Erik de Maaker reflects on how lay and expert theories influence each other in the Netherlands.

Erik de Maaker • 23-03-2020

ANTHROPOLOGY AT A GLANCE: AN ONLINE PHOTO EXHIBITION

The images in this exhibition give an impression of the work of several researchers, ranging from a study of post-tsunami lives in Aceh to food production and distribution in Poland and the perspectives and experiences of migrant parents and welfare professionals in European cities.

Simone de Boer + 14 others • 17-03-2020

Anthropologies of and with Asia, at Leiden University

What anthropologies of, and with, Asia do we practice at Leiden University? And how do we want to move forward?

Erik de Maaker + 1 other • 24-09-2019

Diversity

All of one place: A Muslim saint, a converted Hindu princess, and a Hindu deity

Ethnic and religious antagonisms are not givens, but the outcome of historical and political processes. Borders, as human-made conveyors of state-oriented conceptual frameworks, play a central role in shaping these.

Erik de Maaker • 06-05-2015