Netherlands Leiden

KITLV Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies

KITLV, the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde), is a research institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) in Leiden. It was founded in 1851 and celebrated its… KITLV, the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde), is a research institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) in Leiden. It was founded in 1851 and celebrated its 175th anniversary in 2026 with a public festival of debate, reflection and art. Its objective is the advancement of the study of the anthropology, linguistics, social sciences and history of Southeast Asia, the Pacific area and the Caribbean, with special emphasis on the former Dutch colonies of the Dutch East Indies, Suriname and the Dutch West Indies. KITLV's research programme is interdisciplinary and studies the histories, cultures and societies of Indonesia and the wider region and of the Caribbean, including colonialism and decolonisation, memory and heritage, mobility and migration, religion, citizenship and inequality, and the environment. Its unique collection of books, manuscripts, prints and photographs has attracted visiting scholars from all over the world; since 1 July 2014 the management of the collection has been in the hands of Leiden University Libraries, while the institute concentrates on research. KITLV publishes journals and book series and hosts fellowship programmes for researchers from the regions it studies. KITLV recruits researchers, PhD candidates and postdoctoral fellows in history, anthropology and related disciplines, and offers fellowships and internships. Vacancies are published on its own site in English.