Departments

Our Institute consists of seven Departments: Ancient History, Medieval History, Early Modern History, 19th Century History, Contemporary History, Historical Education, and Archival Studies and Auxiliary Sciences of History. Moreover, we have our own library and hold patronage over the Centre for the Documentation of Deportations, Expulsions and Resettlements. 

Department of Ancient History 

The staff of the Department of Ancient History conduct research related to the history of states and peoples of the Mediterranean. Prof. Marek Wilczyński has published, among others, an important book entitled Germanie w służbie zachodniorzymskiej w V w. n.e.: studium historyczno prosopograficzne  (Germans in West Roman service in the 5th Century A.D.: A Historical and Prosopographic Study, Kraków, 2001) as well as Królestwo Swebów: regnum in extremitate mundi  (The Kingdom of Suebs: Regnum in Extremitate Mundi, 2011). 

The long-time head of the Department of Ancient History was Prof. Stefan Skowronek, a historian and archaeologist, a pioneer of research on ancient coinage. He published innovative studies, including Przedstawienia kultowo religijne na monetach Aleksandrii egipskiej I-III w. n.e.  (Cult and Religious Visions on the Coins of Egyptian Alexandria in the 1st 3rd  Centuries A.D., Kraków, 1978),  Mennictwo aleksandryjskie w okresie cesarstwa rzymskiego  (Alexadrian Coinage during the Roman Empire, Wrocław, 1982),  Moneta w kulturze starożytnego judaizmu: spór o mennictwo Heroda Wielkiego  (Coin in the Culture of Ancient Judaism: A Dispute over the Coinage of Herod the Great, Kraków, 1994). 

Prof. Skowronek’s student, Prof. Jerzy Ciecieląg extended his master’s research to the history of ancient Israel. Among the works published by Prof. Jerzy Ciecieląg we can distinguish: Palestyna w czasach Jezusa. Dzieje polityczne  (Palestine in the Times of Jesus. Political History, Kraków 2000), Poncjusz  Piłat, prefekt Judei  (Pontius Pilate, the Prefect of Judea, Kraków 2003),  Powstanie Bar Kochby: 132-135 po Chr.  (The Bar Kochba Revolt: 132-135 A.D., Zabrze, 2008),  Polityczne dziedzictwo Heroda Wielkiego: Palestyna w epoce rzymsko herodiańskiej  (The Political Heritage of Herod the Great: Palestine during the Roman-Herodian Epoch, Kraków 2002). Thanks to the efforts of Prof. Ciecieląg, an academic textbook entitled  Żydzi w okresie drugiej świątyni: 538 przed Chr.-70 po Chr.  (Jews during the Period of the Second Temple: 538 B.C.-70 A.D., Kraków 2011) was published as well. 

Department of Medieval History 

The Department of Medieval History conducts research in the field of world history and history of Poland. In the field of world history, attention is paid to the history of the Slavs in the early Middle Ages and to the economic history of Europe in the early Middle Ages. Another traditional research focus of the Department is the history of the cities and monasteries of Lesser Poland and Upper Silesia in the Middle Ages and early modern periods as well as the history of the Lesser Poland and Upper Silesia settlements, with particular reference to the cults of saints and the formation of sacred spaces. A new direction of scientific research is in the field of prosopography of the medieval and early modern society. Studies of the bourgeoisie, monks and nuns and organists, in particular the issue of equipping the churches of the medieval diocese of Kraków with musical instruments, are carried out in this area. The younger employees of the Department study the problems of burghers’ migration in the Middle Ages and the early modern era, Polish-Hungarian-Slovak relations as seen through migrations and the role of border monasteries, as well as the place of women in medieval society. 

Department of Early Modern History 

The main areas of research of the department’s staff are the economy and society of small and medium-sized Lesser Poland cities in the 16th-18th centuries (microhistory); the crown land of the Kraków province; history of culture and mentality in the modern era, the history of women and Old Polish family; research on last will documents, Old Polish epistolography, manuscripts, historical anthropology; history of Kraków crafts; history of culture, family history, historical anthropology. 

Department of 19th Century History 

The research interests of the Department’s staff are: the structure of Polish society in the 19th and 20th centuries; the history of Galicia; aristocracy and landowners in the 19th century; political, economic, social and cultural life of Lwów (Lviv) in the 19th and 20th centuries; ethnic and religious problems of the 19th and 20th centuries (Poles, Germans, Russians, Ukrainians, and Jews); history and culture of Jews in the 19th and 20th centuries; political attitudes of the rural population in Galicia and the Second Polish Republic; Polish national uprisings; the history of the Great Emigration: political and social thought of political camps; the contribution of Polish emigrants of the 19th century to the civilizations of the nations of Europe and the Middle East; the history of Israel, memory studies, including studies on memorial sites and studies on new museology. 

The Department of 19th Century History plays an important role in the organization of Polish-Ukrainian Scientific Conferences “Lviv. City – Society – Culture”, a joint venture of the Pedagogical University of Kraków and Ivan Franko National University of Lviv. This series of conferences is the oldest project in the field of humanities implemented jointly by Poland and Ukraine. The first conference took place in Kraków (18-20 November 1992), the second in Lviv (18-20 May 1994) and the third again in Kraków (29-30 April – 1 May 1996). These conferences continue in the present and are attended by historians from scientific centers in Poland, Ukraine, Germany, Austria, the United States and other countries, including those are interested in the history of books and book collections, Jews, education and sports. 

In institutional terms, the Department also develops active contacts with universities and research centers from Israel. The Department’s staff have contributed to the signing of the official cooperation agreement between the Pedagogical University of Kraków and the Levinsky College of Education in Tel Aviv, which is the oldest Hebrew-language university in Israel (founded in 1912). 

Department of Contemporary History 

The scientific interests of the Department’s staff are: the history of Poland and world history since the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries; the history of Polish irredentism in the 19th and 20th centuries, especially that of Józef Piłsudski and his camp; the history of naval warfare and naval art during the two world conflicts; the policy and economy of the reborn Poland and the history of international relations in the 20th century, especially between Poland, France and the Soviets; Polish colonial and nationality policies in the 1930s; issues related to World War II, with a particular emphasis on the German occupation and (micro)social relations within Poland during that period, attitudes and behaviors; Polish-British, Polish-Soviet, Polish-Ukrainian and Polish-Jewish relations at the time. In addition, employees of the Department study the history of Cracow in the 20th century as well as the history of historiography and biography-writing. 

Department of Historical Education 

The Department focuses primarily on past and contemporary historical, social, cultural and museum education; the history of education in autonomous Galicia (1867-1918), especially local middle school education, as well as its social, national and religious aspects; the education in the Second Polish Republic; the ideological face of post-war historical education and the transformation of awareness and historical memory and textbook narration in Polish schools after 1945; the teaching about Auschwitz and the Holocaust in Poland and around the world; the organization of education in European countries; the content of historical education in programs and textbooks in different historical periods; education law. Another range of topics include the child as a subject of public life in the Old Polish era; the socio-economic history of Polish Jews in the interwar period; the figure of the national hero in history education; everyday life in post-war Kraków; contemporary Polish history teaching as analyzed from the social and family angles. 

Department of Archival Studies and Auxiliary Sciences of History 

The staff of the Department conduct research in the field of archival studies and document management, with a particular emphasis on the functioning of the modern office, contemporary archives, special documentation (photographs, films, recordings) and the implementation of electronic document management systems. Another area of scientific activity is historical cartography. It includes the source edition of the first Josephine photo of Galicia and the edition of historic atlases of cities in Lesser Poland. The history of cities in the pre-partition period, as well as the history of settlement and historical demography are also subjects of research.