International Association for the History of Religions

International Association for the History of Religions
Name	International Association for the History of Religions
Founded	1938
Founder	Jules G. Launhardt
Headquarters	Leiden
Fields	Religious studies

Contents

International Association for the History of Religions is a global scholarly society dedicated to comparative study of religion and the historical development of religious traditions. It connects scholars across continents through periodic congresses, regional conferences, and publications, engaging members from institutions such as University of Oxford, Harvard University, University of Tokyo, University of Chicago, and Université de Paris. The association operates amid interactions with organizations like the UNESCO, International Council for Philosophy and Humanistic Studies, International Sociological Association, European Association for Jewish Studies and collaborates with museums and archives including the British Museum, Vatican Library, and Smithsonian Institution.

History

The association emerged in the late 1930s after exchanges among scholars from Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands and United Kingdom and was shaped by figures linked to Max Müller, Rudolf Otto, Mircea Eliade, Wilhelm Schmidt, and Paul Tillich. Early congresses reflected debates involving representatives from University of Göttingen, Sorbonne, Heidelberg University, Leiden University and participants influenced by work at the British Academy, Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres and the Russian Academy of Sciences. During the mid-20th century the association navigated geopolitical challenges tied to events such as World War II, the Cold War, the Soviet Union’s academic policies, and international reconstruction efforts led by United Nations agencies. From the 1960s onward it expanded through engagement with scholars from India, Japan, China, Brazil, Nigeria, and South Africa, paralleling institutional developments at Columbia University, Princeton University, University of California, Berkeley, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.

Governance follows an elected council model with officers including a president, secretary-general and treasurer, drawn from universities like University of Cambridge, University of Edinburgh, Yale University, University of Toronto and National University of Singapore. Committees mirror international practices observed in bodies such as the International Olympic Committee and the International Committee of the Red Cross in rotating leadership and ethical oversight. Administrative offices have been hosted at institutions in Leiden, Paris, Rome, Berlin, and occasionally at partners such as the School of Oriental and African Studies and the Institute for Advanced Study. Statutes address relations with funding agencies including the European Commission, Ford Foundation, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and national research councils such as the British Academy and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Membership comprises individual scholars, institutional members from departments at University of Oxford, Princeton University, University of Chicago, University of Tokyo, Peking University, and affiliated national committees in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Argentina, Chile, Kenya, India, Egypt and South Korea. Affiliate organizations include the International Association for the Study of Ethnicity and Nationalism, the European Academy of Religion, the American Academy of Religion, the Society for Hungarian Philology, and regional networks tied to universities such as Jawaharlal Nehru University, Seoul National University, University of São Paulo and University of Cape Town. Partnerships extend to libraries and museums like the Library of Congress, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Museo Nacional de Antropología, and archives including the Wellcome Collection.

The association convenes regular International Congresses modeled on large scholarly gatherings such as the International Congress of Orientalists and the International Congress of Psychology, rotating among host cities including Paris, Rome, Prague, Stockholm, Kyoto, Mexico City, Cape Town, Istanbul, New Delhi and Beijing. These congresses feature panels and keynote lectures by scholars affiliated with Harvard Divinity School, Yale Divinity School, King’s College London, Université Libre de Bruxelles, University of Melbourne, McGill University, and University of Bonn. The program often intersects themes treated at the World Congress of Philosophy, the International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences, and the International Sociological Association meetings, hosting sessions on ritual studies, textual traditions, iconography, and fieldwork methodologies with contributions from researchers linked to Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, Hebrew University, Tibet House US, Max Planck Institute for Religious and Ethnic Diversity, and national academies.

The association supports peer-reviewed proceedings, edited volumes, and newsletters published in collaboration with presses such as Cambridge University Press, Routledge, Brill Publishers, Oxford University Press, University of California Press and journals hosted by institutions like University of Chicago Press and Bloomsbury. Publications often build on research networks that include scholars from École pratique des hautes études, Central European University, University of Münster, SOAS University of London, University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University and Australian National University. Research activities encompass comparative history, manuscript studies, ethnography, and digital humanities projects linked to initiatives at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Digital Public Library of America, Europeana, and the World Digital Library. Training workshops and summer schools have been organized in association with Institute of Historical Research, Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, Fondazione Giorgio Cini, and regional centers in Lima, Nairobi, Bangkok and Istanbul.

The association bestows honors and prizes for scholarly contributions, modeled similarly to awards from the British Academy, the American Philosophical Society, the Princess of Asturias Awards, the Balzan Prize, and the Nobel Prize in terms of prestige within humanities networks. Recipients often include scholars affiliated with University of Oxford, Harvard University, University of Chicago, Université de Strasbourg, Leiden University, University of Leiden, Kyoto University and National Taiwan University. Special recognitions have been presented for lifetime achievement, early-career research, and outstanding publications, announced alongside sessions at major congresses and reported in bulletins circulated through member institutions and partners like the Royal Society and the Academia Europaea.

Category:Academic organizations Category:Religious studies