Department of Cultural Studies
The Department was established in 1990 and initially had only one bachelor’s programme in Ethnology and Folklore Studies and was called the Department of Ethnology and Folklore Studies. Later, the Department changed its name to the Department of Cultural Studies, as it started to implement new bachelor’s programmes in the field of regional cultures: the cultures of the Baltic region, the cultures and languages of East Asian countries, and the cultures and languages of Scandinavian countries. At present, the three bachelor’s and master’s programmes curated by the Department are taught not only by Lithuanians, but also by lecturers from abroad (Japan, China, Korea, Norway, Great Britain, Estonia, Latvia and other countries). The researchers of the Department are distinguished from other ethnologists and regionalists in Lithuania by their orientation towards the study of contemporary rather than traditional ethnic culture and regional social processes. The Department has an excellent base for research: the Ethnology and Folklore Manuscript Library, which has been accumulated for more than 20 years, and the Asian Books Space, which is open to all in the V. Biržiška Reading Room. Until now, the Department has been headed by Norbertas Vėlius (1993-1996), Gintaras Beresnevičius (1996-1997), Romualdas Apanavičius (1997-2006), Arūnas Vaicekauskas (2006-2011), Laimutė Anglickienė (2011-2023).
Assoc. prof. Dr. Linas Didvalis
Head of the Department
Research interests: environmental protection and sustainable development in East Asia, environmental movements, ties between Lithuania and East Asia
CV
linas.didvalis@vdu.lt
CRIS
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Dalia Senvaitytė
Research interests: (re)constructions of annual celebrations, comparative religion and mythology studies, cultural anthropology/ethnology and cultural psychology
dalia.senvaityte@vdu.lt
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Laimutė Anglickienė
Research interests: contemporary folklore, contemporary ethnology, ethnic stereotypes
CRIS
laimute.anglickiene@vdu.lt
Prof. Dr. Rasa Račiūnaitė-Paužuolienė
Research interests: cultural anthropology, family and gender studies, urban anthropology, visual and religious anthropology
rasa.raciunaite-pauzuoliene@vdu.lt
Dr. Giedrė Barkauskaitė
Research interests: ethnical culture, culturology, pop culture, the interaction between ethnical traditions and creative work, traditional and contemporary folklore, ethnochoreography
giedre.barkauskaite@vdu.lt
Dr. Arvydas Kumpis
Research interests: the sociopolitical situation in Japan, nationalisms of East Asia countries (focusing on the case of Japan), interstate relations in East Asia, historical and collective memories in the region of East Asia
arvydas.kumpis@vdu.lt
CRIS
Eglė Petrauskaitė
Courses taught: Korean language and culture, History of Korean culture
egle.petrauskaite@vdu.lt
Gheorghe Alexandru Fratila
Courses taught: Chinese language and culture, history of Chinese civilization
gheorghe.fratila@vdu.lt
Kristina Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė
Research interests: Japanese language and culture, gender and sexuality studies, contemporary Japanese culture, intercultural communication
kristina.barancovaite@vdu.lt
Simona Kumpė
Courses taught: Japanese language and culture, History of Japanese Culture, interaction between East and West cultures
simona.kumpe@vdu.lt
CRIS
Karolė Miuller
Courses taught: East Asian Civil Society (Korean’s part), East Asian Art (Korean’s part)
PhD topic: Representation of occupational traumatic experiences of the 20th century and formation of collective memory: the cases of South Korea’s and Lithuania’s education
karole.miuller@vdu.lt
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Arūnas Vaicekauskas
Research interests: Lithuanian genesis of ethnicity and culture, changes of ritual forms of behaviour and holiday calendar, the invention of traditions, expression of carnival culture, representation of ethnical traditions in modern society
arunas.vaicekauskas@vdu.lt
Lina Kukytė
PhD topic: Coffee Growers in Northern Thailand: Sociocultural Perspectives
Supervisor: Assoc. Prof. dr. Linas Didvalis
lina.kukyte@vdu.lt
