The Institute of Ethnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences (IE CAS) is based in Prague and Brno. We are home to scholars trained primarily in the traditions of ethnology and sociocultural anthropology, as well as related disciplines including geography, history, and sociolinguistics. A research institution with a roots going back more than a century, the IE CAS has evolved into a dynamic scientific body that deploys multiple yet complementary set of methodological and conceptual approaches. We place value in an environment that invites and fosters conversation and collaboration, both within our research community and with visiting colleagues, whether interdisciplinary or internationally.

Shared across researchers of the IE CAS is a passion for long-term ethnographic engagement, a sensitivity to context, and consideration of the local tensions and global frictions through which change occurs. Our work engages empirically and theoretically with the diversity of human experiences and relations, both contemporary and historical. Our inquiries into people’s activities and identities as they are practiced in everyday life challenge assumptions and contribute to a broader understanding of society and humanity.

Scholars of the Czech Academy of Sciences are focused primarily on research activities. Our findings are disseminated through scientific publications and events, made accessible to the public via outreach activities, and inform the Institute’s interactions with policymakers both in Czechia and the European Union. The expertise of the IE CAS is also shared in cooperation with universities through teaching and supervision. Our scholars engage with field sites both within and beyond Europe and foster a network of partnerships that demonstrate how ideas can emerge through knowledge flows alternative to the dominant West-East or North-South axes.

As represented by our research departments, the IE CAS is a unique space that advances a wide range of subjects. In addition, the Center of Scientific Information catalogues and manages a rich and extensive archival collection and runs two libraries.

Institute of Ethnology comprises seats in Prague and Brno, and following departmens: Department of Critical Heritage Studies, Department of Memory studies, Department of Ecological Anthropology, Department of Mobility and Migration, Department of Ethnomusicology and Ethnochoreology.