Gko? Gkr!

View of the Institute of Oriental Studies building on Schillerstraße. Photo: Leipzig University, Christian Hüller Now that the Rectorate has approved the Faculty's application to change its name to 'Fakultät für Geschichte, Kunstund Regionalwissenschaften' in German and to 'Faculty of History, Art and Area Studies' in English, the institution can operate under this name. The name 'Oriental Studies' has thus been replaced by 'Area Studies'. Dean Professor Rose Marie Beck explains: "While considering the Faculty's road map for the future, it turned out that this renaming was not only undisputed, but actually welcome. All these years since it was founded in 1993, the Faculty has used the name 'Oriental Studies' because it includes the subjects of anthropology, religious studies, Japanology, Sinology, South and Central Asian studies, African studies, Arabic studies and Oriental studies, Egyptology and Ancient Middle Eastern studies. By renaming the Faculty, we are documenting our own critical distance to the history of the subjects based at our Faculty - subjects born during the colonial period and historically closely intertwined with colonialism.' Admittedly, the term 'Regionalwissenschaften' or 'area studies' is not without its own controversy, "because it is often associated with strategic, economic and military interests of the West in the regions of the world.' However, switching to the new term allows the Faculty to emphasise its links with globalisation research at Leipzig University.