Institute for the cultural and intellectual history of Asia
| Institute for the Cultural and Intellectual History of Asia (IKGA) | |
|---|---|
| founding | 1956 |
| Sponsorship | Austrian Academy of Sciences |
| place | Vienna , Austria |
| management | Birgit waiter |
| Employee | 18th |
| Website | ikga.oeaw.ac.at |
The Institute for Cultural and Intellectual History of Asia (IKGA) is a research facility of the Austrian Academy of Sciences , which has existed under various names since 1956. The conversion into an institute (i.e. a larger independent unit of the academy) took place in 1991.
The IKGA employs around fifteen to eighteen scientific staff, some of whom are permanent and some of whom are project-related. The research focuses on Indian philosophy , Buddhist epistemology (especially in India and Tibet), as well as the Japanese history of religion and mentality . Also Sinological projects are carried out at irregular intervals. There is an intensive collaboration with university institutions in China and Japan, thanks to which numerous previously unknown Buddhist texts have been made available for research in recent years.
The IKGA is a pure research institute and therefore not directly involved in academic teaching. Most of his employees, however, also work as professors or lecturers at the University of Vienna.
Previous directors
- Gerhard Oberhammer , Indologist (1983–1997)
- Ernst Steinkellner , Buddhist scholar (1998-2006)
- Helmut Krasser , Buddhist scholar (2007-2014)
- Vincent Eltschinger , Buddhist scholar (interim director, 2014-2015)
- Birgit Kellner , Buddhist scholar (from December 2015)