Department of History

INTRODUCTION

The study of history in Maribor has a tradition that now spans almost half a century. The Department of History dates back to 1962, when the study of history began at the then Pedagogical Academy in Maribor. The study of this subject was then moved to the Faculty of Education of the University of Maribor. According to its definition as a scientific research discipline, historiography is classified as one of the humanities, and it is therefore not surprising that the members of the Department of History have always strived to provide students with the opportunity to study history as a non-pedagogical single course study programme, in addition to the ‘traditional’ pedagogical combined course. This was achieved during the Academic Year 2001/2002, when we announced the first Single Non-pedagogical Study Programme in History.

In 2006/2007, when the former Faculty of Education was split, the Department of History organisationally joined the Faculty of Arts of the University of Maribor. Today, the Department has 12 full-time employees. The Department of History has one of the strongest research collectives at the Faculty of Arts, as two members of the Department are in charge of the two core programme teams. Members of the Department are also active in domestic bilateral and international research projects. The Department of History regularly includes external associates in the study process, with such individuals meaningfully complementing our study programmes.

The Department of History has prepared entirely new, modern study programmes in the field of historiography in accordance with the guidelines and provisions of the Bologna Reform of University Studies. The programmes are comparable to history study programmes in Slovenia and abroad. Since the Academic Year 2007/2008, the Department of History has offered two first-cycle study programmes: the First-cycle Single Study Programme in History, and the First-cycle Combined Study Programme in History.

Through its courses, the Department of History offers students a comprehensive overview of the most important and current findings relating to human past (from the earliest civilisations to modern history), focusing primarily on the history of the Slovene ethnic space in historical periods from prehistoric times to the present day. The Department of History was the first on the Slovenian higher education scene to pay particular focus to the history of Eastern and South-Eastern Europe, as well as to the history of the Balkan. This makes us distinctively different from other study programmes in the field of historiography in Slovenia. Therefore, during their studies, graduates of the Department of History are able to acquire a high-quality and comprehensive professional foundation, granting them an understanding of the development of modern civilisations throughout history.

As a part of the Bologna Reform of University Studies, the Department of History continues to offer its postgraduate studies, and is one of the six departments at the Faculty of Arts that offers a doctoral study programme. The fundamental feature of the Doctoral Study Programme in History is that it focuses on extensive methodological and theoretical knowledge acquisition, while simultaneously developing models for putting this acquired knowledge into practice, as well as on the development of scientific research professionals who will go on to use modern research methods to study the problems of historiography in modern society.

In the Academic Year 2009/2010, the Department announced for the first time the Third-cycle Doctoral Study Programme in History. The study programme consists of five core fields of study, each one linked to specific historical periods. These are: Ancient History, Medieval History, Modern History, Recent History (19^th century) and Contemporary History (20^th century). A wide range of compulsory and elective modules provides the necessary knowledge for the research of the intended historical problem, simultaneously allowing students to actively shape their own educational path according to their interests. With the assistance of a mentor (tutor), students are able to gradually build up the necessary knowledge and research experience to independently tackle the complex practical problems encountered in their field of study. The compulsory study content is not strictly defined and can be adapted to the needs of individual students.

MEMBERS OF THE DEPARTMENT

Head of the Department

Subjects covering Ancient, Medieval and Modern History

Predmeti novejše in sodobne zgodovine

Mladi raziskovalki in mladi raziskovalec

RESEARCH ASSOCIATE

PROJECTS AND PROGRAMME GROUPS

INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

Members of the Department of History at the Faculty of Arts of the University of Maribor work together with a number of research institutions and universities abroad. We mainly cooperate with universities in Central, South-Eastern and Eastern Europe, as well as with some institutions in Asia and Africa. This cooperation consists of the promotion of mobility for teaching staff, as well as their involvement in research work in project groups, participation in editorial boards, conferences and seminars, summer schools, etc.

As part of this international cooperation, we strongly encourage staff and student mobility. As part of the Erasmus+ international mobility programme, we cooperate extensively with partner institutions in Zagreb, Prague, Bamberg, Valencia, Istanbul, Naples, Bari, Bologna, Vilnius and Belgrade (to name but a few). In recent years, members of the Department have enjoyed a variety of long-term exchanges to Zagreb, Podgorica, Isfahan, Jena, and Istanbul.

Another important aspect of the Department is the well-established and extensive participation of international researchers in regular symposia, which the Department organises in cooperation with the Dr Franc Kovačič Historical Society in Maribor. Amongst the participants in recent years have been experts in the field of History and related humanities from Graz, Florence, Zagreb, Tuzla, Split, Vienna, and Pardubice.

Eighteen history students came to Maribor for an international mobility exchange in the 2017/18 and 2019/20 Academic Years. Most of them came from Spain and Turkey, with others also from Germany, Serbia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, and the U.K.

STUDENT AND EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

History students are living proof that studying and having fun can be combined. To ensure this, future historians have to go through a series of traditional rituals that allow them to join the Guild of Historians. An unwritten rule states that the higher year students must help the first-years to open the door that paves their path to discovering history. This is why we have been organising the annual First-years Welcome Party for the past 20 years, where first-years complete guild initiation tasks and take the guild oath before the assembled Council of Elders.

The guild oath also officially makes them students and allows them to get started with their hard work. To ensure that the study of history would not be too monotonous, we decided to organise a series of annual excursions to allow our students to learn about the sites of great battles and visit medieval castles and ancient excavation sites – at both home and abroad. In order to truly experience the atmosphere of ancient Rome, Egypt or the Balkan nations, you have to visit these places. Over the past few years, we’ve travelled to the Apennine Peninsula, visited Serbian monasteries, and immersed ourselves in many of the world’s capitals.

SCIENTIFIC JOURNALS AND PUBLISHING ACTIVITIES

Several members of the Department sit on the Editorial Board of the scientific journal Studia historica Slovenica, which has been in publication since 2001. This journal is considered to be one of the most important historical scientific periodical publications in Slovenia. Its chief editor, prof. dr. Darko Friš, is a member of the Department. The publication is published three times a year. The International Editorial Board is composed of renowned Slovenian and foreign scholars. The articles present new scientific findings in the field of History and related humanities, as well as Social Science disciplines. All articles are fully accessible on the website: shs.zgodovinsko-drustvo-kovacic.si.

In cooperation with the Student Section of the Dr Franc Kovačič Historical Society in Maribor, students publish the Student Historical Journal (Študentski zgodovinski časopis), which is generally published once a year. Having their scientific and professional articles published in the journal constitutes a great starting point for young historians. Information about the journal and its articles are available here: STUDENT HISTORICAL JOURNAL – Student Section of the Dr Franc Kovačič Historical Society in Maribor (jimdofree.com)

Members of the Department also publish scientific monographs in the international book collection Studia historica Slovenica in cooperation with the Dr Franc Kovačič Historical Society in Maribor. The collection also serves as a form of presentation of the research work of the Department. To date, the books published in this collection are:

• Aleš Maver: Religiosi et profani principes: Rimski cesarji od Avgusta do Teodozija v latinskem krščanskem zgodovinopisju 4. in 5. stoletja (2009)
• Tone Ravnikar: Benediktinski samostan v Gornjem Gradu (2010)
• Dragan Potočnik: Dijaki s Primorske na Klasični gimnaziji v Mariboru 1918‒1941 (2014)
• Martin Bele: Pogumni vojaki in zviti politiki: boji in spletke srednještajerskih plemičev v 13. stoletju (2018)
• Tone Ravnikar: Slovenj Gradec v srednjem veku (2018)

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