On 1 September, Johan Östling takes up his position as Professor of History – the first ever in the Nordic countries to focus specifically on the history of knowledge. Congratulations!

– It is a very nice recognition. It also puts Lund on the international historiographical map, Johan Östling says.

At Lund the field of the history of knowledge has been built up since the mid-2010s. Johan Östling aims to continue working for the subject of history in general and the history of knowledge in particular.

– It is gratifying with this appointment because it gives even more weight and status to the field, and the profile of the history of knowledge becomes more established. We’ve been working for this for a long time. Also, the fact that it will be a more visible area in the Nordic counties is positive, as it is the first professorship of this kind here. Internationally, it’s also rare with chairs in the history of knowledge, Johan Östling points out.

During the autumn, Johan Östling, together with David Larsson Heidenblad, a deputy director of the Lund Centre for the History of Knowledge (LUCK), will finish writing a book on the history of knowledge commissioned by Cambridge University Press. The book is planned to be published in 2023.

Text: Sofia Hermansson, Communications officer, The Department of History, Lund University.