Following the launching of the research project on Lombok Heritage, the Department of History, Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) hosted a public lecture titled “Beyond the Point of No Return: The Re-Emergence of Indonesian Debates and Concepts on the Return of Cultural Objects”. The public lecture was delivered by Dr. Sadiah Boonstra, a historian and curator, as well as the founder of CultureLab Consultancy. She is also one of the postdoctoral researchers within the Indonesia-Netherlands research consortium focused on the Lombok Heritage. read more

Image: Jaap Kunst’s Collection, Universiteit van Amsterdam, Olivier Middendorp.

We are delighted to announce that our collaborative research team at the Department of History, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada, and the Department of Musicology at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) has been awarded a significant grant from the Royal Dutch Research Council (NWO) under the Research into Collections with a Colonial Context program to support our research project, Restituting, Reconnecting, and Reimagining Sound Heritage (Re:Sound). read more

On Tuesday, February 4, 2025, a historical discussion was held in Room 709, 7th Floor, Soegondo Building, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Gadjah Mada University. The event took place from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM WIB and was attended by various academics and historical researchers, both from Indonesia and abroad, including research colleagues from the Netherlands who were on a journey retracing history following World War II in Indonesia.

The discussion was officially opened by Dr. Abdul Wahid, M.A., Head of the Department of History, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, UGM. In his opening remarks, he emphasized the importance of historical studies based on academic collaboration between Indonesia and the Netherlands to achieve a more comprehensive understanding of the decolonization period and its impact on both nations. read more

On Wednesday, February 22, 2023, the History Department of Universitas Gadjah Mada held its first departmental discussion event. The speaker of the discussion was Dr. Ahmad Athoillah with a research entitled “The Role of Sayid Saqqaf Al-Jufri and Modern Islamic Education in Arab Society in Kedu in the Early 20th Century.”

This research focuses on the roles and interactions of Sayid Saqqaf Al-Jufri in developing the modernization of Islamic education in the Kedu region in the early 20th century through the Al-Iman school that was established in Magelang. The results of this study show that Sayid Saqqaf was one of the Hadrami Arab Islamic education reformers who built a trans-local network of Islamic education modernism which was supported by Hadrami Arab kinship, Muslim intellectuals, and trade activities. Some of the themes explored during the discussion were the Islamic education systems in the early 20th century and the development of Islamic modernism during the same period. read more

On January 25, 2023, a public lecture entitled Critically Reviewing the History of the Indonesian Women’s Movement was held. This public lecture was a collaborative event between the Department of History of Universitas Gadjah Mada and Ruang Arsip dan Sejarah Perempuan (RUAS). The event invited Prof. Dr. Saskia E. Wieringa, professor of history, gender studies and same sex cross culturally at Universiteit van Amsterdam, and Ita Fatia Nadia as the moderator.

This public lecture departed from her book entitled The Destruction of the Women’s Movement in Indonesia, published by Kalyanamitra, Garba Budaya, in 1999. In this public lecture, Prof. Wieringa discussed the history of gender in Indonesia, especially in the pre-Islamic period, how the New Order politicized gender for its interests, and several theories that underlie her book, namely: 1) passionate aesthetics, 2) symbolic subversion, and 3) postcolonial amnesia. read more

On Wednesday (23-11), the UGM Department of History organized an event entitled Environmental History Conference: Dialogue of Academics and Movements in Shared Environmental History. The event lasted for 2 days in the multimedia room of Margono Building, Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM. The conference was organized to build an environmental history education base that is relevant to the needs of the environmental movement. This is done by creating a deep understanding of the forms of research and knowledge needed by the movement. read more

On Monday (14-11), the History Department of Universitas Gadjah Mada held an Oral History Exhibition “Soeara Rakjat Tahun 1945-1965”. The event was held in the basement of Soegondo Building, Faculty of Cultural Studies UGM until November 24, 2022. The opening of the event presented Satrio Dwicahyo, Muhammad Faisal Adnan, and Dinda Nabila. In the opening, it was mentioned that this exhibition was the result of the annual assignment of the class of 2019 in the Oral History class.

There are several themes raised in this exhibition, namely family, education, military, culture, and politics. Although the themes vary, they all have one goal, which is to present people’s perspectives on history. In general, history presents stories of great figures. However, in the midst of great change, many people are affected, from members of religious organizations to residents of burnt houses. Their hardships, struggles, feelings and aspirations are the main focus of this exhibition. read more

Wednesday (19-10), The Department of History UGM conducted a workshop entitled Transnational Histories of Activism in Southeast Asia and Beyond. With Bristol University and Ruang Arsip dan Sejarah Perempuan (RUAS), speakers from different fields were invited to present a public lecture on transnational activism. The speakers included Brigitta Isabella, Fadiah Nadwa Fikri, Ita F. Nadia, Su Lin Lewis, Widya Fitrianingsih, Wildan Sena Utama, and Yulianti. The event started with a speech from Abdul Wahid, the head of History Department UGM. read more

Tuesday (20-9), Department of History UGM conducted a public lecture entitled Towards an End of Colonialism: Mid-Century European Photographers Working for an Independent Indonesia. Brian Arnold from Cornell University became the speaker of this lecture, accompanied by Satrio Dwicahyo, a lecturer from Department of History UGM. In this public lecture, Arnold discussed the power of photography and European photographers who sided with Indonesia.

Photography is often seen as a snippet of the past. In both archives and history books, it seems like a neutral static proof of the actuality of an event. However, Arnold argued that photos are so much more complex than that. It is a powerful tool to disseminate knowledge. “Everything that a photographer experiences affects the decisions they make,” explained Arnold. “What is in the frame is as important as what is not in the frame. All of that creates subjective sensibility in photography.” That subjectivity can be manifested in the way as subtle as the background of a photographer following orders, to concrete ones such as institutionalized interests. read more

On Saturday, September 17th 2022, Department of History UGM conducted a reunion and congress of the alumni entitled Knitting Memories, Crocheting Struggles. The song Cintaku by Chrisye was sung in the auditorium of Soegondo Building, ending conversations and the selling of books during the coffee break. The event was started by singing Indonesia Raya and the anthem of UGM, continued by an opening speech by Abdul Wahid as the Head of Department of History UGM.

The reintroduction of the department, including the regular activities and committees of the programs, was done by Abdul Wahid. Then, the audience was served with a variety of performances from the alumni and students. There were music performances, poetry, dances, as well as a magic show. read more