On Wednesday, 10 November 2004, the Faculty of Philosophy at the
University of Cologne decided that the Cologne Institute of Indology
and Tamil Studies will be closed down when the current
director, Prof.Dr. D.B. Kapp, retires in February 2006. The director
was informed not earlier than the night before by the dean and vice-
dean about the imminent closure. Neither members of the institute
nor students had been given the opportunity to present their
position prior to the decision. In other words, all people concerned
have been totally overrun.
The decision was reached against the background of cuts announced by
the Ministry of Science and Research of North Rhine Westphalia,
according to which the University of Cologne will have to reduce its
number of faculty by 24 until the year 2008. 6 of these positions
will have to be taken from the Faculty of Philosophy. By closing
down the chair of Indology and Tamil Studies in Cologne one single
position would be reduced. The consequences, however, would be the
closure of an entire institution and the demise of the
discipline `Tamil Studies' in Germany. If only from an economic
point of view, it seems entirely unjustified to close down a public
institution which functions with a minimum of costs, but which has a
major impact on contemporary German society:
- IITS Cologne offers unique opportunities for academic studies in
Germany: With its clear focus on South India in both teaching and
research, the IITS in Cologne occupies a unique position among the
centres of South Asian Studies in Germany.
Our activities address a geographical and cultural space which has
for a long time been overlooked. As the name of the institute
suggests, we particularly specialise in research and teaching of
Tamil language and culture. In Germany, Tamil culture has gained
special momentum due to the immigration of Sri Lankan Tamils during
the 1980s. Tamil is the most important member of the so-called
Dravidian family of languages with over 70 million speakers in the
South Indian state of Tamil Nadu, and with further speakers in Sri
Lanka, Mauritius, Malaysia, Singapore, as well as Canada, USA, Great
Britain, France and Switzerland.
With its broad spectrum of currently 9 South Asian languages, the
IITS offers important opportunities for students to specialise and
to enhance their knowledge. We teach the well-known, trans-regional
languages Hindi (spoken by more than 480 million speakers), Bengali
(200 million) and Tamil, as well as Telugu, Malayalam, Gujarati,
Marathi and Sinhalese. For their own, individualised profile,
students at the University of Cologne often combine the
subject 'Indology/Tamil Studies' with other subjects, e.g.
Anthropology, Musicology, Political Sciences,Sociology, Philosophy,
Linguistics, Media Studies,Art History, or English Studies. It is
because of these combinations that the subject 'Indology/Tamil
Studies'forms an integrated part of the variety of disciplines at
the University of Cologne.
Together with the Institute of Indology in Bonn, the IITS
participates in a specific network: While the institute in Bonn
focuses on Classical Indology and regionally on North India, the
IITS concentrates on modern South Asia and on the culturally
different South of the subcontinent.
- The IITS Cologne is a national and international leader in
research: Due to its unique position within the landscape of the
institutions of Higher Education in Germany, the IITS forms part of
a large number of national and international research networks and
cooperations. We have research partners in Europe (France, Sweden,
Austria, UK, Czech Republic), in the U.S. (Chicago,Berkeley, Rhode
Island) and in Asia (India, Sri Lanka, Singapore). As may be
expected, we furthermore entertain links to other institutions of
South Asian Studies in Germany.
The many research projects carried out at the IITS have led to
considerable donations and endowments: 400,000 Euros in the years
2003 and 2004 alone. Not only the institute, but the entire
university has benefited from this.
Moreover, special mention should be made of the Tamil section of the
IITS library which was founded during the 1950s and 60s and which
has been systematically enlarged since 1992. It currently contains
more than 60,000 volumes. It is therefore the largest Tamil library
outside India. An important part of the collection contains books
published during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Many of these
volumes are found today only in Cologne.
The IITS library is a unique instrument of research which continues
to receive considerable international acclaim. It not only serves
current research and teaching at the IITS itself, but also
frequently attracts researchers from all over the world.
- The IITS Cologne facilitates cultural integration of South Asians
in Germany: The IITS is the only institution in Germany which offers
the subject 'Tamil Studies'. Here, native speakers of German find
the opportunity to study an important modern South Asian language,
while on the other hand the Tamil population in Germany finds a
place to study their mother tongue. During the past decade, the IITS
has become increasingly popular among the more than 70,000 Tamils
who have come to Germany from Sri Lanka or India. The IITS offers
support to the Tamil population in Germany by providing dictionaries
and through its library services.
Also for other South Asian communities the IITS provides a centre.
This is reflected in the increasing interest of students to study
the South Indian language Malayalam at the IITS, or in a project
which aims at the digitisation of one of the most prestigious
Telugu libraries in the South Indian state Andhra Pradesh.
- The political and economic importance of South Asia: South Asia is
a region with an increasing importance in the economy and in global
politics. The IITS responds to this impact by introducing a new BA
course in Indian Economics. During the past few months, the IITS has
been developing this highly innovative course in collaboration with
the Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences at the University of
Cologne (Department of Prof.Dr. Donges). Students will be able to
acquire far-reaching linguistic and cultural skills, while following
courses on economics and participating in work practice periods in
South Asia. This new BA course does not only follow the proclamation
by the Ministry of Science and Research of North Rhine Westphalia to
reform and innovate Higher Education in the region. It will also
contribute to make North Rhine Westphalia, and the University of
Cologne in particular, a more attractive region to study in.
- Further economic aspects: The minimal reduction of costs with a
single position leads to the death of an entire institution and
discipline. The number of students in a particular subject or
academic discipline has become one of the most important criteria
for decisions concerning Higher Education policies in Germany. As a
matter of course, the IITS caters for a smaller number of students
than other subjects, such as German or English Studies or History.
Unlike in the case of these subjects,however, the number of degrees
awarded in 'Indology/Tamil Studies' does correspond to the actual
demand on the job market. Even the Ministry of Science and Research
of North Rhine Westphalia has recognised that with regard to the so-
called 'smaller' disciplines, student capacities and numbers of
awarded degrees are less important to the question of overall
relevance (See the "Abschlußbericht des Expertenrats im Rahmen des
Qualitätspakts für das Ministerium für Wissenschaft und Forschung
des Landes NRW vom 20.02.2001" at
http://www.mwf.nrw.de/Ministerium/Wissenschafts_Forschungspolitik/Qualitaetspakt/Abschlussbericht/index.html
The IITS in Cologne does not only occupy a unique position within
the landscape of the institutions of Higher Education in Germany.
Beyond the academic sphere, the IITS has an important social
function due to its contribution towards the understanding and
integration of cultural minorities in Germany. The decision taken by
the Faculty of Philosophy to abolish Tamil Studies in Germany is
overly hasty and short-sighted. Whether the procedure itself was
legal is currently being investigated. In any case, the decision is
a slap in the face not only of the students but of the entire South
Asian population in Germany. While this year Tamil has been declared
a 'classical' language, the international Tamil community is about
to face the demise of a prestigious cultural institution in Germany
with international links in both teaching and research. Given the
current political climate in Germany and its concomitant educational
policies, further far-reaching cuts and the demise of other
disciplines are to be expected not only at the University of Cologne
but everywhere else. Thus, what is happening here to the IITS in
Cologne concerns not a few 'unimportant' and underprivileged
students; it concerns German society as a whole.
Please do not hesitate to contact us for further information:
Institute of Indology and Tamil Studies (IITS
University of Cologne
Pohligstrasse 1
D-50969 Cologne
Germany
