Institute for Byzantine Studies
The Institute for Byzantine Studies of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts was founded by Academician George Ostrogorsky in March of 1948. To date, the Institute has been headed by: George Ostrogorsky (1948–1976), Božidar Ferjančić (1976–1998), Ljubomir Maksimović (1998–2022) and Bojana Krsmanović (since 2023).
Traditionally, the scholarly activities of the Institute were conducted in four basic directions: (а) History of Byzantium and Byzantine-South Slavic relations; (b) Byzantine sources for the history of the peoples of Yugoslavia; (c) Byzantine literature and the medieval Greek language; and (d) Byzantine and post-Byzantine art.
Between 2011 and 2019, the scholarly activities of the Institute were streamlined through the project, Tradition, Innovation and Identity in the Byzantine World (Project leader: academician Ljubomir Maksimović, 2011–2017; Dr. Bojana Krsmanović, 2017–2019). The project was interdisciplinary in character and involved both Serbian and foreign researchers. Thanks to the multidisciplinary team of its full-time associates, the Institute was awarded a grant by the Science Fund of the Republic of Serbia within the program “Ideas” for the three-year project “From Barbarians to Christians and Rhomaioi. The Process of Byzantinization in the Central Balkans (late 10th – mid-13th century)” for the years 2022–2025 (Principal Investigator: Dr. Bojana Krsmanović).
The Institute issues three series of publications: Zbornik radova Vizantološkog instituta (Collection of Papers of the Institute for Byzantine Studies), Posebna izdanja (Special Editions), and Izvori (Sources). Zbornik radova Vizantološkog instituta is a peer-reviewed scholarly journal published annually since 1952 (www.zrvi-visanu.rs). Its bibliographic sigla – ЗРВИ/ZRVI – has long become internationally recognized and is listed among the acronyms of frequently quoted publications in all important works by Byzantologists worldwide.
The Institute has also published 50 special monographs, including five volumes (of the planned seven) in the series, Vizantijski izvori za istoriju naroda Jugoslavije (Byzantine Sources for the History of the Peoples of Yugoslavia). The latest book in the Special Editions series is Predrag Komatina’s Konstantin Porfirogenit i rana istorija južnih Slovena (Constantine Porphyrogenitus and the Early History of the South Slavs).
In 2015, the Institute launched a new series of publications, entitled Sources. Two editions have been published so far: 1) Natpisi istorijske sadržine u zidnom slikarstvu (Inscriptiones historicae in picturis muralibus), vol. I, 12th–13th centuries, by Gojko Subotić, Bojan Miljković, Irena Špadijer and Ida Tot, Belgrade 2015; 2) Natpisi manastira Hilandara (Inscriptiones monasterii Chilandarici), vol. I, 14th–17th centuries, by Gojko Subotić, Bojan Miljković and Nikola Dudić, Belgrade 2019.
The SASA Institute for Byzantine Studies, which has been part of the SASA Department of Historical Sciences since its inception, is in charge of organizing the majority of scholarly activities in the field of Byzantine studies. In the past eight decades, in cooperation with SASA members, the Serbian (previously Yugoslav) Committee for Byzantine Studies and other pertinent scholarly institutions, the Institute has organized a large number of local and international scholarly conferences. Every five years, beginning in 1990, national conferences of Byzantologists are organized, attracting Serbian researchers of all generations. Bilateral cooperation of the Institute with similar institutions abroad (in Greece, France, Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania) resulted in the organization of several specialist symposia and researcher exchange. On several occasions, the Institute co-organized international scholarly gatherings of the highest rank and its associates participated in the organization of the 12th International Congress of Byzantine Studies at Ohrid in 1961.
The successful organization of the 23rd International Congress of Byzantine Studies (Belgrade, 2016), was predominantly the result of the efforts of the highly dedicated Institute associates. This was the largest global congress of Byzantine studies ever, with around 1,300 researchers from 49 countries.
| Director: | Dr BOJANA KRSMANOVIĆ |
| Address: | Knez Mihailova 35, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia |
| Email: | Inst.byz@vi.sanu.ac.rs |
| Website: | www.byzinst-sasa.rs |
| Telephone: | +381 11 2637 095 |
| Fax: | +381 11 3288 441 |