Department of Classical Philology

• Researchers in the department 

Universiteto g. 5, LT-01513 Vilnius. Tel. (0 5) 268 7220

Head of the Department – Assoc. Prof. Dr Vilius Bartninkas

Administrator – Lukas Bieliauskas

The Department of Classical Philology is the oldest department of the University. It was part of the original Jesuit College of 1570, before the University itself was founded in 1579. Here ancient Greek and Latin languages were taught and the works of the classical Greek and Roman authors were read and analysed. The methods of the College – the classes in Grammar, Poetics and Rhetoric, the lecture syllabus, and teaching techniques – survived unchanged during the whole early period of Vilnius University, until 1773.

The head of the Department of Classical Philology from 1805 to 1825 was Professor Gotfried Ernest Grodek. Under his rule the traditional classes in the ancient Greek language, Latin language, history of Greek literature, and history of Roman literature were supplemented with new courses in ancient religion, mythology, archaeology, and numismatics.

From 1919 to 1939 there were two separate Departments of Latin and Greek Literatures in the University of Vilnius, headed respectively by Professor Jan Oko and Professor Stefan Srebrny; at the same time in the University of Vytautas the Great in Kaunas the classical philology disciplines were conducted by Professor Vladimiras Šilkarskis, Dr Pranas Brenderis and others. From 1919 to 1939 there were two separate Departments of Latin and Greek Literatures in the University of Vilnius, headed respectively by Professor Jan Oko and Professor Stefan Srebrny; at the same time in the University of Vytautas the Great in Kaunas the classical philology disciplines were conducted by Professor Vladimiras Šilkarskis, Dr Pranas Brenderis and others. After the Second World War all classical philology courses were concentrated in the University of Vilnius. For fifteen years, from 1945 to 1960, the head of the Classical Philology Department was the famous Greek language and literature scholar Professor Jonas Dumčius. For many years the Fellows of the Department were Professors Merkelis Račkauskas, Benediktas Kazlauskas, Marcelinas Ročka and Leonas Valkūnas. The latter was the head of the Department from 1960 to 1976.

From 1984 to 1999, the Head of the Department was Prof. Dr (Habil.) Eugenija Ulčinaitė. From 1999 to 2001, the Head of the Department was Assoc. Prof. Dalia Staškevičienė. From 2001 to 2006, Prof. Eugenija Ulčinaitė took the office of the Head again. From 2006 to 2012, the Head of the Department was Assoc. Prof. Nijolė Juchnevičienė. From 2012 to 2023, the Department was headed by Assoc. Prof. Dr Audronė Kučinskienė. Since 1 September 2023, the Department has been headed by Assoc. Prof. Dr Vilius Bartninkas.

The Department’s researchers contribute to the Faculty’s research theme Ancient Culture and Latin and Greek Writings in Lithuania: Tradition, Reception, Contexts, within the broader research area Multilingual Discourses: Linguistics, Literature, Culture, and Interdisciplinary Perspectives.

The Department of Classical Philology aims to investigate the development and transformation of ancient culture; literary poetics, historiography, historical writing, and the philosophical tradition; and the transmission and reception of ancient aesthetic traditions in Renaissance and Baroque culture. Its research also encompasses early Christian writings, literature of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania written in the classical languages, and the reception of ancient literature from the Renaissance to the modern period.

The Department pursues the following research objectives:

1. Research on the poetics and cultural contexts of ancient literature.
2. Research on ancient rhetoric, including the translation and commentary of rhetorical sources.
3. Research on the ancient philosophical tradition and its reception.
4. Research on the history of classical ideas and their reception in medieval and Renaissance culture.
5. Research on the religious and cultural heritage of early Christian texts.
6. Research on Greek and Latin sources from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
7. Research on the Latin culture of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania as a component of the identity of its political community.