About
Cercec

History

The Centre for Russian, Caucasian and Central European Studies (CERCEC— Centre d’Études des mondes Russe, Caucasien Et Centre-européen) is a successor to the former Centre for the Study of Russia, Eastern Europe, and the Turkish Area founded by Alexandre Bennigsen at the EHESS in the 1960s. The earlier research centre was split in 1995 into what became the Centre for the History of the Turkish Area and the Centre for Soviet and Post-Soviet Russian Studies. The latter joined the CNRS in 1999 and became a joint research unit (UMR) in 2001. It changed its name in 2004 to Centre for Russian, Caucasian and Central European Studies (UMR 8083) in response to developments in the research our members conduct.

CERCEC today

Although it began with a strong historical bias, the Centre for Russian, Caucasian and Central European Studies is now a multidisciplinary research centre in social sciences. Our researchers include historians, geographers, political scientists and sociologists, and we have master’s and PhD students registered with the EHESS who wish to specialise in the cultural area of Eastern Europe in the broadest sense.

Team members’ various specialisations cover a period from the 17th century to the present day and a region extending from the former Soviet bloc in Eastern Europe to the Caucasus and Central Asia.

With our combination of highly varied research, CERCEC has become France’s reference research centre in these fields. It is now part of the Tepsis centre for research excellence (labex).

Director: Françoise Daucé

Deputy director: Larissa Zakharova

General secretary: Yadranka Krasevec