Research at MIASU

The Mongolia & Inner Asia Studies Unit is an interdisciplinary research unit at the University of Cambridge based within the Department of Social Anthropology. It  has become a centre of international importance for studies on Inner Asia with an area of interest centred on Mongolia and extending across the region of the great steppes to the Himalayas.

The Unit supports and trains students from Inner Asia and has links with a network of key scholars working in the region which has enabled the development of a broad programme of research activities and events reflecting diverse interests within the area.

The current director is Professor David Sneath

Research themes include:

• Political formations in regional contexts of Inner Asia.

• The Book – Tibetan and Mongolian sacred books: text, technologies and transmission.

• The person, subject, individual and kinship in Inner Asian cultures.

• Cities and borders –  interfaces and interactions across political frontiers in Inner Asia.

• Pastoralism, land-use and climate change.

See the related links for our current and recent projects and for a full list see the main research projects page.