The Institute of Latin American Studies (ILAS) was one of nine research institutes that comprised the

School of Advanced Study The School of Advanced Study (SAS), a postgraduate institution of the University of London, is the UK's national centre for the promotion and facilitation of research in the humanities and social sciences. It was established in 1994 and is ba ...

at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...

. It was located in the landmarked Senate House building in

Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions. Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest ...

, central London. Following a consultation on proposals for the future of the school in late 2020, the activity of ILAS will be continued by the Centre for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (CLACS) established from April 2021 at the

Institute of Modern Languages Research The Institute of Modern Languages Research is a research institution associated with the University of London. A constituent institute of the School of Advanced Study based on the second floor of the Senate House, the Institute of Modern Langu ...

(IMLR), joining its six transnational and transcultural research centres.

History

The Institute of Latin American Studies was established in 1965 with the objective of providing a focus for research on the literature, arts, history, politics and economics of

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...

and the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

. It has been part of the

, the UK’s national research centre and the only institution to receive national funding to promote research in the humanities. ILAS’s founding director was

Robin Humphreys Robert Arthur Humphreys (1907–1999), known as Robin Humphreys, was a British historian, the first professor of Latin American studies in the United Kingdom, and the founder of the Institute of Latin American Studies at University College Londo ...

, the first professor of Latin American history and the founder of

Latin American studies Latin American studies (LAS) is an academic and research field associated with the study of Latin America. The interdisciplinary study is a subfield of area studies, and can be composed of numerous disciplines such as economics, sociology, history ...

in the United Kingdom. Lynch, John (2001), "Obituary: Robert Arthur Humphreys (1907-1999)", ''

Hispanic American Historical Review ''The Hispanic American Historical Review'' is a quarterly, peer-reviewed, scholarly journal of Latin American history, the official publication of the Conference on Latin American History, the professional organization of Latin American historia ...

'', 81(1):135-138; Humphreys’ tenure at ILAS from 1965 to 1974 "set the standards which gained for the subject academic status and funding". Between 2004 and 2013, ILAS formed part of the

Institute for the Study of the Americas The Institute for the Study of the Americas (ISA) was established in 2004 following a merger of the Institute of Latin American Studies and the Institute of United States Studies. ISA formed part of the University of London’s School of Advanc ...

(ISA), along with the Institute of United States Studies (IUSS). In August 2013, ILAS was re-established to focus solely on supporting research on Latin America and the Caribbean. From April 2021, ILAS's activity will be continued by the Centre for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (CLACS).

Mission

The national and international mission of ILAS has been to support researchers engaged in scholarship in the

humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with divinity and referred to what is now called classics, the main area of secular study in universities at the t ...

broadly defined pertaining to Latin America and the Caribbean by building and maintaining national scholarly networks; hosting visiting fellows; hosting and promoting academic events; and providing digital resources of use for the research community. The Institute’s

area studies Area studies (also known as regional studies) are interdisciplinary fields of research and scholarship pertaining to particular geographical, national/ federal, or cultural regions. The term exists primarily as a general description for what ar ...

focus has been

multidisciplinary Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). It draws knowledge from several other fields like sociology, anthropology, psychology, ec ...

and, as part of the

, has benefited from academic collaboration across a wide range of subject fields in the humanities and social sciences. Furthermore, ILAS has worked closely with cultural, diplomatic and business organizations with an interest in Latin America.

Research projects

The Juridification of Resource Conflicts The Juridification of Resource Conflicts is a British Academy-funded research project which explores the uses of the jural by a range of actors in Central America and Mexico to advance their views about development and natural resource governance in ...

Latin America and the Global History of Knowledge

Commodities of Empire

Resources

Research Portal

Library and E-Resources

The Caribbean Studies Collection

The Legal Cultures of the Subsoil Database

Academics and rankings

ILAS has offered a variety of taught and research Master's degrees as well as a Doctorate of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Latin American and Caribbean Studies. Despite enjoying international recognition as an established centre of excellence for research facilitation, the institute, as a postgraduate-only institution, has not been included in most university rankings tables.

Publishing

ILAS has been the editorial and administrative home of the renowned

Journal of Latin American Studies The ''Journal of Latin American Studies'', established in 1969, is a Peer review, peer-reviewed academic journal published by Cambridge University Press. The Institute of Latin American Studies of the University of London houses the journal's edit ...

. The institute's books have been published by the

University of London Press The University of London Press (also known as UoL Press) is a publishing house that is part of the University of London. Based in the School of Advanced Study at Senate House, it "seeks to facilitate collaborative, inclusive, open access interch ...

, a fully open-access academic publisher based in the

, of which ILAS has formed part.

Library

The Institute of Latin American Studies has maintained one of the premier libraries in Europe dedicated exclusively to the study of Latin America and the Caribbean, with much of the materials sourced directly from the countries of origin.

References

External links

Institute of Latin American Studies website

Containing historical archives and access to an extensive collection of political ephemera.
School of Advanced Study website
{{Authority control

Latin American Studies Latin American studies (LAS) is an academic and research field associated with the study of Latin America. The interdisciplinary study is a subfield of area studies, and can be composed of numerous disciplines such as economics, sociology, history ...

Latin American studies Educational institutions established in 1965 1965 establishments in England