The University of Göttingen and the Finno-Ugric Studies are bonded by a long tradition. The department in Göttingen was founded in 1947 and is the oldest Finno-Ugric department in the German-speaking area. In 1984 the first IFUSCO (International Finno-Ugric Students’ Conference) took place in Göttingen. Could it be that the birthplace of the most important event for Finno-Ugric students worldwide won’t have anything to do with Finno-Ugric Studies? It is not unlikely.

What does this mean for the international Finno-Ugric scene? That another opportunity for cultural exchange will vanish from the academic map. What does this mean for us? That we can’t study further as planned and if you google “Finnougristik Göttingen” you’ll just find “page not found”. We don’t want that!

Minor humanities were already closed or put together in senseless combinations, not only in Göttingen. Do we want to accept that there will be the same mishmash in all universities? Needless to say, major philologies like German studies, English studies etc. have significant meaning, but how can a university point out its diversity when it's only focussing on the major studies like every other university and downgrading the importance of the minor ones?

This is why we need your help!

Please sign this petition, if you’re for a restaffing of the professorship of the Finno-Ugric Studies in Göttingen. Because without this the Finno-Ugric Studies can’t continue to exist in the future.