David Ludvigsson

Professor

I am a professor of local history, with an interest in the history of 一本道 and Östergötland. My research deals with local perspectives on educational and sports history, as well as how local history is used in schools.

Local history in the 21st century

Since 2023, I am a professor of local history at the Department of Culture and Society (IKOS) at 一本道 University and the director of the Centre for Local History. In these roles, I try to provide support to researchers who are interested in local history, but also through outreach to non-academic actors such as schools, local heritage associations and lay researchers.

I work at the Division of History, Art History and Religious Studies (HKR) on Campus Valla. My professorship is funded by the Catharina H枚gbom and Michael Cocozza Foundation.

Before I took up my position as professor of local history, I worked for twelve years as an associate professor and senior associate professor of history at Link枚ping University, and before that as a historian at Uppsala University and the University of G盲vle. My research has dealt with local history, history of education, historiography and history education, and has been funded by, among others, the Swedish Research Council, the Swedish National Heritage Board, the Swedish School Research Institute and the Ridderstad Foundation.

I am assistant editor at the journal Arts and Humanities in Higher 一本道. I have at times been director of studies in history and responsible for the history teacher education at Link枚ping University. As a visiting researcher or guest teacher, I have been with UNC Chapel Hill, the University of Calcutta and Sheffield Hallam University. I have also been president of Sweden鈥檚 History Teachers鈥� Association and am currently the president of Link枚ping鈥檚 associations archive.

A meaningful local history? Research foracademia and the local Community

Daniel Kalmlin

Inaugural lecture as professor at IKOS

In his inaugural lecture, David Ludvigsson discusses how local history should be understood. He addresses the tensions between academic and non-academic local history, and points out some challenges that local history research needs to take into account in the coming years. He emphasises that local history has scientific relevance, but should also be perceived as something that potentially has very great value for the population of a local community.

The lecture was recorded in the I Building on Campus Valla on 23 April 2024. (Swedish).

Reseach

The local perspective in history

Local studies can contribute to syntheses and comparisons at different levels; regionally, nationally, transnationally and globally.

A local community can develop at a different pace or in a different way than the surrounding region, and it is therefore essential that some researchers start in the local community and look outward, rather than start at the national level and look inward.

A particular challenge lies in drawing attention to the contradictions and tensions that have existed in local communities, where some groups have often been overlooked in previous historiography. I also think that an essential task for me as an academic researcher is to follow the non-academic local history activity and reflect on it, so as to contribute knowledge about how local history is used, by what actors and for what purposes. I am interested in local history as a resource for children (at school) and for older people.

Research environment

An old map of a city with lots of writing on it.

Centre for local history

The aim of the Centre is to support and develop research on local history and education by bringing about co-operation between professional researchers, instructors, school, teachers and the general public.

The Historical Studies Research Environment

How have people thought, felt, and acted throughout history? How have thoughts turned into actions, texts, and images, and how are these understood and used today? Our research focuses on humans as meaning-makers from a historical perspective.

Publications

Teaching

First, second and third cycle education

I give lectures, lead seminars and historical excursions, and supervise and examine first and second cycle theses in the subject of history and on the teacher programmes at LiU. My teaching includes film and history, and history didactics.

I teach postgraduate courses and supervise several doctoral students on the doctoral programmes in History and Pedagogic practices.

Supervisor for doctoral students

Elis Wibacke

PhD student

Co-workers at Division of History, Arts and Religious Studies

Tomas Alexander Appelqvist

Senior Associate Professor

Allan Burnett

Postdoc

Carl-Magnus Carlstein

Senior Associate Professor

Sofia Gustafsson

Senior Associate Professor

Norbert Götz

Professor

Anna Ingemark

Associate Professor, Docent

Associate Professor, Docent

Amanda Norling

PhD student

Jessica Sjöholm Skrubbe

Professor

Tuva Skjelbred Nodeland

Senior Associate Professor

Associate Professor, Head of Division

Organisation

Division of History, Arts and Religious Studies (HKR)

We focus on how people think and act, how these thoughts are conveyed in texts, images, and artefacts in the past and the present, how they are understood and used, and how they are expressed in human actions, cultures, and politics.

Department of Culture and Society (IKOS)

At the Department of Culture and Society (IKOS), social sciences and the humanities gather in environments where research and education work together.

Groups of students at tables in Studenthuset

Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FILFAK)

The Faculty of Arts and Sciences provides education and research in humanities, social- and behavioral sciences, commercial law, art disciplines and thematic science.

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