PhD position on Linguistic Politics in Early Colonial North America (1.0 fte, 4 years)

Leiden University Centre for the Arts in Society (LUCAS) invites applications for a

PhD position on Linguistic Politics in Early Colonial North America (1.0 fte, 4 years)
The PhD candidate will be working within the research project ‘Leveraging Language, Proclaiming Power’, funded by the Dutch Research Council’s Vidi scheme, and directed by dr. Alisa van de Haar (university lecturer in historical French literature at Leiden University). Prof. Michiel van Groesen (professor of maritime history at Leiden University) will be the co-supervisor of the PhD candidate.

The overall project
This project examines the interplay between language choices and power dynamics in early colonial North America (1604–1664). Seventeenth-century North America was a crossroads of intercultural contact, where European colonizers, Indigenous peoples, and—through enslavement—African individuals converged, creating a complex multilingual environment. To navigate this linguistic landscape, settlers and Indigenous communities developed diverse communication strategies. These practices were not neutral: every language choice (from using interpreters to imposing a specific language) carried power implications, determining who held control in an encounter. During the early decades of European settlement in what Europeans called New Netherland, New France, Virginia, and New England, a continuous dynamic developed between language practices and shifting power balances. This site of tricontinental linguistic interaction presents a valuable opportunity to improve our understanding of how language reflects and shapes power dynamics in multilingual societies.

This project investigates five key multilingual interactions: among settlers; between competing colonies; between colonists and Indigenous communities; between colonists and enslaved individuals; and in communication with European leadership. The research team consists of comprising the Principal Investigator (Alisa van de Haar), the PhD, and a Postdoctoral researcher who will join the project in September 2027. Through comparative analyses, this team will improve our understanding of intercontinental interactions, multilingual practices, and the broader mechanisms of power structures through the lens of language.

The PhD position
This doctoral research project will examine how communicative practices in early settlements in New Netherland, New France, New England, and Virginia reflected and shaped power dynamics. It will examine which choices were made with regard to communication and language in encounters within individual settlements (including enslaved inhabitants), between settlements and colonies, and in interactions with Indigenous populations. For each of these communications choices, its power implications will then be assessed. The research will focus on a selection of settlements, in the period 1604 to 1664. Rather than a linguistic study, the PhD project entails a historical analysis of the social implications of language choices. The final dissertation will offer new insights into the interplay between language strategies and power structures in and around the selected early settlements. Because of its comparative approach, it will shed new light on language practices related to French, Dutch, and English colonies, respectively.

Key responsibilities

• You will conduct research on communication and power in a selection of colonial settlements in seventeenth-century North America. Part of this research will take place in archives in the US and Canada;
• You will complete a PhD thesis (in English) within four years;
• You will contribute to the project’s collaborative database, and to a teaching package and museum exhibit related to the project;
• You will publish at least two (co-authored) articles in peer-reviewed journals or volumes, as well as blogs and videos for the project website;
• You will present papers at conferences, both in the Netherlands and internationally;
• You will participate in regular meetings of the project research group;
• You will participate in the training programme of the LUCAS Institute, the Institute for History, the Leiden Graduate School of Humanities, the Huizinga Institute (Netherlands Research School for Cultural History), and other relevant masterclasses, summer schools, seminars, workshops, and events;
• You will participate in the PhD community and the intellectual life of the LUCAS Institute and the Institute for History;
• Subject to progress and demand, you will do some teaching in the second and third year of your PhD project, in line with your expertise and prior experience.

Your profile

• You hold a ResMA/MRes or MA with a specialisation in early modern or colonial history, or languages;
• Your ResMA/MA should be awarded by time of appointment, with a grade of 8.0 or above on a ten-point scale (distinction or equivalent) for your thesis. If the MA thesis is not yet finished, we invite you to provide contact details for your supervisor in your application letter so we may consult with them on your progress;
• You are willing to work up to 2 months in archives and libraries in the US and Canada in year 1 and year 2 of the project, up to a total of 4 months for the duration of the project;
• You have well-developed research skills, including the ability to formulate creative research questions, descriptive and analytical skills, and a clear and persuasive style of writing;
• You have an interest in / affinity with colonial history and languages;
• You have experience with or are willing to learn about early modern archival sources;
• You have full professional working proficiency in English and Dutch (speaking, writing, reading);
• You are proficient in French. Full professional working proficiency in French is a bonus. Knowledge of Latin is also a bonus;
• You have proven time-management skills;
• You are a team player and independent thinker;
• You have the ability to finish the proposed PhD research in 4 years.

International candidates are encouraged to apply if they have full proficiency in Dutch but must be willing to relocate to the Netherlands for the duration of the project.

The organisation
The Faculty of Humanities at Leiden University is a unique international centre for the advanced study of languages, cultures, arts, and societies worldwide, in their historical contexts from prehistory to the present. Our faculty is home to more than 6,000 students and 800 staff members. For more information see: http://www.universiteitleiden.nl/.

Leiden University Centre for the Arts in Society (LUCAS) is one of the seven Academic Institutes of the Faculty of Humanities. The institute hosts a range of academic disciplines, clustered around a key research theme: the relationships between the arts and society. Our members study cultural production over the course of two millennia, from classical antiquity to our contemporary world, and teach in programmes ranging from Classics and Book History to Modern Literature, International Studies and Art History. Strengthened by our diversity, LUCAS members are uniquely placed to study the broad concept of the arts, with its rapidly changing ideas, aesthetics, and theories of cultural production. Through research, teaching and outreach, the Institute aims to deepen our understanding, both inside and outside academia, of the cognitive, historical, cultural, creative, and social aspects of human life.

As an academic community, we strive to create an open and welcoming atmosphere, stimulating everyone to get involved and contribute, and connecting scholars from different fields and backgrounds.

Terms and conditions
PhD project, 4 years (1.0 FTE, 38 hrs per week; alternatively, the position can be 0.8 FTE for 5 years), starting date 1 September 2026. Initially the employee will receive a 14-month contract, with extension for the following 34 months on condition of a positive evaluation. The appointment must lead to the completion of a PhD thesis. Salary range from € 3.089 gross per month in the first year for a fulltime appointment – € 3.881 in the fourth year (pay scale for PhDs, in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities).
Leiden University offers an attractive benefits package with additional holiday (8%) and end-of-year bonuses (8.3%), training and career development. Our individual choices model gives you some freedom to assemble your own set of terms and conditions. Candidates from outside the Netherlands may be eligible for a substantial tax break. For more information, see http://www.workingat.leiden.edu/.

Diversity & inclusion
Fostering an inclusive community is a central element of the values and vision of Leiden University. Leiden University is committed to becoming an inclusive community which enables all students and staff to feel valued and respected and to develop their full potential. Diversity in experiences and perspectives enriches our teaching and strengthens our research. High quality teaching and research is inclusive.

Information
Enquiries can be made to the PI of the project, dr. Alisa van de Haar (a.d.m.van.de.haar@hum.leidenuniv.nl). Questions about the procedure can be directed to Nina Schat (im-lucas@hum.leidenuniv.nl). Information about LUCAS can be found at http://www.universiteitleiden.nl/geesteswetenschappen/centre-for-the-arts-in-society and about Leiden University at http://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en.

Applications
Please submit your application via the online recruitment system, via the blue button at the top of this page, latest 15 March 2026. Applications received via e-mail will not be taken into consideration. Your application should include:

• Letter of application in which you formulate your interest in the PhD project and explain why you are an appropriate candidate for the position;
• Your CV, listing education and relevant employment history, and any other academic achievements (conference presentations, publications, organization of events, etc.);
• Names, positions and contact information for two referees (no reference letters); please list these on your CV rather than filling them out separately in the system;
• A copy of your MA-thesis or a writing sample (if the MA-thesis is not yet finished);
• Copies of relevant course assessments (list of grades; certificates demonstrating language proficiency);
• A copy of your MA degree certificate or, if your MA-thesis is not yet submitted, contact details for your supervisor so we may consult them on your progress.

(Online) interviews will take place in the first half of April 2026.

Enquiries from agencies are not appreciated.