Professor Dr Franz Krause

Thursday (October 16, 2025 – February 5, 2026) | 12.00 – 13.30 
Seminargebäude,  Room S 22

Water is essential not only for biological life, but also for social and cultural life. In a time of water crises - droughts, floods, thaw, privatisation, pollution and sea-level rise - this element has been thrust into the public spotlight. To avoid simplistic generalisations and problematic reductionisms in discussions of these crises, anthropological approaches to these issues are important. More generally, anthropological water research also helps to question specific Western assumptions about the stability of social life and material structures. This course explores classical and recent approaches to the role of water in human societies. We will discuss ethnographies that address water directly or indirectly - e.g. in the context of irrigation systems, flood disasters, drinking water supply, constructions of space and time, notions of purity and hygiene, and climate change. In addition to anthropological works, we will also peek into human geography and environmental history literature.

The overall aim of the course is to develop a social and cultural anthropology that can holistically analyse hydrological and social contexts. Through reading, lecture and discussion, we will work towards developing an understanding of water use, water distribution, wet ontologies and water symbolism that comprehends social relations and hydrological realities not only as intimately connected, but also as part of the same relational and hydrosocial world.

Further information for students of the University of Cologne: Klips