Vasilijus Safronovas

Vasilijus Safronovas, historian, Doctor of Humanities, and professor at Klaipėda University, studied history at the same university from 2002 to 2007. In 2011, he defended his PhD thesis, the Competition of Identity Ideologies in a City of South-Eastern Baltic Sea Region: The Case-Study of Klaipėda in the 20th Century. Since 2018, V. Safronovas has been serving as Head of the Institute of Baltic Region History and Archaeology.

His research focuses on cultural and intellectual history, exploring how systems of meaning shape collective perceptions, memory, identity, and spatial concepts in Lithuania and former East Prussia region during the 19th and 20th centuries. He also studies memory cultures and the politics of memory in the Baltic Sea region. He also researches the cultural heritage and history of Klaipėda and East Prussia.

V. Safronovas is the author of several monographs, studies, syntheses, and historical source publications that have been highly regarded by Lithuanian and German public associations and state institutions. He was also awarded the Best Book Prize in 2018 by the international research association, the Association for the Advancement of Baltic Studies.

He has led significant regeneration projects for the city of Klaipėda and conducted outstanding historical research on authentic cultural heritage sites. His expertise has supported the efforts of Klaipėda City Municipality, the Research Council of Lithuania, and various other institutions.

Photo from personal archive.