Barbarian of the Year competition
Contrary to the common understanding of a “barbarian” as a primitive and brutal individual, in archaeology the term carries no negative connotations. It was borrowed from Roman historians, who used it to describe peoples living outside the Roman Empire and not speaking Latin.
On 30 May 2025, archaeology students from across Poland will compete in the Barbarian of the Year tournament, held at the Institute of Archaeology of the University of Wrocław. During 15-minute presentations, participants will showcase their interests related to the history of European and African regions that were not directly under Roman control. Following this, they will take part in the final round – a quiz on Barbaricum archaeology, conducted in the format of the game show One of Ten.
The event will be opened by an introductory lecture from dr Anna Józefowska-Domańska of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology at the Polish Academy of Sciences.
The aim of the competition is to foster connections among archaeology students. Participants will represent numerous Polish universities, including those in Wrocław, Warsaw, Kraków, and Lublin. The event is organised by Vice-Rector for Research prof. Artur Błażejewski, Deputy Director for Teaching at the Institute of Archaeology dr Marcin Bohr, Mr Mateusz Matula – winner of the first Barbarian of the Year competition – as well as prof. Błażejewski’s PhD candidates and students from the Barbaricum research society.
The competition will take place on 30 May 2025 at the UWr Institute of Archaeology, ul. Szewska 48, Room 202. The event will begin at 10:00 a.m.
Admission is free – all are warmly invited to attend!
Date of publication: 27.05.2025
Added by: EJK
