// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhat did the Institute of History say to the future? You're a chapter ahead.
 Seal of the PUCV History Institute | |
| Type | Institute |
|---|---|
| Established | 1953 |
| Director | PhD David Aceituno |
| Students | 300 |
| Location | , |
| Colors | Black & white |
| Website | www.ihistoriapucv.cl (in Spanish) |
 | |
The Institute of History of the Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso is a Chilean academic unit of the Faculty of Philosophy and Education of the Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso (PUCV). It is devoted to the training of secondary-school teachers and researchers in the fields of history, geography, and the social sciences.
The Institute traces its origins to 1952, when the Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso established it alongside the School of English Pedagogy.[1] The historian Héctor Herrera Cajas, who had been educated at the University of Chile, was recruited to assist in organising the School of History. In 1957, the Superior Council approved the establishment of the Crescente Errázuriz Institute, devoted to research in ecclesiastical history, with Guillermo Monckeberg serving as its first director.[2]
The university reform undertaken at PUCV between 1967 and 1969 resulted in the abolition of the former faculties, and the School of History and Social Sciences consequently became an autonomous academic unit under the name Institute of History and Geography.[3]
It comprised separate departments of History and Geography. A decree issued by the Rector's Office on 25 July 1972 subsequently divided the Institute of History and Geography into two independent academic units.[3]
In 1983, the university authorised the creation of a master's programme in History. The programme is also undertaken by graduates from disciplines such as law, philosophy, and literature. It is organised around three principal areas of study: Economic and Social History, Political History, and Cultural History. Students select one of these areas after completing their first semester.[3]
The Institute also offers a doctoral programme in History, intended to train "professionals capable of producing new historiographical knowledge and possessing theoretical and methodological foundations both within the discipline and in interdisciplinary research".[3]
Since 1985, the Institute has been housed in the Valle Palace in Viña del Mar.[3]
History
[edit]Beginnings
[edit]In 1952, rector Jorge González Förster, S.J., established the School of History and Geography. Under the direction of the Jesuit priest Raúl Montes and with a small teaching staff, the newly established school enrolled an initial cohort of 30 students despite lacking a specialised library.[4] At the time, PUCV placed greater emphasis on technical and commercial professional education than on the humanities, although this began to change from the late 1940s onwards.[3]
The School began to consolidate its organisation in 1955, when it was established at the university's Central Campus in Valparaíso. Héctor Herrera Cajas, a historian educated at the University of Chile, played a central role in its early development and was appointed director.[3]
The School's student association was also established in 1955. The following year saw the creation of the Teaching Council and a system of teaching assistants, supported by the consolidation of a permanent academic staff.[3]
Among its early academics were Romolo Trebbi, María Teresa Cobos, and María Eugenia del Valle. Other scholars subsequently taught at the School on a temporary basis, including future recipients of the National History Award Mario Góngora (1976) and Gabriel Salazar (2006), both of whom taught there during the 1960s.[4]
Between 1967 and 1969, the university underwent the university reform movement, which led to the abolition of its faculties and the transformation of the School of History into an independent academic unit. It subsequently became known as the Institute of History and Geography.[3]
The Institute was formally established on 13 November 1969 and was divided into separate departments of History and Geography. On 25 July 1972, the two departments were separated, with each becoming an autonomous academic unit.[4]
Institute of History, 1972–present
[edit]The university reform process came to an abrupt end following the 1973 Chilean coup d'état, after which university authorities began to be appointed under Pinochet regime.[3]
In 1976, the university's faculties were reorganised and the Institute of History was reincorporated into the Faculty of Philosophy and Education. During this period, academic staff were increasingly required to hold postgraduate qualifications, either at the master's or doctoral level.[4]
The Institute subsequently consolidated a number of academic conferences and outreach activities, including the Chilean History Conferences, the International Conferences on the European and American Baroque, the Modern History Conferences, the Medieval History Conferences, and the Urban History Conferences. It also established the Roman Studies Week, which became the Institute's principal international academic seminar and one of the leading conferences devoted to Roman studies in Latin America.[4]
In 1983, the Institute established its own master's programme, focusing on economic and social history, politics and international relations, and art and culture.
In 2008, Institute alumnus and academic Eduardo Cavieres received the National History Award, becoming the first historian from outside the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile and the University of Chile to receive the distinction.[5] Following Cavieres's death in 2021, the Institute established a chair in his honour, through which students and faculty members present their research at monthly sessions.[6]
Directors
[edit]
| Director | Term |
|---|---|
| Raúl Montes Ugarte, S.J. | 1952–1955 |
| Héctor Herrera Cajas | 1955–1966 |
| Marco Antonio Huesbe | 1966–1970 |
| Santiago Lorenzo | 1970–1975 |
| Joaquín Fermandois | 1975–1978 |
| Romolo Trebbi | 1978–1980 |
| Santiago Lorenzo | 1980–1983 |
| Héctor Herrera Cajas | 1983–1986 |
| Baldomero Estrada[7] | 1986–1990 |
| Eduardo Cavieres | 1990–1993 |
| Santiago Lorenzo | 1993–1999 |
| Raúl Buono-Core | 1999–2008 |
| Eduardo Araya | 2008–2011 |
| Mauricio Molina | 2011–2017 |
| Ricardo Iglesias | 2017–2026 |
| David Aceituno | 2026–present |
References
[edit]- ↑ Buono-Core 2004, p. 70.
- ↑ Superior Council. Minutes of the University Council meeting. Valparaíso, 1 July 1957. The Crescente Errázuriz Institute devoted itself to the study of historical parish registers from Melipilla, La Ligua, Petorca, Casablanca, La Matriz de Valparaíso, Calbuco, Puerto Montt, La Unión, Tacna, and Arica. By 1960, work on the Petorca registers was nearing completion.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Buono-Core 2004.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Síntesis histórica
- ↑ "Premio Nacional de Historia 2008 al académico de la Universidad de Chile Eduardo Cavieres". University of Chile (in Spanish). 26 August 2008. Retrieved 10 March 2026.
- ↑ "Instituto de Historia PUCV tendrá nueva Cátedra: "Eduardo Cavieres Figueroa"". Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso (in Spanish). 25 May 2022. Retrieved 10 March 2026.
- ↑ Baldomero Estrada, Discurso de Inaguración de la XII Semana de Estudios Romanos, Semanas de Estudios Romanos, Vol. V, pp. 15–18 (1989).
Further reading
[edit]- Buono-Core Varas, Raúl (2004). Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso: Desde su fundación hasta la reforma 1928–1973. Un espíritu, una identidad. Tomo I. Ediciones Universitarias de Valparaíso.
- Marín, José; Pezoa, Álvaro; Widow, José Luis (2009). Un Magisterio Vital: Historia, Educación y Cultura. Homenaje a Héctor Herrera Cajas. Editorial Universitaria.