The groups of research are important tools to the activities performed by the PPGHIS. Those groups are led or formed by our faculty members and alumni and have the aim to elaborate, to put into operation and socialize the results obtained throughout the historical investigation performed under this programme. Therefore, the main groups in the master’s degree of Local and Regional History are described below.
1. Local and Regional History
This group is led by professor Wellington Castellucci and is currently formed by 14 faculty professors and 17 students and alumni from other projects and universities, for example PPGHIS/UNEB, UFRB, and UESB. The theoretical questions that motivates the group researches are mainly related to the multiple dimensions of historical experiences. In other words, their studies involve the immaterial and material culture. Which means that they evaluate ways to do religious manifestations, ways to resist to different historical subjects, considering specific timeframes and geographic regions without forgetting the issues of the contemporaneity. It is possible to highlight some of the objectives of these group: 1) to reinforce and stimulate the research lines in the Postgraduate Programme in Local and Regional History; 2) to contribute in the establishment of new thematic approaches that will add value to their studies without disrespecting the local and regional perspectives. Important to highlight that these studies are not only related to themes already mentioned, but also to work relations, to people’s imaginary background and to religious manifestations; 3) to create adequate conditions to build centres of memory and centres for documents preservation regarding the region of Recôncavo and the countryside of state of Bahia; 4) to provide a beneficial environment to the development of the historical research, that can involve faculty and students intending to pursue institutional support and sponsorship policies to shelter, and disclose the investigations performed by this group; 5) to increase the institutional dialogue pursuing the accomplishment of the policy of continuous intellectual improvement and updating of the faculty members and students.
2. History, Literature and Memory
Currently, this group is led by the professor Paulo Santos Silva and formed by 3 faculty members, 2 students and 1 alumni from PPGHIS. In general terms, this group has in their background the presentation of the following works: 1) communication session “History and Language Writings: journalism, literature and cinema” at the 2nd National Symposium of Cultural History (2004); 2) 1st Group Seminar with the theme “Crossed Narratives: memory and fiction at the institution of the past” (2007); 3) 2nd Group Seminar with the theme “Rebuilding Paths: biography, autobiography and self-writing” (2008); 4) 3rd Group Seminar with the theme “North Littoral Letters: retrieval and narratives”(2009); 5) 4th Group Seminar with the theme “Historical Romance and Memory: withdrawal and past narratives” (2010); 6) publication of the compilation “Retrieval and narratives: history, literature and memory” with six articles publish by the Quarteto Publisher, Salvador, 2010.
3. Oral History and Memory
This group is led by the professor Sara Oliveira and it is composed by faculty members from UNEB and 4 students of the PPGHIS. The principal aim of this group consists of analysing and debating some aspects of the State of Bahia’s history through the methodology of Oral History. In addition, it works towards the creation of an iconographic and sound archive from some cities of Bahia, including the Recôncavo and other regions of the state.
4. History of the Portuguese America
This group is led by the professor Suzana Severs and has the aim to promote the research related to the colonial history of Bahia. This research also focuses in the aspects regarding the “city of Bahia”, old way to name the city of Salvador, and the city’s reality concerning big themes like Church, local power, slavery and business. These studies are becoming really important as the modern historiography from the state focus in other historical periods. It is important to highlight that the captaincies and the other countryside regions that formed the current state of Bahia are not very studied, especially in their internal dynamics and their relation with the administrative-political centre of the Portuguese America. However, there are some incredibly rich sources of written documents produced during the colonial centuries in collections centres spread through those regions that needs to be catalogued, described and recognised in order to be understood from the historical perspective; which will allow the deepening and increase of the history of Bahia and compare it with the history of Brazil.
5. Study Group of the Present Time
The group of study of the Present Time from the Bahia State University (GET-UNEB) is led by the professor Cristina Monteiro de Andrada Luna and professor Priscila Gomes Correa was created in 2012 from the reunion of faculty members and researchers linked to different research lines, i.e.: dictatorial period, culture and politics in the Modern World, cinema and history and compared history of dictatorial periods. The group makes a parallel with the Master degree in Local and Regional History from UNEB, and create a space to debate, research and communication regarding themes related to Brazil, Latin America and the world through the study of their societies, institutions, politics and cultures, especially after the II World War. Therefore, the main objective is to contribute with the debate teams already existents in themes like, authoritarian regimes in Brazil, in Latin America and in the world, and also their re-democratization processes; State and its civil and military institutions in addition to their relation to art, culture and politics in the contemporaneity.
6. Firmina – Post Colonialism: Education, History, Culture and Affirmative Politics.
The group is led by the Professor Wilson Roberto de Mattos and was formed after the creation of actions of research, studies and activities from teaching apprenticeship that were developed by another group of study linked to the Postgraduation Program in Education and Contemporaneity at Bahia State University (UNEB). Those actions filled the requirements determined by the Federal Law 10639-03 that obligate the Elementary Schools to include the History of Africa and Afro-Brazilian Culture in their study program. Therefore, after these consolidated initial actions this group of research started to develop more systematic activities of research focusing the theme of the Affirmative Politics, and showing an especial concern about the access, performance and remain of black students in the higher education. Additionally, this group has been putting extra effort in research and reflections that guarantee the deepening of the knowledge towards the historical experiences of black population in Brazil, particularly, focusing the specific aspects neglected by the official historiography. From the methodologic and theoretical point of view, this group takes as a fundamental reference, the concepts characterized as post-colonialism studies. In that sense, the group tries to include the black populations in the historical scene, but not under the already established perspective of subordinate subjects of the history and as objects of study. The vision of this group is to review the black population roles in the history and put them as main figures. As a result, the darkness will be conceived as a resumption of the dignity denied by the colonialism, also putting forward the decolonization of the thinking aiming a new perspective of life, knowledge and experiences. The activities and productions of this research group are expected to contribute in expanding the knowledge about the dynamic of the Brazilian ethnical and racial hierarchies and relations. Nonetheless, with the production of these new knowledges it is also desired to develop novel educational methodologies, and to pursue grants that will help the production of the new study material oriented to the formation of teachers that will work in the elementary education.