Estophilia

The term particularly refers to the activities of the Estophile Movement of the late 18th to early 19th century, when local Baltic German scholars began documenting and promoting Estonian culture and language.

Moreover, in the 18th century, many of the local educated and wealthy German-speakers took interest in, and began learning about, the Estonian language and culture, and in the process, contributing to the systematic understanding of it.

[5] Inspired by Herder's collection of European and Estonian folk songs, they came to view native folklore as natural expressions of truth and spontaneity.

As a result, they founded several scientific societies, published textbooks for schools, newspapers and literary works of considerable merit, such as the construction of the epic Kalevipoeg from folk sources.

While the significance of Estophiles has waned over the centuries, a number of people (Astrīde Ivaska, Seppo Kuusisto, Kazuto Matsumura and others) are still widely regarded as such.

The objective of the scholarship is to fund research and studies conducted in Estonia by academically advanced students interested in Estonian language and culture.