Rastislava Stoličná

Rastislava Stoličná is a Professor at the Institute of Ethnology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences. She has been a key figure in Slovak ethnology since joining the institute in 1972 and currently chairs its Scientific Council. She also contributes to academic life as a pedagogical staff member at the Faculty of Ethnology and Pedagogical Education, Silesian University in Cieszyn, Poland.

Her research centers on ethnology, with a deep focus on culinary culture, ethnocartography, and the traditional culture of Slovak minorities in Central and Southern Europe. Her work explores how food, rituals, and spatial representations shape cultural identity and heritage.

The 15 most recent articles reflect a consistent and evolving research trajectory in culinary ethnology, particularly examining the role of food in national and ethnic identity, the transformation of dietary practices during the socialist era in Slovakia, and the cartographic documentation of folk culture. Her publications span topics from historical nutrition and plant-based diets of ancestors to agrotourism and the symbolic meaning of national cuisine in Central Europe, demonstrating a methodological strength in ethnographic and ethnocartographic analysis.

• National Prize of the Slovak Republic (1991)
• Prize of the Literary Fund (1995, 2001)
• International Prize G. Pitre – S. Marino (1995)
• SAV Prize for Scientific-Research Activity (1995, 2001)
• Ľudovít Štúr Honorary Plaque (2008)
• SAV Prize for Science Popularization (2013)

Professor Stoličná has supervised numerous PhD students and serves on multiple doctoral committees, including those at Comenius University in Bratislava and Nitra. She leads and participates in major scientific projects funded by VEGA and international institutions, focusing on collective identities, socio-cultural transformations, and cultural heritage. Her editorial roles include membership on the boards of journals such as Ethnologia Europea Centralis and Studia etnologiczne i anthropologiczne. She is also active in national and international scientific councils and commissions related to cultural heritage and ethnology.

She leads research teams focused on traditional Slovak minority cultures and the ethnographic atlas project, fostering collaboration across Central Europe. Her work continues to influence both academic discourse and public understanding of Slovak cultural identity.