The Netherlands Institute in Turkey is a research center dedicated to the study of Turkey and surrounding regions through the ages. It conducts historical and archaeological research, and aims to support studies in the humanities and social sciences that have a bearing on Turkey, by scholars as well as students, from the Netherlands and other countries. The NIT was founded in 1958 as a subsidiary institute of the Netherlands Institute for the Near East (NINO), located in Leiden, the Netherlands. From the late 1970s onwards, the NIT has been actively involved in archaeological excavation projects in Turkey. Its well equipped scientific library has served several generations of students and researchers and continues to serve the scholarly community in Istanbul. The NIT currently conducts and hosts long-term research projects, in archaeology, architectural history and heritage studies. It organizes conferences, lectures and workshops, and initiates and coordinates courses for university students.