Eeva
Nikkilä
Areas of expertise
Biography
I defended my thesis in October 2024 in which I explored Finnish pig farming, piggeries, and pigs from the early 1900s to the 1930s. My general interests include animal history and historical animals' experiences, as well as the development of suitable methods for investigating their experiences.
In 2019 and 2020, I was a project researcher in the project Culture of Unsustainability (Research Council of Finland, 2019-2023), which focused on the history of industrial production of animals and animal-based products in Finland.
I have been a board member of the Finnish Society for Human-Animal Studies since 2023.
My post doc research is currently focused on swine diseases in Finland (c. 1920s–1930s), but I have also written about the role of nature in Finnish animal production system in the early 1900s.
Teaching
Individual lectures on animal history and the organization of two tutorial courses for master's students in European and World History (2022 and 2023).
Research
My research has focused on the relationships between farm animals and farmers in Finland in the late 1800s, as well as the development of modern piggeries and pig farming from the early 1900s onwards. I have explored pigs' experiences and the spatial dimensions of pig farming in the 20th century. My research interests include the history of animal health under different management practices, as well as nonhuman reproduction and parenting in human-built settings.