Establishment of the International Institute of Sociology (IIS)

Institut International de Sociologie, also known as the International Institute of Sociology, founded in 1893 in Paris, is the oldest worldwide sociological association which is the predecessor of the International Sociological Association. Institut International De Sociologie and Révue internationale de sociologie were established by French citizen René Worms. It is a body of individuals from different countries and not an organization of country-level associations.

The inaugural Congress of the IIS was held at the Society of Anthropology building in Paris. R. Worms defined the Institute’s sociology perspective at the Congress. R. Worms said at the Congress that the purpose of sociology is to examine the social world as it is.

Prominent sociologists who were members of the IIS

1. Thorstein Veblen
2. Sidney Webb
3. Eliezer Ben-Rafael
4. Georg Simmel
5. Theodor Geiger
6. Lujo Brentano
7. Ludwig Gumplowicz
8. Gabriel Tarde
9. Karl Mannheim
10. Franz Boas
11. Florian Znaniecki
12. Roger Bastide
13. Lester F. Ward
14. Max Weber
15. Werner Sombart
16. Gustave Le Bon
17. Pitirim Sorokin
18. William F. Ogburn
19. Ferdinand Tonnies

IIS Publication

IIS published the Annals of the International Institute of Sociology in 1895.

International Institute of Sociology Congress

Congress location year-wise since 1989

29th IIS World Congress

• Year: 1989
• Location: Rome, Italy

30th IIS World Congress 

• Year:1991
• Location: Kobe, Japan

31st IIS World Congress

• Year: 1993
• Location: Paris, France

32nd IIS World Congress 

• Year: 1995
• Location: Trieste, Italy

33rd IIS World Congress 

• Year: 1997
• Location: Köln, Germany

34th IIS World Congress 

• Year: 1999: 
• Location: Tel Aviv, Israel

35th IIS World Congress 

• Year: 2001 
• Location: Kraków, Poland

36th IIS World Congress 

• Year: 2004
• Location: Beijing, China

37th IIS World Congress

• Year: 2005
• Location: Stockholm, Sweden

38th IIS World Congress 

• Year:2008 
• Location: Budapest, Hungary

39th IIS World Congress 

• Year: 2009
• Location: Yerevan, Armenia

40th IIS World Congress 

• Year: 2012
• Location: Delhi, India

41st IIS World Congress 

• Year: 2013
• Location: Uppsala, Sweden

42nd World Congress of the IIS

• Year: 2018
• Location: Johannesburg, South Africa
• Theme: “The Social Sciences, New Conservatisms, and New Radicalisms.”

IIS secretariat

The secretariat of the IIS is at the Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study, Sweden.

Membership in the International Institute of Sociology

According to the constitutional framework of IIS, membership is open to anyone who has paid the required fees.