14 Oct

Posted at 13:52h in Calls

What happens when stories are translated into new languages? Is translating a narrative different from translating any other type of discourse? What techniques do medieval translators use to render narratives in different languages or linguistic registers? How does the transfer affect things like the narrative structure, the characters, and the spatial setting? What does such a transfer mean for the understanding of a story? Do narrative translations overcome the difference between languages or do they produce and reinforce it by construing languages as enclosed units? And how can we, as modern scholars, approach these issues from a well-informed and theorized position?

While narratology has gained ground in the study of medieval literature over the past decades, the combination of narratology and translation studies is still fairly unexplored. And yet, medieval texts are brimming with exciting examples of translation strategies that greatly affect both content and narrative form, ranging from ‘Translation Rigidly Conceived’ to creative adaptations and rewritings. Simultaneously, a curious affinity seems to exist between medieval translation practices and postmodern translation theory. Medieval practices and postmodern theory both seem to embrace the creative potential of translation, accept its non-linear and prismatic itineraries, defy the notions of single authoritative versions, and tolerate hybridity and ambiguity.     

At this summer school, instead of dissecting the details of texts translated between specific languages, we rather wish to offer theoretical frameworks and methodological tools for working with translational material that can be considered from any narratological angle. A variety of medieval languages will be included, but the reading materials will be made available in English for the convenience of the participants. Since written translation was just one of the vehicles for traveling stories, its relation to other means of transport, such as images or objects, will also be considered.

The program will include keynote lectures by renowned scholars of narrative and translation, ambulatory workshops on pre-circulated medieval and theoretical texts, and doctoral thesis seminars where participants will receive comments on their ongoing research from tutors and peers. Confirmed keynote lecturers include Matthew Reynolds, Ingela Nilsson and Emilie van Opstall. The workshop topics will include material and political aspects of translation, cultural adaptations, the figures of translators, self-narratives across linguistic traditions, decolonial considerations and digital methodologies.   

The summer school will take place at the Central European University in Vienna, 25–29 May 2026. 
Doctoral students of any level whose work involves translated narratives are encouraged to apply. Funding for travel and accommodation (5 nights) for up to twelve participants is available.

Applications should be submitted as a single PDF document and include:

  • A one-page CV.
  • A one-page letter of interest explaining the student’s engagement with the topics of the summer school.
  • A one-page thesis summary, specifying the materials, linguistic traditions and methodological approaches.
  • A letter of recommendation from a thesis advisor or equivalent.

Application deadline is 30 November 2025. The results will be announced in early January 2026.

Applications and queries should be sent by email to: milan.vukasinovic@lingfil.uu.se.

07 May

Posted at 12:00h in Calls

The Centre of Excellence for The World in the Viking Age (WIVA) is a collaborative, interdisciplinary meeting place for the study and wider communication of a defining episode in global history. If you work on a topic that would profit from and benefit such an environment and would like to work with the amazing Neil Price and his team, apply for one of their fellowships now. They offer vacancies for:

– Postdocs

– Guest researchers, spring 2026

– Guest researchers, autumn 2026

04 Mar

Posted at 15:44h in Calls

This hybrid, non-credit seminar introduces post-classical Greek book culture (4th–16th c. CE), literary scripts, textual transmission, and textual criticism. Hosted by the Gennadius Library with Dumbarton Oaks‘ support, it provides in-depth training in reading and dating Greek scripts and editing historical texts.

Taught by Dr. Stratis Papaioannou, the course is open to eight graduate students or recent Ph.D. holders and consists of eleven 2-hour and two 3-hour sessions. The first eight sessions run weekly online from November–December 2025, while the final five take place in Greece (January 26–30, 2026), including a visit to the Meteora Monasteries for hands-on manuscript study.

Participants must complete assigned manuscript readings, attend all sessions, deliver a 20-minute presentation on Greek textual transmission, and pass a final take-home exam on script identification, transcription, and text editing.

Graduate students and recent Ph.D. holders (within five years) in relevant fields such as Classics, History, Art History, and Religious Studies, from universities worldwide, are eligible to apply.

The program has no tuition fees, and all participants receive scholarships covering travel, accommodations in Greece, and the Meteora trip; lunches are included, but personal food expenses outside Athens are not covered.

The course does not grant academic credit or grades, but a certificate of successful completion is provided.

Applications must be submitted online by April 15, 2025, including a CV, statements of academic background and future plans, language proficiency, graduate transcripts, and two letters of recommendation.

Find more information and apply here.

29 Mar

Posted at 17:12h in Calls

The History of Science in the Medieval World (HSMW) summer school, organized by St. Cyril and St. Methodius University of Veliko Tarnovo, with Academic Theatre Ikaros, in cooperation with the International Summer Seminar in Bulgarian Language and Culture (University of Veliko Tarnovo), with the support of the Faculty of Slavic Studies, Sofia University is happy to announce its Second 2024 edition which will take place from 15 to 19 July 2024 in Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria. 

In its pilot 2022 edition, HSMW Summer School introduced the participants to the medieval epistemic fields (sciences) which study the natural world (the kosmos) as a space, namely geography, cosmography, and astronomy. In 2024, we shift the focus to the history of knowledge and the practitioners and their practices: from the geographers and the astronomers, the map and instrument makers, to the users of medieval herbals and the artisans preparing sgraffito pottery and enamel. 

The instructors include: Marie-Hélène Blanchet (CNRS, UMR 8167 Orient et Méditerranée, Monde byzantin); Chiara D’Agostini (Department of Culture and Language, University of Southern Denmark); Aneta Dimitrova (Faculty of Slavic Studies, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”); Stephanie Drew (Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York); Rossina Kostova (Department of Archaeology, Faculty of History, St Cyril and St Methodius University of Veliko Tarnovo); Divna Manolova (MSCA Paris Region Postdoctoral Fellow, Université PSL-Observatoire de Paris, SYRTE, CNRS); Angel Nikolov (Faculty of History, Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”); Shannon Steiner (Independent Researcher, Practicing Goldsmith).

The participants will acquire fundamental knowledge concerning the place and role of the sciences in the intellectual world of the Middle Ages. They will also develop an understanding of premodern science as a spectrum of disciplines wider than the late antique framework of the four mathematical sciences (arithmetic, music, geometry, and astronomy) and inclusive of all epistemic domains dedicated to the creation, preservation, and transfer of knowledge. The School relies on a discussion-based and experiential / experimental format. That is, the School includes workshops, which will guide the participants into the use of medieval scientific manuscripts, texts, and instruments, and will introduce them to tradition and modern practice of sgraffito ware production in the city of Veliko Tarnovo. The lectures will be conducted in a hybrid way, whereas the workshops will be in person.

Application Deadline: 29 April 2024  
In order to apply, please send a short bio and description of what motivates your application (maximum one page altogether). There is no need to submit your extended CV. Please indicate in your application whether you would like to attend the Summer School in person or online.
Please address your application materials and your informal inquiries to Dr Divna Manolova.

Available places: The School offers ten places for in-person participants wishing to attend both the lecture and workshop sessions. There is no limit for the number of online participants, but their registration is restricted solely to the lecture sessions. During the selection process, preference will be given to MA and PhD students, but researchers, writers, artists, and non-academic professionals with an interest in the Middle Ages and / or History of Science are also welcome to apply.

We cannot offer any financial support to cover travel and accommodation expenses. There is no participation fee.
The common discussion language of the School will be English. If the participants know a medieval scholarly language (for this edition: Latin, Greek and/or Old Church Slavonic), this would be an advantage, but it is not an essential requirement for participation.

31 Jan

Posted at 13:40h in Calls

The research project A Viking in the Sun: Harald Hardrada, the Mediterranean, and the Nordic World, between the late Viking Age and the Eve of the Crusades (University of Edinburgh) welcomes proposals for the project’s second symposium.

This symposium Women and Power explores how powerful women shaped Harald’s formative travels, from Ingegerd of Sweden in Kievan Rus’ to Empress Zoe of Byzantium and Rasad in Fatimid Egypt. Yet this symposium will also be an opportunity to develop a wide-raging discussion and comparison on the broad theme of women and power across the varied cultures with which Harald interacted.

Please submit proposals by 3 March 2024 to gianluca.raccagni@ed.ac.uk.