medieval

Human-Machine interfacing in Western and Global Literature and Media (abstracts and proposals only)

updated: 
Tuesday, July 14, 2026 - 5:58pm
Nizar Zouidi/University of Gafsa
deadline for submissions: 
Monday, August 10, 2026

Human machine interfacing can be as simple as pressing a button or as complex and entangled (also entangling) as inserting a brain chip into the skull. science fiction. Humans with implants, prosthetic and hybrid humans with electronic and mechanical extensions are yet another level are no longer science fiction.  Yet, human-machine interfacing has started long before the invention of these technologies. Machines did communicate with us and tell us about themselves even before chatbots were invented. The clanking of a hammer on the anvil tells us that it is old and dull. The whistle of a microwave tells us that dinner is ready. The process of interfacing is not a one-way process. Through it, humans also communicate with the machine.

Medievalisms in Times of (mis)information

updated: 
Tuesday, July 14, 2026 - 1:49pm
International Society for the Study of Medievalisms
deadline for submissions: 
Wednesday, September 30, 2026

 

In 1996, Carl Sagan warned us of a time when people would lose their ability to question, “when awesome technological powers are in the hands of a very few . . . when, clutching our crystals and nervously consulting our horoscopes, our critical faculties in decline, unable to distinguish between what feels good and what’s true, we slide, almost without noticing, back into superstition and darkness.” Maybe Mr Sagan was somewhat pessimistic when writing The Demon-Haunted World. But then again, in times of conspiracy theories, Ancient Aliens, Antivaxxers, and Holocaust Deniers, the Age of Information appears just as capable of spreading dangerous frauds and charlatans as it is of disseminating reliable scholarship.

Death and Desire in Devotional Literature (ICMS Kalamzoo 2027)

updated: 
Monday, July 13, 2026 - 2:01pm
Ryanne Berry, Cornell University
deadline for submissions: 
Tuesday, September 15, 2026

CfP: Death and Desire in Devotional Literature

International Congress on Medieval Studies 2027, Kalamazoo MI May 13-15, 2027

The Literary Communities of Old Norse and Icelandic Romance

updated: 
Monday, July 13, 2026 - 6:31am
Mary Catherine O'Connor (University of Oxford) and Natalie Hopwood (University of Leeds)
deadline for submissions: 
Friday, September 18, 2026

To be held at the Leeds International Medieval Congress 2027 (5-8th July):

The Long Middle Ages Autumn 2026

updated: 
Monday, July 13, 2026 - 4:40am
Natalie Hopwood and Saaleha Iqbal / Institute for Medieval Studies, University of Leeds
deadline for submissions: 
Monday, August 17, 2026

We are excited to announce that the Long Middle Ages, a seminar series for postgraduate students and early career researchers working on the Late Antique, Medieval, and Early Modern Periods, will be returning for a second series in Autumn 2026!

We welcome submissions of 30 minute papers from postgraduates and early career researchers working in any discipline and on any topic related to the late antique, medieval and early modern periods. Papers will be followed by time for questions and further discussion.

Seminars will commence in October 2026 and run on a fortnightly basis until mid-December.

The Inked Body: Medieval Tattoos, Tattoo Archaeology, and Cultures of Body Modification

updated: 
Sunday, July 12, 2026 - 7:45pm
ICMS - 62nd International Congress on Medieval Studies (May 13 - 15, 2027)
deadline for submissions: 
Tuesday, September 15, 2026

Tattooing, a form of bodily modification, has existed as a global phenomenon for centuries, persevering within the distant and near past alike. Yet, only recently have these images embedded in flesh been subjected to thorough scholarly inquiry. This panel invites papers that examine a wide range of issues pertaining to medieval tattoos, including practices of tattooing during the global Middle Ages, recent advances in tattoo archaeology, and modern tattoos portraying medieval themes. Scholars exploring the misuse (and abuse) of medieval images and symbols for contemporary tattoos are especially encouraged to apply. This session allows for both in-person and virtual presentations. 

Jewish Studies and Beyond Boundaries and Silos: Toward Interconnection and Collaboration

updated: 
Sunday, July 12, 2026 - 2:52pm
American Academy of Religion - Western Region
deadline for submissions: 
Thursday, October 15, 2026

About the Conference
In light of our deeply polarized times, the American Academy of Religion, Western Region (AAR/WR) invites scholars, practitioners, educators, and community leaders to submit proposals for its Annual Conference. This year's theme is Moving Beyond Boundaries and Silos Toward Interconnection. It reflects AAR/WR's foundational commitment to inter-religious, inter-disciplinary, and inter-generational dialogue.
 

Rethinking Ecotheory (1): Disentangling Ecocriticism // Rethinking Ecotheory (2): Disappointing Ecocriticisms (ICMS 2027)

updated: 
Sunday, July 12, 2026 - 11:26am
Medieval Ecocriticisms
deadline for submissions: 
Tuesday, September 15, 2026

This CfP contains two individual sessions grouped under the rubric 'Rethinking Ecotheory' for the 62nd International Congress on Medieval Studies. Please see information for both sessions and separate links to apply below! Both sessions are sponsored by Medieval Ecocriticisms. Abstracts for both sessions are due by September 15th, 2026. Please contact the organizers Hunter (hap48@cornell.edu) and Basil (basil.price@oneonta.edu) with any questions.

 

Overview

Kings and Governance in the Brut Tradition (ICMS 9/15; 5-13-15, 2027)

updated: 
Thursday, July 9, 2026 - 9:29pm
Society for International Brut Studies
deadline for submissions: 
Tuesday, September 15, 2026

Building upon scholarly discussions of royal rule and power, this session seeks papers that examine how prose and verse Brut chronicles engage with the mechanisms of rule, including law, institutional politics, warfare, diplomacy, and peacemaking. We particularly welcome studies that ground these representations in historical contexts: Layamon's portrayal of rulers against the backdrop of the deteriorating Angevin dynasty or the prose Brut’s kings read through the lens of the Wars of the Roses and the loss of English territories in France.

History and Violence in the Brut Tradition (ICMS 9/15; 5-13-15, 2027)

updated: 
Thursday, July 9, 2026 - 9:23pm
Society for International Brut Studies
deadline for submissions: 
Tuesday, September 15, 2026

This session extends scholarly conversations on how violence operates in the corpus of poetic and prose Brut texts. We welcome papers exploring violence as a mechanism for securing and projecting political power, as both a destructive force and a tool for empowerment. We also welcome investigations of poetic and rhetorical violence—including on how the translation and redaction of historical texts function as symbolic conquests—and intersections of violence and gender. Suggested topics include: the aesthetics and rhetoric of warfare, conquest, and displacement; gendered dynamics of violence, captivity, and resistance; and the role of environmental devastation (fire, plague) in historiography.

CFP for upcoming volume of Anglica Wratislaviensia

updated: 
Tuesday, July 7, 2026 - 7:03am
Anglica Wratislaviensia of University of Wrocław
deadline for submissions: 
Sunday, April 25, 2027

Anglica Wratislaviensia 65.2/2027

Anglica Wratislaviensia invites scholarly submissions for its forthcoming issue, which focuses on Anglophone literary and cultural studies and related interdisciplinary fields. While the journal's scope encompasses linguistics, translation studies, and language teaching methodology, this issue welcomes contributions in literary and cultural studies specifically. We seek rigorous, critically engaged work that brings together diverse critical traditions and perspectives from around the world. Comparative and methodologically innovative contributions are particularly welcome.

Submission Guidelines

Peace, Repair, and Reconciliation in Medieval Texts (ICMS, Virtual panel)

updated: 
Saturday, July 4, 2026 - 12:05pm
ICMS - 62nd International Congress on Medieval Studies (May 13 - 15, 2027)
deadline for submissions: 
Tuesday, September 15, 2026

How do medieval texts and artistic traditions conceptualize peace, forgiveness, mediation, and reconciliation? This virtual session invites papers exploring the representation of conflict resolution across literary, visual, religious, legal, and historical materials from the medieval world.

Contributions may examine emotional, political, spiritual, or communal dimensions of reconciliation, as well as tensions between violence and peace-making in narrative and artistic forms. Comparative and interdisciplinary approaches are especially welcome.

Imagining the Global Past: Antiquities, Early Modernities, and the Humanities Today (Research Symposium, May 17–18, 2027)

updated: 
Saturday, July 4, 2026 - 3:41am
Rhema Hokama / University of Washington
deadline for submissions: 
Thursday, October 1, 2026

Call for Papers

Imagining the Global Past:
Antiquities, Early Modernities, and the Humanities Today

Research Symposium, May 17–18, 2027

University of Washington Division of the Humanities

Keynote Speakers: Russ Leo (Princeton, English Literature) and Andrew Hui (National University of Singapore, Comparative Literature and Sinology)

Organizer: Rhema Hokama (University of Washington, English Literature and Religious Studies)

Reading Chaucer outside the Anglophone World

updated: 
Sunday, June 28, 2026 - 8:54am
Sophia Yashih Liu / National Taiwan University
deadline for submissions: 
Tuesday, June 30, 2026

Reading Chaucer outside the Anglophone World: Receptions, Translations, and Traditions
Date: March 12–13, 2027
Venue: National Taiwan University, Taiwan

Conference website: https://readingchaucer.com/

 

Translating Emotions in Medieval Europe: Modes, Models, and Cultural Strategies

updated: 
Thursday, June 25, 2026 - 3:09am
The Medieval Translator / University of Trento, Italy
deadline for submissions: 
Wednesday, September 30, 2026

Translating Emotions in Medieval Europe: Modes, Models, and Cultural Strategies

 

In recent decades, the upsurge of emotion studies within the field of Medieval Studies has contributed to reshaping its borders, revealing that medieval affectivity is a dynamic cultural construct that invites cross-cultural and comparative approaches. At the same time, translation in the Middle Ages was rarely a literal, word-for-word process; rather, it functioned as an act of cultural adaptation, political appropriation, and linguistic innovation.

Literary Reception and Human Creativity in the Age of AI

updated: 
Friday, June 12, 2026 - 10:23am
Asya Sigelman/Bryn Mawr College
deadline for submissions: 
Thursday, October 1, 2026

Call for Papers: Literary Reception and Human Creativity in the Age of AI
Bryn Mawr College, April 16–17, 2027

Co-organizers: Asya Sigelman (Classics) and Margaret Strair (German Studies)

Keynote speaker: Barbara Graziosi (Princeton University)

 

The rapid integration of generative AI in everyday life brings renewed urgency to fundamental questions about human creativity: what constitutes the human act of writing, and how does human literary production differ from that of large language models (LLMs) — algorithms trained on vast textual corpora to predict and generate language?

 

British Literature and Culture to 1700 (PAMLA Session)

updated: 
Friday, June 5, 2026 - 11:03pm
Pacific Ancient and Modern Language Association (PAMLA)
deadline for submissions: 
Tuesday, June 30, 2026

CONFERENCE

2026 PAMLA Conference, taking place November 12–15 at the Hyatt Regency Seattle

SESSION/PANEL ABSTRACT

Call for Cunterbury: Chaucer Themed Podcast Seeking Guest Co-Hosts for Canterbury Tales

updated: 
Friday, May 29, 2026 - 8:25pm
Cunterbury Collective
deadline for submissions: 
Thursday, December 31, 2026

 

Cunterbury is a scholarly arts & comedy podcast hosted by three Gen Z academics — A.J. Scott, Alice Fulmer-Zelinka and Shannen Escote — exploring the major works of Geoffrey Chaucer and friends, starting with The Canterbury Tales. In our first season, we are providing witty commentary and voices to discuss the Tales and their pilgrims like you’ve never heard them before. 

Perspective: Viewpoints, Schemas, and Visions

updated: 
Tuesday, May 26, 2026 - 1:34pm
University of British Columbia 49th Annual Graduate Art History Symposium
deadline for submissions: 
Wednesday, June 10, 2026

The committee for the 49th annual UBC AHVA Graduate Symposium invites graduate students to submit abstracts that reflect upon, investigate, or challenge the theme of “perspective,” across all of its diverse meanings. We will be joined by Dr. Amy Knight Powell, Chair of the Art History Department at the University of Southern California, as our keynote speaker.

Roundtable: The Renaissance Self (Renaissance Society of America, Philadelphia, March 11-13, 2027)

updated: 
Saturday, May 23, 2026 - 6:19pm
Hayley Cotter, University of Massachusetts Amherst
deadline for submissions: 
Saturday, June 20, 2026

This roundtable invites speakers to address any aspect of the so-called Renaissance self. Borrowing from Jan Goldstein, the cultural historian Elwin Hofman describes the self as “individuated mental stuff.” How might this definition inform our understanding of conceptions of the self that developed during the early modern period? What was the relationship between selfhood, self-consciousness, and identity? What kinds of evidence—artistic, confessional, visual, literary, legal, philosophical, textual, or medical—allow us to approach this question? What methodologies offer the most promise? Given the paradoxical nature of the self, both historically and in our own moment, how might it be treated as a proper object of study?

Enprynted by Me: Caxton at Westminster

updated: 
Friday, May 15, 2026 - 11:49am
Shaw Worth / All Souls College, University of Oxford
deadline for submissions: 
Wednesday, June 10, 2026

This year is the 550th anniversary of William Caxton’s establishment of the first printing press in England in 1476. We invite papers for a two-day conference on Caxton’s career, texts, and contexts. Abstracts of up to 300 words to be sent to shaw.worth@all-souls.ox.ac.uk and jacob.ridley@ell.ox.ac.uk by 10 June 2026.

Errant: Issue Five

updated: 
Friday, May 15, 2026 - 11:37am
Sameeya Maqbool and Lucie Staniek / Lancaster University
deadline for submissions: 
Tuesday, June 30, 2026

“A book must be the axe for the frozen sea within us.”

– Franz Kafka, letter to Oskar Pollak, 27th January 1904

We are delighted to announce that Errant is now open for submissions to its fifth issue.

Manuscripts and Textual Criticism

updated: 
Thursday, May 7, 2026 - 1:34pm
Pacific Ancient and Modern Language Association
deadline for submissions: 
Monday, May 25, 2026

Manuscripts and Textual Criticism (Panel / In-Person)Presiding Officer: Kathryn Vulic (Western Washington University)

Geomythology

updated: 
Thursday, May 7, 2026 - 12:42pm
Pacific Ancient and Modern Language Association
deadline for submissions: 
Monday, May 25, 2026

Geomythology is an emerging field invented by the geoscientist Dorothy Vitaliano in 1968 but has ancient roots in figures such as the mythographer Euhemerus (3rd century B.C.) as well as modern predecessors like Robert Hooke (1635-1703), the “English Leonardo,” and Georges Cuvier (1769-1832), the father of modern paleontology. It has been featured in recent panels at literary and scientific conferences. Geomythology seeks to discover proto-scientific information in ancient and medieval myths, legends, and tales. Often, this information is encoded in stories originally told by eyewitnesses to make sense of traumatic events such as volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and tsunamis.

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