The Byzness, 19th January 2026
Oxford University Byzantine Society
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THE OXFORD UNIVERSITY BYZANTINE SOCIETY
The Byzness, 19th January 2026
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1. NEWS AND EVENTS
2. CALLS FOR PAPERS
3. JOBS AND SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
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1. NEWS AND EVENTS
Dear all,
My apologies for the delay on this week’s Byzness! I hope that everyone is ready for Hilary and feeling well-rested after the vacation.
As a reminder, the OUBS 28th International Graduate Conference, Decline and Flourish, is this term! We could not be more excited to meet all our speakers and attendees in Oxford at St. Peter’s College and online on February 28th and March 1st.
Over this term, the OUBS will be documenting some of our more exciting endeavours on our social media channels. If you don’t follow us yet, you can find us at the following handles:
Instagram: @ox_byz
Bluesky: @oxunibyzantinesoc.bsky.social
X/Twitter: @oxbyz (if you do follow us on X, we are transitioning over to Bluesky, so please do follow us there in the first instance)
All my very best,
Madeleine.
For those wishing to submit an event, call for papers, job or scholarship opportunity to the Byzness please send details to the committee at byzantin...@gmail.com indicating the relevant list for The Byzness our external to Oxford and year-round newsletter or The Byzantine Lists our Oxford-centered events and circulated only in term-time. Please keep listing brief and include all relevant information in the body of the notice. Outside of exceptional circumstances, we only share events once.
2. CALL FOR PAPERS
CfP: Summer Symposium in Oriental Christian & Armenian Studies 2026
It is with great pleasure that we announce the Call for Papers for the Summer Symposium in Oriental Christian & Armenian Studies 2026, which will take place on June 18–19, 2026, at the Department of Oriental Christian and Byzantine Studies and the MESROP Center for Armenian Studies, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (Germany).
Interested speakers are invited to submit their proposals in two copies, one including the title of your paper and an abstract of about 200 words, and one that contains, in addition, your name and academic affiliation, as applicable. Please send submissions to in...@mesrop.uni-halle.de by February 22, 2026. Applicants will be notified of the acceptance of their papers by mid-March 2026.
The Summer Symposium in Oriental Christian & Armenian Studies 2026 invites contributions that explore the cultural, religious, literary, social, political, historical, and contemporary connections between Europe and the Middle East, broadly conceived. Speakers may approach their topic from a variety of methodological perspectives. We explicitly welcome interdisciplinary contributions, for instance connecting Armenian Studies with Georgian Studies, Syriac Studies, Byzantine Studies, Arabic Studies, or others. Advanced scholars, young scholars, and emerging scholars are all welcome to submit proposals and participate. We strongly wish to encourage emerging scholars working towards degrees on the MA or PhD levels to present their original research.
Presentations may be delivered in German or English. Proposals for presentations in other languages are also welcome; however, an English or German version of the presentation must be submitted in advance of the conference.
Each presentation will be allocated 20 minutes. The program will be structured to allow ample time for in-depth discussion of individual papers.
Please reach out to us at in...@mesrop.uni-halle.de with any questions you may have.
Steering Committee: Péter Kiss, Dr. Ani Shahnazaryan, and Prof. Dr. Cornelia Horn
CfP: ‘Outsiders - Insiders’, Graduate Centre for Medieval Studies, University of Reading
Postgraduate Research Forum (hybrid), 2nd April 2025 This forum seeks to provide a supportive environment in which postgraduates can share ideas and get helpful feedback. Proposals are welcomed for 20-minute papers that explore the nuanced relationships between ‘Outsiders’ and ‘Insiders’ during the medieval period, which may include, but are not limited to:
Defining Boundaries:
- How were boundaries—geographical, social, and cultural constructed in medieval societies?
- Who were considered ‘insiders’ and who were relegated to the status of ‘outsiders’?
- What role did religion, ethnicity, and class play in shaping these distinctions?
Power and Exclusion:
- How did medieval institutions (such as the Church, feudal lords, and guilds) wield power over both insiders and outsiders?
- What mechanisms were used to exclude certain groups from participation in economic, political, or religious life?
- Were there instances of resistance or subversion by those on the margins?
Cultural Exchange and Hybridity:
- How did interactions between insiders and outsiders lead to cultural exchange, adaptation, and hybrid identities?
- What can we learn from the cross-cultural encounters between medieval Europeans, Byzantines, Arabs, and other groups?
- Did artistic, literary, or architectural expressions reflect these interactions?
Narratives of Otherness:
- How were outsiders portrayed in medieval chronicles, literature, and art?
- Were there attempts to challenge or subvert prevailing stereotypes?
- What can we glean from these narratives about societal attitudes towards difference?
Marginalized Voices:
- Who were the marginalized groups in medieval society (e.g., Jews, lepers, heretics, women)?
- How did they navigate their position as outsiders?
- Can we recover their voices and experiences from historical sources?
Please submit an abstract of up to 150 words and a short biography by 31st January 2025 to readin...@googlegroups.com. Please also provide your name, affiliation, contact information, and if you intend to present your paper either in-person or remotely.
CfP: 20th Annual MEMSA Conference: Connection, Conversation, Contention: Encounters in the Medieval and Early Modern World
13th and 14th July 2026, St John’s College, Durham University With Keynotes by Dr Natalie Goodison (Durham), Dr Lisa Kattenberg (Amsterdam) and Professor Stuart Carroll (York)
The Medieval and Early Modern Student Association (MEMSA) is delighted to present their 20th anniversary conference entitled: ‘Connection, conversation, contention: encounters in the Medieval and Early Modern World’. Just as MEMSA is an association that connects different people, all kinds of connections took shape in the Medieval and Early Modern period through different means, such as the founding and spreading of major religions like Christianity, Islam and Buddhism. However, with connection also comes contention, such as the Arabic conquests, the crusades and the colonial conquests. To investigate these interactions, the MEMSA conference committee invites postgraduates to send paper abstracts of 300 words. Some possible topics include, but are certainly not limited to:
- Intertextuality/inter-pictorial comparisons
- Adaptations across media
- Adaptation between the Medieval and Early Modern periods (eg. In text, music, visual culture)
- Reception of the Medieval and Early Modern periods (eg. in the modern era)
- Discovery of new places (eg the New World, an unknown physical landscape)
- Encountering the human or non-human Other
- Revolt
- Gender relations
- Relationship with the natural world
- Linguistic development in the Medieval and Early Modern period
- Spirituality, religion and/or associated tensions
- Political relations (eg. Between aristocracy and non-aristocracy, military and civilian populations, the role of monarchy)
- Community building endeavours
- Epistolary relationships
To investigate these interactions, the MEMSA conference committee invites postgraduates to send paper abstracts of 300 words. The papers must focus on either connection, conversation or contention in a broader sense during the Medieval or Early Modern period. Abstracts should be submitted ultimately by 9 March 2026 via the dedicated form.
20th annual MEMSA conference abstract submission – Fill in form
CfP: “Otherness in Byzantium: Imagining, Encountering, Excluding” 4th International Late Antique and Byzantine Studies Graduate Conference, Vienna
PCentral European University and University of Vienna are pleased to announce the 4th International Late Antique and Byzantine Studies Graduate Conference, titled “Otherness in Byzantium: Imagining, Encountering, Excluding”. The conference, to be held in person on May 22 – 23, 2026, will feature keynote addresses by Koray Durak of Boğaziçi University and Ingela Nilsson of Uppsala University.
How the Other is constructed has been extensively explored within post-structuralism and deconstructive theory, starting with the seminal works of Derrida and Foucault. These ideas have intersected with and influenced various fields in the humanities and social sciences, including post-colonial theory and gender studies, which have dealt with the construction of racialized and gendered bodies through the opposition between normative selves and stigmatized or otherized identities. Within Byzantine studies, the exploration of otherness has opened new avenues for understanding how parts of Byzantine society defined themselves in relation to external groups as well as internal others, such as heretics, non-Christians, and marginalized communities.
In this conference, we wish to approach the concept of otherness from two complementary perspectives. On the one hand, we intend to investigate how the Byzantines imagined an idealized self-identity, in a dialectic way, through the construction of the Other. This includes exploring the strategies used by social groups to construct a self-perception distinct from outsiders. On the other hand, we aim to address the issue of deconstructing our own gaze as scholars dealing with regions and peoples that have been historically otherized.
We welcome papers from all disciplines in Byzantine studies and adjacent fields, dealing with textual, visual, and material sources. The papers should address the representation and discursive construction of the Other in and of Byzantium and examine the relationship between outsider and insider as a spectrum of interactions instead of a dichotomy. Research questions could include: What words were used by the Byzantines to define the Other (such as ἑτερότης, “difference,” and ἀλλότης, “otherness”)? What were the points of convergence and divergence between rhetoric or theory and daily life? Were there degrees of otherness and what were the mechanisms and exceptions of inclusion and exclusion? To what degree, if at all, did otherized identities intersect?
Possible topics may include, but are not limited to:
o Gender, sexuality, and corporeality: traditional and non-normative masculinities and femininities; diverse discourses on sexuality and the human body.
o Ethnic identities: religious, linguistic, ethnic, and racial hybridity.
o Class-based social groups: the plurality of social hierarchies from peasants to emperors.
o Orthodoxy and heresy: shifting and contesting definitions of the “correct” belief and Christian identity.
o Spatial identity: local identities from center to periphery, mainland to island, city to desert and countryside, within and beyond Byzantium.
o Decolonizing the gaze: papers that engage with (de)constructing the Byzantine otherness in modern (western) scholarly discourses, or with the relation of Byzantine studies to the present of the regions they study, their people, the forms of knowledge produced there.
Organizers invite applications from graduate students at MA and PhD level. Those wishing to have their 20-minute paper considered should send an email to Kok...@phd.ceu.edu, and marieke....@univie.ac.at with a paper title, a 200-word abstract, and an academic affiliation.
Deadline: February 20, 2026 (Applicants will be notified by March 2.)
CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: IMPERIAL SEAS: SPACES AND SOCIETIES FROM THE ADRIATIC TO THE BLACK SEA
- Places of memory, heritage, material and immaterial traces
7-11 September 2026, Istanbul, Galatasaray University and ANAMED (Koç University)
This summer school is a multidisciplinary training on the history, spaces, and societies of the
“imperial seas” bordering the Balkan Peninsula (Black Sea, Aegean Sea, Adriatic Sea), from
the Roman Empire to the present day. It offers an introduction to maritime history and a critical
examination of national and regional historiographies devoted to maritime affairs in the
Balkans. The 2026 edition focuses on memory and heritage processes.
Since the publication of two books by Peregrine Horden and Nicholas Purcell (The Corrupting
Sea: A Study of Mediterranean History, 2000, followed by The Boundless Sea: Writing
Mediterranean History, 2020), research on the Mediterranean has undergone a revival thanks
to contributions from various disciplines (anthropology in particular), and the introduction of
aspects more in line with current research concerns on migration, bottom-up phenomena,
gender categories, places of memory, etc. The very recent volume devoted to the Black Sea
(Handbook on the History and Culture of the Black Sea Region, 2025) incorporates these issues
and offers a number of perspectives for doctoral work.
The now well-established division between the western and eastern Mediterranean leads us to
focus on the eastern area, not only due to its lesser coverage in scientific output, but also and
above all because it allows us to associate two other “meso-regions,” namely the Adriatic and
the Black Sea. Our definition of “imperial seas” therefore encompasses several layers which,
like a palimpsest, stretch from the Greek colonies to the successive empires of Rome, Venice,
the Ottomans, Russia, and the Soviet Union, which partially dominated the three seas. These
empires also defined a socio-linguistic paradigm that we wish to examine in terms of lexical
melting pot and “lingua franca.”
Admittedly, the Eastern Mediterranean, the Adriatic, and the Black Sea have in common the
fact that they do not have a “national narrative,” but do exhibit “trend cultures,” to borrow
Louis-Jean Calvet’s phrase (La Méditerranée. Mer de nos langues, 2016), who notes that the
Mediterranean does not issue passports but unites through “smells, colors, and tastes,”
characteristics that also apply to the Adriatic and the Black Sea.
Belonging to various empires and, much later, to various nation states gave rise to what Angelo
Ara and Claudio Magris called, in relation to Trieste, a “border identity” (Trieste. Un identità
difrontiera, 1982). However, it also characterizes all the cities of the eastern Adriatic, which
were areas of contact between the Mediterranean, Ottoman, Balkan, and Germanic worlds.
More recently, Egidio Ivetić refers to the “frontier of the Mediterranean” (Un confine del
Mediterraneo. L'Adriatico orientale tra Italia e Slavia (1300-1900), 2014). The summer school
aims to restore two continuities: vertical, by considering the three seas over the long term, and
horizontal, by systematically studying the circulation between them, whose permanence
contradicts the attempt to make each of them a “mare nostrum” or “mare clausum”.
We invite contributions related to:
1. Memory studies and the notion of traces, tangible (places of memory) or intangible
(narratives).
2. The construction of historicity through archaeology.
3. The creation of traditions that intermingle, are taken up, rejected or diverted by
successive powers (the Roman Empire, Venice, the Ottoman Empire and then Turkey,
Greece, Russia, Italy, Yugoslavia, Romania, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Georgia).
4. The adaptations and changes that transcend economic and national divisions, including
in the environmental sphere.
Multidisciplinarity is a key element of the summer school: contributions from history (and art
history), anthropology, geography, political science, sociology, literary studies, and civilization
studies are welcome.
Multidisciplinarity is a key element of the summer school: contributions from history (and art history), anthropology, geography, political science, sociology, literary studies, and civilization studies are welcome.
This summer school will gather up to fifteen students in different disciplines addressing heritage and memory issues. It welcomes methodological and theoretical proposals based on concrete case studies.
Our aim is to promote collective and small-group working formats, which favour brainstorming and intensive training activities. Thus, the introduction and/or some keynote lectures will be framed as round-table discussions, mixing invited speakers and researchers of the hosting institutions. The working sessions will be designed as discussion spaces. It is therefore planned to propose, before the workshop, reflective texts clarifying aspects of the theme of each workshop, which will allow participants to enter into dialogue.
Each half-day will revolve around one or two communication(s) given by invited speakers, followed by a doctoral workshop. Theoretical and methodological insights will be provided by speakers from different disciplines and a wider range of geographical areas.
Beside presentations and discussions, in situ experiences developed in collaboration with the host institutions (walkshops, film screening, workshops) will make specific openings toward both academic and extra-academic approaches.
We welcome applications from PhD and M2 students in history, art history, geography, anthropology, sociology, political science and literature. The working language is English; a passive knowledge of French will be appreciated. Transportation costs must be covered by the students’ educational institutions. The organisers provide accommodation in Istanbul and meals.
Applications should be made online via the Missions de l’EFA platform before January 31, 2026 and include:
- a Curriculum Vitae.
- • a letter of motivation.
- • one reference letter.
- • a short description of the thesis (max. 3000 signs).
- • a paper proposal connected to the summer school’s topic (max. 3000 signs).
The selection of participants will be published by February 28, 2026. Participants must commit themselves for the whole duration of the training.
Contact: dir.m...@efa.gr
3. JOBS AND SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
Call for Applications: Münster Spring School in Papyrology, 23-27 March 2026
The Classics Faculty at Münster warmly invites applications to our Spring School in Papyrology, to be held between 23-27 March next year.
Participation in the week-long crash course is free. Students are responsible for funding their own travel and accommodation.
Any questions can be directed to me: tford[at]uni-muenster.de
Many thanks and we look forward to your application!
Die Papyrologische Spring School in Münster wird in Kooperation mit Prof. Dr. Charikleia Armoni (Universität zu Köln) veranstaltet und richtet sich vorzugsweise an BA- Studierende und Masterstudierende der Altertumswissenschaften und benachbarter Fächer.
Ziel des 5-tägigen Kurses ist es, die Teilnehmer:innen an das selbständige Lesen, Transkribieren, Interpretieren und Kommentieren griechischer, auf Papyrus erhaltener Urkunden anhand von Abbildungen der Originale heranzuführen. Daher steht die Vermittlung von Grundkenntnissen in der Paläographie griechischer (ptolemäischer, römischer und byzantinischer) Papyri und in der Editionstechnik im Fokus des Kurses. Zusätzlich erhalten die Teilnehmer:innen durch weitere Unterrichtseinheiten, die etwa Papyrusbriefen, juristischen Fragestellungen, literarischen Papyri und digitalen Hilfsmitteln gewidmet sind, einen allgemeinen Einblick in das Fach Papyrologie.
Für den letzten Tag des Kurses (Freitag, 27. März) ist ein Besuch der Papyrussammlung der Universität zu Köln geplant, um Papyri im Original zu sichten. Nach Absolvierung des Kurses erhält jede(r) Teilnehmer:in die Möglichkeit, einen Papyrustext eigenständig zur Edition vorzubereiten und damit einen Beitrag zur weiteren Aufarbeitung der Hamburger Papyrussammlung zu leisten.
Den Unterricht der Papyrologischen Autumn School in Münster gestalten Prof. Dr. Charikleia Armoni (Universität zu Köln) und Prof. Dr. Patrick Sänger (Universität Münster) im Zusammenwirken mit Dr. James Cowey (Universität Heidelberg), Dr. Thomas Ford (Universität Münster), Dr. Kerstin Sänger- Böhm (Universität Münster) sowie Dr. Riccardo Vecchiato (Universität zu Köln). Die Teilnehmerzahl ist auf max. 20 Studierende begrenzt. Teilnahmevoraussetzung: Grundkenntnisse des Griechischen. Unterrichtssprachen: Deutsch, Englisch. Bewerbung mit kurzem Motivationsschreiben und Curriculum Vitae bis zum 31. Januar 2026 in elektronischer Form an: Prof. Dr. Patrick Sänger, saen...@uni-muenster.de.
23.–27. März 2026
Papyrologische Spring School in Münster
Seminar für Alte Geschichte/ Forschungsstelle Papyrologie der Universität Münster Institut für Altertumskunde/Arbeitsstelle für Papyrologie, Epigraphik und Numismatik der Universität zu Köln
Plakat_A3_Ankuendigung 2023_297x420 06.12.22 07:26 Seite 1
Die Auswahl der Teilnehmer*innen, welche auf Grundlage des bisherigen Studienerfolgesvv und der Bewerbungsunterlagen erfolgt, wird bis Mitte Februar 2026 bekannt gegeben.mLeistungsanrechnung: Studierende des Master of Arts Geschichte (Universität Münster) können u. A. im Modul Historische Grundwissenschaften (Übung: Historische Grundwissenschaften) 5 LP erwerben.
Extended Deadline for ASCSA Summer Session and Summer Seminars
New Deadline: January 31, 2026
EXTENDED DEADLINE for application to the ASCSA six-week Summer Session and 18-day Summer Seminars
Summer Session, June 8 to July 22, 2026
The Summer Session program of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens is a six-week travel study course designed for those who wish to become acquainted with Greece and its major monuments, and to improve their understanding of the country’s landscape, history, material culture, and literature from antiquity to the present.
The 2026 Summer Session runs from June 8 to July 22, 2026, and its Directors are Dr. Michael Hoff (University of Nebraska-Lincoln) and Dr. Nancy Serwint (Arizona State University).
The ASCSA Summer Session has provided extensive exposure to Greece, ancient and modern, for generations of students of Classics and related fields. It has a strong academic component with participants researching and presenting topics on site and offers unique opportunities to interact with eminent archaeologists in the field. Roughly half of the session is spent in travel throughout Greece. Three trips give participants an introduction to the major archaeological sites and museum collections throughout the country. The remainder of the session is devoted to study of the museums and monuments of Athens and Attica with day trips to such sites as Marathon, Sounion, and Eleusis. The Summer Session Program is designed to present a comprehensive view of Greece’s rich history, art, and archaeology.
ASCSA 18-day Summer Seminars
The Summer Seminars of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens are 18-day programs that focus on specific cultural themes, historical periods, or geographical regions. The Seminars are led by exceptional scholars of Classics and related fields. Under their direction, participants study texts, visit archaeological sites and museums, and engage with expert guest speakers in order to deepen their understanding of Greece’s landscape, history, literature, and material culture.
Summer Seminar
Landscape with Figures: Human-Environment Interaction in Premodern Greece (June 15 to July 3, 2026)
The seminar aims to enhance participants' appreciation of environment, climate, and natural resources of Central and Southern Greece as vital contexts for the understanding of historical developments in those regions from antiquity to early modern times. Natural resources and modes of their exploitation in different regions of Greece gave character to both people and places; fluctuations of climate and human habitation tell tales of coexistence and adaptation, with lessons of both successes and failures in sustainability. In pursuit of local socio-ecological systems (SES) in Greece, we will visit and examine a selection of natural, historical, and archaeological sites in Attica, Boiotia, the Saronic region, and Peloponnese offering a new perspective on historical events, as well as on social and cultural developments of classical antiquity and later periods of Greek history. It will be taught by Professor Irene Polinskaya (King’s College London).
Summer Seminar
Chalkidike Peninsula: From Hellenic Colonization to Byzantium (July 9 to July 27, 2026)
Due to its strategic location, Chalkidike played a fundamental role in a range of intercultural relations from Antiquity to Byzantium and beyond. The seminar will investigate some of the most important events in Greek history, including the foundation of apoikiai by Andros, Corinth, and Euboea, the Persian Wars, the rise of Athens, the expansion of Macedon, and the Roman and Byzantine empires. It will explore the archaeology of local topography and settlement patterns in the Chalkidike, Hellenistic to Roman cities and Byzantine monasteries, as well as cross-cultural interactions, from the alphabet to commercial networks to warfare. Key historical and archaeological questions about identity, religious change, harbor towns, and political institutions will be examined. Taught by Professors Amalia Avramidou (Democritus University of Thrace) and Amelia R. Brown (Australian Research Council Senior Researcher, Honorary Senior Research Fellow, Macquarie University).
Structure of the Programs: Daily Life, Eligibility, Costs, Scholarships
The ASCSA Summer Programs offer unparalleled opportunity to experience the ancient sites, monuments, and culture of Greece first-hand, under the guidance of expert professors deeply familiar with the country and topic, and up-to-date with the latest research.
When in Athens, the programs are based at the American School of Classical Studies at Athens. Roughly half of a program is spent in travel throughout Greece, and participants are housed in hotels. The commitment to presenting a detailed view of Greece's rich history, leads to long days and extensive walking in the hot Mediterranean summer. Participants should be prepared for a rigorous program of study.
Enrollment is open to graduate and advanced undergraduate students, as well as to high school and college/university teachers of classics and related subjects. Each program is limited to twenty participants. The language of instruction is English. Open to all nationalities.
The fee for each 2026 Seminar is $2,750 USD. The fee for the 2026 Summer Session is $4,900 USD. Fee includes tuition, room for the entire program dates, partial board in Athens, travel within Greece, and museum and site fees. International airfare, most meals outside Athens and weekends in Athens, and incidental expenses are the participant's responsibility.
Financial aid is available in the form of ASCSA scholarships, awarded on the basis of academic merit. Many classical organizations have funding opportunities.
For more information, and how to apply, link here: https://www.ascsa.edu.gr/programs/summer-session-and-seminars.
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Madeleine Duperouzel
DPhil in History
President, Oxford University Byzantine Society
http://oxfordbyzantinesociety.wordpress.com