CFP for Learning and Scholarship in Medieval Northwestern Europe, organised by PhD researchers in the Irish and Celtic Studies Research Institute at Ulster University.
The foundation of Iona by Colm Cille in 563 was the pinnacle in the spread of Christianity and Christian learning in Ireland and Britain in the early Middle Ages. Monastic libraries and the use of their collections, especially by those such as Bede and Adomnán, marked the importance of textual learning, as well as the production and preservation of both secular and religious texts. As 2021 marks the 1500th anniversary of Colm Cille’s “birth” in 521, using the role and influence of Iona in medieval learned culture as an example, this two-day online conference seeks papers focused specifically on learning and scholarship in early to late medieval northwestern Europe. Broadly defined, this includes Ireland, Britain, Scandinavia, France, and Germany. We welcome individual proposals for twenty-minute papers focused on literature, history, paleography, art, and archaeology; some topics might include (but are not limited to):
- The foundation and role of monasteries as centres of learning in Northwest Europe
- Secular and religious texts (i.e. hagiography, chronicles, law) commissioned by ecclesiastics and/or nobility
- Medieval secular and religious authors
- The relationship between monasteries and their secular communities
- Individual learned figures and their influence
- Modern interpretations of medieval learning or learned figures in folklore or creative literature
We welcome papers in English or Irish from PhD scholars and early career researchers by 18 December 2020.
Papers will be presented via Blackboard Collaborate.
Abstracts should be of no more than 250 words and sent as PDF attachments to LSNWE@outlook.com including a title and a brief biography, as well as three keywords.
The contributors will be informed if their abstract is accepted by 9 January 2021.
