Author: Luisa Ostacchini

Organisers: Dr Chiara Monaco, Dr Ugo Mondini 

This panel focuses on the use of linguistic norms in literature between Antiquity and the Middle Ages. From the idea of Hellenismos/Latinitas/ʿArabiyya until the development of the concept of ‘national language’, the promotion of language correctness and the imitation of canonical texts are elements of continuity in the endless compromise between norms and usage. At the same time, every literature has breakpoints in which canons are contested/complemented by new (literary and/or linguistic) models; consequently, the interfacing with norms changes.  

Our aim is to study what happens when literature interfaces with norms; the following research questions are the foundation of our reflection:  

1. To what extent do norms influence usage and vice versa? Does the use comply with the norm always and in the same way, or not?  
2. How is the terminology of norms shaped and how does it change throughout time?  
3. What is the relationship between literature and the formulation of linguistic norms? And which role does the idea of literary canon play in the formulation of grammatical norms? 
4. What happens to customary norms and their use in literature when the canon changes? What is the reaction from contemporary voices?  

The panel focuses on a period longer than Antiquity (323 BCE – 1453 CE) to understand if, when and how the use of norms changes throughout time. This allows making broader considerations on the topic, which are particularly helpful to understand 1) canonical texts, their transmission, and their reception(s); 2) how linguistic norms act in diachrony; 3) how norms shape language usages and vice versa; 4) how the relationship between norms and usage changes over time.  

The aim of this panel is to gather scholars working on norms, the reception of norms, the relationship between grammatical texts and literary/non-literary usages in different traditions, and literature within its historical context. We would be particularly glad to discuss case studies that relate norms from ancient or medieval sources to their origin from past models and their use, misuse, or rejection within literary texts, in a diachronic perspective; or case studies that stress breakpoints along with their consequences. The panel will also be the perfect occasion to reflect on how past and present scholarship has dealt with this challenging topic. Latin and Greek literature and language are the fields of expertise of both organisers; however, proposals on different languages and cultures of the broader area of antique and medieval Eurasia and Africa will be considered with great favour. In this case, chronological boundaries can be discussed with organisers, although the panel focuses on premodern era. 

Interested scholars are invited to submit abstracts of maximum 500 words by 20^th February 2023 to the organisers (chiara.monaco@ugent.be; ugo.mondini93@gmail.com).  

We will select speakers working on different languages, epochs, and geographical areas. After the selection, we will provide the speakers with a methodological framework, which they will be asked to consider while producing their paper. This way, consistency and dialogue are assured during the panel in Coimbra (14th Celtic Conference in Classics). 

For more details about the conference, see: https://cechfluc.wixsite.com/ccclassics2023 

“Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iaşi
Institute of Interdisciplinary Research – Department of Social Sciences and Humanities
Centre for Biblical and Philological Studies “Monumenta linguae Dacoromanorum”,
Romanian Association of Philology and Biblical Hermeneutics
Metropolitanate of Moldavia and Bukovina
“A. Philippide” Institute of Romanian Philology

are pleased to invite you to the

“INVESTIGATIONS INTO ROMANIAN AND EUROPEAN BIBLICAL TRADITIONS”
INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM

12th Edition
Iaşi, 18-20 May 2023

The Symposium aims to encourage multi- and interdisciplinary debates on the issues raised by the publication, translation, interpretation, dissemination and reception of sacred texts into Romanian and other modern languages.
Sections

1. Philological Challenges
   – Publication of the biblical texts. Textual criticism and palaeography. Sacred texts computerization and digitization.
   – The biblical text as a reference point in the diachronic study of language. Lexicology and biblical semantics.Biblical phraseology. Biblical onomastics.
   – Lesser known, partial translations of the Bible: books and book fragments kept in old manuscripts from the 16th and 17th centuries, and their textual relationship with popular Romanian versions.
   – Stylistic interference and demarcation: biblical, liturgical and theological-sapiential varieties of clerical styles. The role of the Bucharest Bible (1688) in the creation of the Romanian clerical style in the 18th and 19th centuries.
2. Translation Challenges
   – Typology of biblical translations. Literal and free translation. Translation theory and sacred texts.
   – Unique source vs. multiple source. The “original texts” of the Bible – different textual traditions reflected in the Romanian translations.
   – Relationships among successive biblical versions: the Sibiu Gospels (1551-1553) and the Coresi Gospels; the Coresi Gospels and Epistles and the Bălgrad New Testament (1648); the Bucharest Bible (1688) and the Blaj Bible (1795); the Blaj Bible and the Şaguna, Filotei editions and the 1914 Bible, the Cornilescu versions etc.
   – Reference works for all time Bible translations: lexicons, dictionaries, concordances, critical editions,
   auxiliary versions, etc.
3. Biblical Hermeneutics
   – Confessional and theological choices and conditioning (dogmatic, canonical, clerical, worship-related etc.). Theological censorship, political censorship.
   – Patristic tradition — reference points and criteria for sacred texts’ interpretation.
   – The Bible and the literary clerical system: relationships and determinations between the sacred text and clerical hymnography, worship-related literature, iconography, exegetic and homiletic literature.
4. Sacred Texts’ Historical Reception
   – Integration, dynamics and stylization of biblical quotations in Romanian and other literatures.
   – Dissemination of Romanian Bible versions. Historical references and main Romanian biblical versions criticism (the Bucharest Bible, the Blaj Bible etc.). Textual relationships (borrowing, “corrections”, adaptations etc.) between different biblical versions.
   – Romanian culture and the Bible. Biblical motifs, symbols, structures and characters.
   – Cultural interferences and mentalities impacting the reception of sacred texts: anthropological, sociological, political or philosophical aspects.
   
   In addition to the traditional sections, for this edition the organizers propose two thematic sections:
   I. Saint Nicodemus of Tismana – 700 years. Production and transmission of the biblical manuscript in the Byzantine Commonwealth
   These years mark seven centuries since the birth of Saint Nicodemus from Tismana, the author of the oldest dated manuscript from Wallachia and the founder of the first Romanian monasteries. These were the first major cultural centers in the Romanian countries, which were incorporated into the network of cultural centers already existing in the Byzantine Commonwealth of Greek and Slavonic languages, which produced biblical manuscripts of great value, with circulation throughout this cultural area, on which the oldest biblical Romanian texts are based. We propose the following thematic directions, any other approaches being welcome:
   – Nicodemus’ Tetraevangelion – the oldest dated manuscript from Wallachia
   – Byzantine biblical lectionaries: production, typikon, circulation, textual tradition
   – Biblical manuscripts in the monastic scriptoria and libraries of the Byzantine Commonwealth
   – Biblical manuscript copying and diffusion centers in the Byzantine Commonwealth
   – Patrons, scribes, calligraphers, illuminators and possessors of biblical manuscripts
   – Illumination of biblical manuscrips in the Byzantine Commonwealth
   – From the Old Church Slavonic to the oldest Romanian lectionaries: Tetraevangelion, Apostle, Psalter and Prophetologion
   II. 350 years since the publication of the Dosoftei’s Rhymed Psalter. The versification of the Psalms in the Romanian and European culture
   – Dosoftei’s Rhymed Psalter: sources, genesis, reception
   – Dosoftei’s Rhymed Psalter as a monument of the Romanian language
   – The place of Dosoftei’s Rhymed Psalter in the history of Romanian literature
   – Rhymed / Metrical Psalters in the European culture
   – Versification as interpretation
   – Rhymed Psalters in Romanian literature: Teodor Corbea (ca 1705), Ioan Prale (1827), Nicolae Liciu (1846), Vasile Militaru (1933), Eugenia Adams Mureşanu (1985), etc.
   
   We also welcome other interpretations of the Conference theme.
   
   The official languages of the Symposium will be Romanian, English and French.
   The organisers invite all interested participants to fill in the registration form and send it at simpozionmld@gmail.com. Please email for the form. Selected papers will be published in Reception of the Holy Scriptures: at the crossroads between philology, hermeneutics and translation studies (“Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University Press, Iaşi), a CEEOL indexed journal.
   
   The conference fee is 180 lei (40 Euro) and will cover organisation and publication costs. You will only be required to pay this fee if you are accepted to the symposium, in which case we will kindly ask you to transfer the money to the following bank account:
   
   – Account holder: Asociaţia de Filologie şi Hermeneutică Biblică din România;
   – IBAN code: RO72BRDE240SV57759112400;
   – Bank: BRD, Agenţia Copou, Bd. Carol I, nr. 8, Iaşi
   
   (Please include Investigations into Romanian and European Biblical Traditions Symposium in the transaction details, and kindly e-mail a scanned copy of the bank receipt to simpozionmld@gmail.com)
   
   Important dates:
   March 1 – abstract submission deadline
   March 10 – decision for acceptance
   April 15 – fee payment deadline (180 RON / 40 EUR)
   May 18-20 – conference days
   July 15 – full paper submision for the proceedings of the conference
   
   Information about the previous editions:
   http://consilr.info.uaic.ro/~mld/monumenta/simpozionMLD.html
   
   Scientific Committee:
   Prof. Eugen Munteanu, Ph.D. (“Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University, Iaşi) (chairman)
   Rev. Dragoş Bahrim, Ph.D. (“Saint Basil the Great” Orthodox Theological Seminary, Iaşi)
   Prof. Gheorghe Chivu, Ph.D. (University of Bucharest)
   Prof. Ioana Costa, Ph.D. (University of Bucharest)
   Prof. Mihai Moraru, Ph.D. (University of Bucharest)
   Prof. Mihaela Paraschiv, Ph.D. (“Alexandru Ioan Cuza University”, Iaşi)
   Prof. Andrei Pleşu, Ph.D. (New Europe College, Bucharest)
   Rev. Prof. Gheorghe Popa, Ph.D. (“Alexandru Ioan Cuza University”, Iaşi)
   Rev. Prof. Ion Vicovan, Ph.D. (“Alexandru Ioan Cuza University”, Iaşi)
   Prof. Wilhelm Tauwinkl, Ph.D. (University of Bucharest)
   Prof. Rodica Zafiu, Ph.D. (University of Bucharest)
   Organising Committee:
   Iosif Camară, Ph.D. (secretary)
   Anca Bibiri, Ph.D.
   Ana Catană-Spenchiu, Ph.D.
   Mioara Dragomir, Ph.D.
   Ana-Maria Gînsac, Ph.D.
   Maria Moruz, Ph.D.
   Mariana Nastasia, Ph.D. student
   Mădălina Ungureanu, Ph.D.