Traditionally, the Aarhus Old Norse Mythology series of conferences is invitation-only, which has contributed to the lively intellectual milieu in the study of pre-Christian Nordic religions. Given the effects of the COVID-19 lockdown on academic conferences, however, we are keen to reinvigorate the field, establish fresh networks, and invite new colleagues to join our discussions. We are therefore holding an open Calling for Contributions for this year’s event.

We invite submissions of interest to contribute to the conference by midnight GMT on 20.06.2021. Contributions should fit into one of the following formats:

Academic Papers:

a 20 minute presentation, followed by 10 minutes’ Q&A. Submissions should concern themselves with one of the following thematic processes in Old Norse Myth:

• • Challenging: Old Norse Myth in Contemporary Scholarship. Cross-analysis of contradictory sources, reconsideration of accepted academic interpretations, applications of novel theories and methods
  • Excavating: Old Norse Myth in Material Culture. The archaeology of ritual, the identification of mythological figures in iconography, the material culture/text relationship
  • Mediating: Old Norse Myth in the Middle Ages. Medieval transmission of mythological texts, pre-modern understandings of pagan mythology
  • Importing & Exporting: Old Norse Myth Beyond Scandinavia. Old Norse myth in Viking diaspora, pre-Christian religion in settlement processes, foreign influence in Old Norse myth, borrowings from Old Norse myth into other religions

Each of our thematic sessions will be ‘anchored’ by a paper from a recognised expert in the field. You can read more about them on our Programme page.

Submissions for an academic paper should include a title and abstract (no more than 300 words) submitted as an email attachment. Your name should not appear in this attachment, to ensure anonymous peer review.

Round Table Contributions:

some areas of research are best discussed in plenum, and we are therefore looking for contributions to the following round table:

• • Teaching: Old Norse Myth in the Modern University (Round Table). Mythology in the modern university, teaching to school pupils, online teaching and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)
  • Modernising: Old Norse Myth in Contemporary Culture (Round Table). Translating from Old Norse to modern languages, presentations of Old Norse myths in different genre and media – e.g. children’s literature, comic books, film, video games

Submissions for a round table contribution should include your name, and a brief explanation (no more than 300 words) of your relevant experience and any issues you would like to discuss.

Posters:

posters are an excellent way of briefly encapsulating a research project, and reaching a new audience. (They also get your name on the programme, which often makes securing funding to attend easier.) We therefore welcome submissions for posters from both students, ECRs, and more established researchers. Posters will be A1 size, and can present either a detailed case study or a wider research project. Some tips on composing an effective research poster can be found here.

Submissions for a poster should include your name, and a brief description (no more than 300 words) of the poster’s content.

How to Submit:

We hope to be able to hold the conference completely in-person in Reykjavík in November, although we are also making preparations to be able to hold our programme partially or fully online should that be necessary. We therefore ask that you only send a submission if you are able to commit to attending in person in the first instance.

Submissions should be emailed to Luke at ljm@hi.is by midnight GMT on 20.06.2021.