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Literatures without Borders.

A Historical-Comparative Study of Premodern Literary Transnationalism

Literatures without Borders is an international scientific research network bringing together 16 research units from across the world for the historical-comparative study of transnationalism in the Arabic, Greek-Byzantine, Hebrew-Yiddish-Ladino and Latin literary traditions. The network is funded by the Research Foundation–Flanders (FWO) for the duration of five years (2021-2026).

The Universe. Liber floridus of Lambert of Saint-Omer, 1121, fols. 94v. Ghent, Universiteitsbibliotheek. Source: Universiteitsbibliotheek UGent.

Research Partners

  • Arabic Language Networks, Durham, UK
  • Centre for Literary and Intermedial Crossings–CLIC, Brussels
  • Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Studies, Kent
  • Centre for Medieval Literature–CML, York & Odense
  • Department of Hebrew and Jewish Studies, Amsterdam
  • East-Asian and Arabic Studies, Leuven
  • Greek and Cultural Studies, Leuven
  • Institute of Jewish Studies, Antwerp
  • Islamolatina, Barcelona
  • Jewish Studies in Antiquity and the Middle Ages, Jerusalem
  • Lectio, Leuven
  • Ludwig Boltzmann Institut für Neulateinische Studien, Innsbruck
  • Mamluk History and Culture, Ghent
  • RELICS, Gent
  • Retracing Connections: Byzantine Storyworlds, Uppsala
  • Translatin, Amsterdam

News & Events

Latin-Greek Code-Switching in Early Modernity

The first workshop funded by “Literatures without Borders” will take place in Leuven (Belgium) from 13 to 14 October 2022. The event, organised by William Barton and Raf Van Rooy, is a collaboration between the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Neo-Latin Studies and the University of Leuven. The exchange will deal with linguistic and literary questions regarding…

Reading Group in Spring 2021

The Scientific Research Network organizes a monthly reading group in the spring of 2021 on the concept of transnationalism.  You are cordially invited to join us.  The aim of the reading group is to lay the theoretical groundwork for a first workshop on the conceptual framework for premodern literary transnationalism. We will read theoretical literature…

Generously funded by the Research Foundation – Flanders (FWO)