Call for Papers
Sounds and Silence
Oxford Medieval Graduate Conference 2026
23-24 April 2026, Maison Française d’Oxford
Due by 8 December 2025
The Oxford Medieval Graduate Conference Committee invites paper submissions for the upcoming conference on the theme of ‘Sounds and Silence’ on the 23rd and 24th of April 2026 at the Maison Française d’Oxford.
Submissions are welcome from all disciplinary perspectives, including historical, literary, musical, archaeological, linguistic, and interdisciplinary approaches. Papers may address any geographical focus or subject related to the medieval period on the broad topic of ‘Sounds and Silences.’
Areas of interest may include, but are not limited to:
Vernacular song and folk music
Representations of sound and silence
Liturgical traditions
Monastic worship and silence
(Non)verbal (mis)communication
Taboo and censure
Vocalizations and orality
Linguistic change
Cultures of listening
Material culture of sound
Architecture and acoustics
Noises of nature
Soundscapes
Cosmological harmonies
Somatic and sensory experience
Epistemologies of sound
We welcome applications from graduate students at any university; a limited number of travel bursaries will be available to accepted presenters. We ask that all presenters attend in person, with hybrid participation available for attendees who cannot travel to the event.
Submission Guidelines
Papers should be no longer than 20 minutes. Please submit abstracts of 250 words to oxgradconf@gmail.com by 8 December 2025.
In association with the Maison Française d’Oxford and Oxford Medieval Studies, sponsored by The Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities (TORCH).