First call

We are pleased to announce that the Department of Croatian Studies at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Rijeka is organising the 15^th Rijeka Philological Days, a biennial academic conference bringing together both established scholars and those embarking on their research careers. In addition to the fourteen conferences held to date, thirteen volumes of conference proceedings have been published, with the fourteenth forthcoming.

The overarching theme of the conference is:

HERITAGE

LANGUAGE – LITERATURE – CULTURE

We warmly invite you to participate in the conference and contribute to a stimulating and fruitful exchange of ideas.

Presentation formats:

1. Individual presentation
2. Panel

Individual presentations will last 20 minutes.

Panels are intended for smaller research groups to present findings on a shared topic. Each panel comprises a minimum of three and a maximum of four authors; presentations may also be co-authored. Each panel has a coordinator, who develops, organises and submits the panel proposal, and a moderator, who leads a structured discussion. Both the coordinator and the moderator may also present papers on the panel. Alternatively, the moderator may be an expert with extensive knowledge of the topic who does not present a paper. Panels may include researchers, teachers and other professionals, as well as doctoral students, master’s students working under supervision, and graduates presenting results of their research and projects. This format encourages the involvement of early-career researchers and connections across generations of the academic community, while ensuring that all presentations are grounded in research and make a scholarly contribution. Each panel is limited to 90 minutes, including presentations and discussion. Panel contributions may be published as separate papers.

Thematic areas:

1. Language as heritage and a vehicle of cultural identity

• Linguistic heritage
• Diachronic and synchronic perspectives on linguistic heritage
• Dialectal varieties as components of linguistic heritage
• Language standardisation and heritage: grammars, dictionaries and orthographic manuals
• Multilingualism, language contact and culture
• Croatian as a heritage language
• Linguistic heritage and cultural memory
• Canon, tradition and the reinterpretation of linguistic heritage
• Home region, space and identity in language
• Heritage in translation and intercultural transmission
• Tradition and modernity in language
• The invention, construction and deconstruction of linguistic heritage

2. Identity, belonging and the politics of literary heritage

• Literary heritage and cultural memory
• Canon, tradition and the reinterpretation of literary heritage
• Oral literature in the context of heritage
• Home region, space and identity in literature
• Sites of memory, cultural landscapes and literary topography
• Literary belonging and the politics of heritage
• The construction and deconstruction of literary heritage
• Marginalised, silenced, suppressed and contested literary heritages
• Mythic heritage and its literary transformations
• Dramatic and theatrical heritage and contemporary reinterpretations on stage
• The legacy of trauma and the intergenerational transmission of literary memory

3. Manuscript, written and material cultural heritage

• Manuscript culture and the materiality of literary heritage
• Tangible and intangible cultural heritage as subjects of philological research
• Literature and heritology: literary heritage in the context of heritage studies
• Manuscript studies: codicological, palaeographical and textual approaches
• The history of books, reading and reading practices
• The copying, printing and transmission of texts
• Manuscript codices, incunabula and early printed books as bearers of cultural heritage
• Archival and library materials as sources for reconstructing documentary heritage
• The preservation, documentation, evaluation and interpretation of written and material heritage

4. The preservation and reinterpretation of linguistic and literary heritage in contemporary culture and society

• The digitisation and preservation of linguistic, literary and cultural heritage
• Digital heritage: digital manuscripts, corpora, archives and libraries
• Digital humanities and the transformation of philological studies
• Contemporary digital methods for researching, documenting and presenting linguistic and literary heritage
• The transmission, reception and reassessment of linguistic, literary and cultural heritage
• Translation, intercultural transmission and cultural transfer
• Transmediality and new forms of interpretation and contemporary engagement with linguistic and literary heritage
• Linguistic and literary heritage in popular culture, film, television and contemporary media
• Heritage and humanities education: educational practices and the transmission of knowledge
• Tradition and modernity: the construction, public presentation and reinterpretation of heritage, and attitudes towards heritage in contemporary society

5. Miscellanea philologica

• This thematic area also welcomes contributions on other topics in philology.

6. Participation of early-career researchers

• A dedicated section will be open to doctoral students, master’s students and graduates who have completed their studies within the past two years and wish to present the results of their research and projects. Master’s students are encouraged to consult their supervisors for expert review and feedback before submitting a proposal. The aim is to encourage the presentation of new research, the involvement of early-career researchers in the academic community, and dialogue with more experienced researchers.

Papers based on conference presentations will be published in the proceedings volume Riječki filološki dani 15 following peer review.

Conference dates: 22–24 April 2027

Venue:

• Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Rijeka (Trsat Campus), Sveučilišna avenija 4, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia
• The conference will be held in person. Online participation will not be available.

Important dates:

• 15 December 2026: Deadline for proposals and abstracts (please use the attached submission form)

• By 15 January 2027, participants will receive notification of acceptance and registration fee payment details

• 15 February 2027: Deadline for early-bird registration fee payments

• 22–24 April 2027: Conference in Rijeka

Registration fees:

• The standard registration fee is €120. The early-bird registration fee is €100 for payments made on or before 15 February 2027
• For doctoral students, the early-bird fee is €60 and the standard fee is €80
• All registered presenters, except master’s students, are required to pay the registration fee, regardless of presentation format
• Registration fees contribute towards the costs of conference materials, publication of the proceedings and coffee breaks.

A conference dinner is planned and will be charged separately. Further information will be provided in due course.

Conference languages: Presentations may be delivered in any Slavic language or in English, Italian or German.

Registration for participation is open via the registration form until 15 December 2026. If you encounter any problems during registration, please contact us at: rfd15@ffri.uniri.hr.

Proposals will be reviewed by the Programme Committee of Rijeka Philological Days, which comprises members of our Department and distinguished experts from Croatia and abroad specialising in the thematic areas listed above.

Notification of acceptance will be sent by 15 January 2027.

We look forward to seeing you in Rijeka!