The aim of the strand structure is to ensure balanced coverage of all aspects of research into the wider European Middle Ages. 39 evenly-sized strands make up the overall pattern of the Congress. This enables programming development across the wide geographical and chronological range of Medieval Studies. Overlaps and duplications are inevitable and the strand structure is intended to be inclusive, not exclusive, in nature. Each session will be allocated to a minimum of one strand but can be listed in a number of strands.
Programming Committee members have special co-ordinating responsibilities for a single strand within their specific area of expertise. The strand co-ordinator's role includes identifying particular research areas and fields, groups, bodies, and societies with relevant interests associated to the strand. Their aim is to provide a platform for presenting cutting-edge, ground-breaking, and innovative research and/or reflecting on past research trends, incorporating new perspectives, methodologies, approaches, technologies, utilising the Congress' unique size and scope to consider comparative and in-depth research side by side. The strand co-ordinator shapes the format, structure, and dynamics of the strand and ultimately co-ordinates the strand section of the programme. For details about each strand, click on the links below.
In addition to the recurrent 39 strands, the Congress designates one special thematic strand each year. This is complimentary to the recurrent strands and is not intended to replace them. While the special thematic strand is a one-off, the ongoing strands offer the opportunity to develop ideas over a number of years.
| Strand |
Co-ordinator |
| Special Thematic Strand 2019: Materialities |
Anne E. Lester, Johns Hopkins University |
| Special Thematic Strand 2020: Borders and Boundaries |
Nora Berend, University of Cambridge |
| Anglo-Saxon Studies |
Catherine A. M. Clarke, University of Southampton |
| Archaeology |
Sam Turner, Newcastle University |
| Art and Architecture |
Julian Gardner, University of Warwick |
| Byzantine Studies |
Shaun Tougher, Cardiff University |
| Celtic Studies |
Helen Fulton, University of Bristol |
| Central and Eastern European Studies |
Jarosław Wenta, Uniwersytet Mikolaja Kopernika, Torun |
| Church History and Canon Law |
Brenda Bolton, University of London |
| Crusades |
Kurt Villads Jensen, Stockholms Universitet |
| Culture and Society |
Dolores Jørgensen, Universitetet i Stavanger |
| Daily Life |
Gerhard Jaritz, Central European University, Budapest |
| Drama |
Cora Dietl, Universität Giessen |
| Gender and Sexuality |
Diane Watt, University of Surrey |
| Geography and Settlement Studies |
Chris Lewis, University of London |
| Global Medieval Studies |
TBC |
| Government, Law, and Institutions |
Charles Insley, University of Manchester |
| Hagiography and Religious Writing |
Anne-Marie Helvétius, Université de Paris VIII |
| Health and Medicine |
Elma Brenner, Wellcome Library, London |
| Historiography |
Nadia Altschul, University of Glasgow |
| Islamic World |
Jo van Steenbergen, Universiteit Gent |
| Jewish Studies |
Alexandra F. C. Cuffel, Ruhr-Universität Bochum |
| Language and Literature - Comparative |
Emma Campbell, Andrew Galloway, and Sieglinde Hartmann |
| Language and Literature - Germanic |
Sieglinde Hartmann, Universität Würzburg |
| Language and Literature - Middle English |
Andrew Galloway, Cornell University |
| Language and Literature - Romance Vernacular |
Emma Campbell, University of Warwick |
| Late Antique and Early Medieval Studies |
Yaniv Fox, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan |
| Latin Writing |
Danuta Shanzer, Universität Wien |
| Literacy and Communication |
Marco Mostert, Universiteit Utrecht |
| Manuscript Studies |
Dominque Stutzmann, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Paris |
| Material Culture |
Annemarieke Willemsen, Rijksmuseum van Oudheden, Leiden |
| Medievalism and the Reception of the Middle Ages |
Bettina Bildhauer, University of St Andrews |
| Mediterranean World |
Dolores López Pérez, Universitat de Barcelona |
| Monasticism and Religious Life |
Gert Melville, Technische Universität Dresden |
| Music and Liturgy |
Daniel DiCenso, College of the Holy Cross, Massachussetts |
| Philosophy and Political Thought |
Cary J. Nederman, Texas A&M University, College Station |
| Scandinavian Studies |
Åslaug Ommundsen, Universitetet i Bergen |
| Science, Technology, and Military History |
Steven A. Walton, Michigan Technological University |
| Social and Economic History |
Flocel Sabaté i Curull, Universitat de Lleida |
| Sources and Resources |
Simon Forde, Arc Humanities Press, Leeds |
| Theology and Biblical Studies |
Pavel Blažek, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Praha |