Graduate Summer School 2009 in Avignon

*Graduate Summer School 2009 in Avignon
Writing Practices in the South of France (12th to 18th century)
June 25 - July 3, 2009, Avignon, France*

Starting in 2009, the Laboratory of History of the University of Avignon is
organizing a Graduate Summer School devoted each year to writing practices
in Southern France and adjacent lands (Catalonia, Languedoc, Provence,
Liguria and papal lands), from the twelfth to the eighteenth century. It
seeks to shed light on the uses of writing in the Mediterranean area. The
goal of the Graduate Summer School is to provide high-level technical
training in the history of the various writing practices of chanceries,
clerical offices, notarial offices, scriptoria, writing and decoration
workshops, etc.) as well as on the social dimensions of the written word in
the Northern Mediterranean crescent from Valencia to Bologna and over a long
period of time, which will afford many opportunities to put peculiarities
and innovations into perspective. One area, that of the papal lands, is
particularly interesting: the papal offices seem to have adapted the various
written forms without ever yielding to fashionable trends and could have
influenced the surrounding administrations and judicial courts.
Lectures at the Graduate Summer School will be conducted by guest
specialists in the fields of medieval and modern history. Candidates should
be able to read and communicate in French. (For the 2009 session, all
courses are given in French; starting in 2010, courses will be given in
English and in other languages).

*Application Procedure*
Registration for the Graduate Summer School 2009 session will begin on March
15, 2009. The deadline for applications is April 15, 2009. For the
preparation of application materials please visit
http://ecolethematique.univ-avignon.fr (all application materials must be
filled out in French). Ten candidates will be selected to participate in the
2009 session. Foreign applicants are especially encouraged to apply.
The successful candidates’ accommodation on campus (and travel expenses for
European Union students) is provided. No tuition is charged.

*Eligibility*
Candidates must be Ph.D. students or graduate students in their final year
(or the equivalent for foreign students) in medieval or modern history.
Applications from all countries are welcome.

*For further information please visit the site of the Graduate Summer School
http://ecolethematique.univ-avignon.fr or send an e-mail to
contact-et@univ-avignon.fr.