October 25, 2017

Professor Jeroen Dewulf published From the Kingdom of Kongo to Congo Square: Kongo Dances and the Origins of the Mardi Gras Indians. The book presents a provocatively new interpretation of one of New Orleans’s most enigmatic traditions—the Mardi Gras Indians. By interpreting the tradition in an Atlantic context, Dewulf traces the “black Indians” back to the ancient Kingdom of Kongo and its war dance known as sangamento. Enslaved Kongolese brought the rhythm, dancing moves, and feathered headwear of sangamentos to the Americas in performances that came to be known as “Kongo dances.”    Dewulf’s groundbreaking research suggests a much greater impact…

October 15, 2017

Call for Papers

33rd Meeting of Semiotic Circle of California

Saturday, January 20, 2018

The Thirty-Third Meeting of the Semiotic Circle of California will be held in the Faculty Club of the University of California, Berkeley on Saturday, January 20, 2018. Please submit this form together with a one paragraph abstract (attachment or CD) by December 15, 2017 for participation in the meeting.

As customary, the meeting will be an open topic research paper meeting. Reservations for housing may be made directly to the Faculty Club at (510) 642-1993/540-5678 or to the Hotel Durant at (510) 845-8981.

August 19, 2017

Friday/Saturday, April 6-7, 2018 The Faculty Club University of California, Berkeley Invited Speakers: Tonya Dewey-Findell, University of Nottingham Angelika Lutz, University of Erlangen-Nürnberg John McWhorter, Columbia University Theo Vennemann, University of Munich Scholars (faculty and students) interested in Germanic Linguistics, its near and/or distant related languages, diverse approaches, synchrony and/or diachrony, historical and/or contemporary language are invited to submit a one-page abstract of a twenty minute paper by January 31, 2018 to the conference organizer: Irmengard Rauch, Department of German Univ. of California, Berkeley; Berkeley, CA 94720-3243 phone/fax (707)746-7480; irauch@berkeley.edu Lodging: Reservations can be made at: The Faculty Club (510)…

May 1, 2017

Sie findet vom 15.-19. August an der University of California, Berkeley, statt. Imagination, Phantasie und Einbildungskraft sind Begriffe, die sich auf ein Vermögen beziehen, dessen Status immer schon zwiespältig ist. Einerseits bildet die Produktivität der Imagination als Vorstellungskraft – neben dem Vermögen des Gedächtnisses und der Vernunft – eine Bedingung der Möglichkeit aller Erkenntnis und Abstraktion, andererseits ist sie in ihrer relativen Unabhängigkeit vom empirisch Gegebenen und in ihrer oft nur schwer kontrollierbaren Kreativität auch ein Ort der Zersetzung, Auflösung, Überschreitung, und Neukonfiguration diskursiver, affektiver, und sinnlicher Ordnungen. So ist die Imagination das ‘Organ’, das die Bilder herstellt, die aller…

May 1, 2017

The Graduate Symposium on German Medieval Studies will be convened this year at Stanford (May 4) and Berkeley (May 5). Stanford – Wallenberg Hall, Room 433A 10:00 am. Welcome (Coffee and light refreshments) 10:15 am. Session 1 Moderated by Kathrin Gollwitzer, Berkeley Walker Horsfall, Toronto. “Mirrors and Mock Jousts: Metaphor as Ritual in Frauenlob” Mareike Reisch, Stanford. “sinne und vernunft: Die bildliche Darstellung eines mittelalterlichen Modells von Sinneswahrnehmung im Konstanzer Haus zur Kunkel“ Daniela Fuhrmann and Pia Selmayr, Zurich. “Narrated Orders – Orders of Narration” 12:30 pm. Lunch 1:30 pm. Session 2 Moderated by Landon Reitz, Berkeley Hans Pech, Harvard.…

November 8, 2016

GIVE TO UC BERKELEY AND CHANGE THE WORLD BIG GIVE — BE THE BERKELEY EFFECT –  NOV. 17 The butterfly effect explains change so from the smallest gift to the biggest, your generosity to Cal holds truly transformative power.  The Berkeley Effect changes the world. During Big Give — our day of online giving — you can be that effect by giving your favorite  Cal schools, colleges, and programs a boost. Together we’ll ensure that Berkeley students and faculty continue to spark transformative  change everywhere, maintaining our position as the No. 1 public university in  the world. Mark your calendars and on Thursday,…

April 27, 2016

Erik Born has been awarded the Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Society for the Humanities, Cornell University. Congratulations, Erik!

April 27, 2016

Paul Dobryden has accepted a position as Assistant Professor at the University of Virginia, Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures. Congratulations, Paul!

April 27, 2016

Robin Ellis has accepted a position as Visiting Assistant Professor of German at Davidson College. Congratulations, Robin!

March 11, 2016

The Loops of Mig:ration workshop with José F. A. Oliver was a great success! It was wonderful to bring together colleagues from a range of disciplines. A special thanks goes to Jon Cho-Polizzi for organizing the workshop!