CALL FOR PAPERS
International Conference
(Re)constructing Latinity: National and Transnational Identities of Romance Cultures.
Interdisciplinary and Transdisciplinary Approaches



Venue. Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania

Date. 21-23 November 2013

Rationale. It is well known that Neo-Latin or Romance cultures form a transnational community built on a linguistic basis. A significant question, though, is to what an extent this community remains a mere taxonomic designator or rather it configures a real identity, based on a number of factors such as: cultural, artistic, institutional or even the social, geopolitical and technological ones. If the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century witnesses the resurrection of numerous Pan-Latin identity projects, in the second half of the last century Latinity seemed to articulate itself rather in the form of identity (sub)communities like Francophonie or Hispanismo. Our conference aims to explore a possible reconstruction of the contemporary concept of Latinity, which further generates new perspectives of research and action policies in the field of Romance studies. Therefore, priority will be given to proposals whose approach is not limited to a single Romance culture and/or to those who intend to study the Latinity from an inter- or transdisciplinary perspective.

Topics. The conference will address the following issues:
- Is there currently a genuine (Neo-)Latin transnational identity or, on the contrary, Latinity is a mere taxonomic designator nowadays?
- To what extent is the national identity of Neo-Latin cultures based on the concept of a transnational Latinity today
- What kind of artistic, political, institutional, etc. affinities and interferences between Romance cultures can trigger a possible (re)construction of the concept of Latinity?
- Is Latinity a notion limited only to linguistic, aesthetic and cultural issues or there can be identified a series of geographical, social and technological parameters relevant for the circumvention of this concept?
- Is the “ecumenical” concept of Latinity a sustainable alternative to the identity projects of the Latin cultures with globalizing ambitions (e.g., Francophonie, Hispanismo, etc.)?
- To what extent was Latinity assimilated as an identity component in the former colonies of Neo-Latin countries?
- Are there any “regional Latinities” (such as the African, Iberian or East-European ones)?
- How does Latinity configure itself by interaction with non-Latin cultures (e.g., the latina cultures in the United States or Romania under Soviet domination)?

Areas. The conference will cover the following areas:
- literature
- linguistics
- cultural studies
- history
- educational studies
- sociology
- political sciences
- psychology
- economic sciences
- theology and spirituality
- history and philosophy of science
- gender studies
- postcolonial studies

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Plenary Session:
Jordi Vallespir Soler (University of the Balearic Islands, Spain)
Charles Duhamel (University of Paris-Sud XI, France)
Fausto Telleri (Universityof Sassari, Italy)
Paolo Vittoria (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

Interdisciplinary and Transdisciplinary Session:
Giancarlo Martelli (Universityof Bologna, Italy)
Coman Lupu (University of Bucharest, Romania)
Mercedes Morey López (University of the Balearic Islands, Spain)
Rodica Ilie (Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania)
Gonçal López Nadal (University of the Balearic Islands, Spain)


SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE

Camelia Budac (Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania)
Paolo Calidoni (Universityof Sassari, Italy)
Dan Chicea (Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania)
Nicola Cuomo (University of Bologna, Italy)
César Domínguez (University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain)
Rodica Grigore (Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania)
Rodica Ilie (Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania)
Romiţă Iucu (University of Bucharest, Romania)
Coman Lupu (University of Bucharest, Romania)
Fulvio Cesare Manara (Universityof Bergamo, Italy)
Elena Lucia Mara (Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania)
Pablo del Monte (Interdisciplinary Center of Marine Sciences – La Paz, Mexico)
Basarab Nicolescu (The National Center for Scientific Research, France)
Mirela Ocinic (Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania)
Elena Prus (Free International University of Moldova)
Silviu Purece (Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania)
Ciprian Toroczkai (Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania)
Rosa Eva Valle Flórez (University of León, Spania)
Ivo Zizzola (University of Bergamo, Italy)

Proposals: Paper proposals should be sent to latinity2013@gmail.com before 27 October 2013 and they should not exceed 1000 words.

Languages of the conference: English, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian.

Conference fee: 50 EUR. The conference fee will cover only the attendance costs. Participants should individually cover transportation and accommodation expenses.

Publication: Selections of the conference papers will be included in a special issue of the journal “Transilvania” (SCOPUS-indexed) and in a proceedings volume published at an internationally recognized publishing house.

Deadlines:
Proposals submission deadline: 27 October 2013
Acceptance of proposals: 1 November 2013
Conference: 21-23 November 2013
Final version of the papers: 1 January 2014
Conference website: http://conferences.ulbsibiu.ro/latinity2013/