The deadline for proposals for The Southern African Society for Medieval and Renaissance Studies (SASMARS) Biennial International Conference 2026 has been extended to 10 February 2026.

We are pleased to announce that the 27th Biennial International SASMARS Conference will be held from 3 to 6 September 2026 at the Mont Fleur Conference Venue in Stellenbosch, South Africa.

Papers for this interdisciplinary conference may cover any period within the Middle Ages and Renaissance, in any geographical space, and deal with any area of interest or discipline that could be relevant to the topic “Journeys — Borders — Encounters”.

Ideas to consider could include, but need not be limited to:

  • Travel and migration
  • Spiritual journeys and pilgrimage
  • Trade routes, trade, and trade goods
  • Encounters between cultures, peoples, religions, and the like.
  • Physical or metaphorical boundaries
  • Maps and map-making
  • Environments and ecology
  • Medicine and medical knowledge exchange
  • Intellectual and textual encounters and exchanges
  • War and campaigning

Proposals should consist of a title and abstract of up to 250 words, as well as the author’s name, affiliation, contact details, and a brief biography of no more than 100 words. Papers should be no longer than 20 minutes when read (approximately 2 500 words) and will be followed by Q and A.

Please submit proposals to Carin Marais (samedrensociety@gmail.com) by 10 February 2026. Any enquiries can be sent to the same email address.

Our keynote speaker for the 2026 conference will be Professor Jordi Sánchez-Martí of the University of Alicante, Spain.

Professor Sánchez-Martí, B.A. (Jaume I), M.A. (Bristol), Ph.D. (Cornell), is a professor in English Literature and a Partner Principal Investigator on Re-mediating the Early Book: Pasts and Futures (REBPAF). Professor Sánchez-Martí has a particular interest in Middle English romances and their transmission, as well as Iberian books of chivalry in English translation and their circulation.

For more information and FAQ, please read our FAQ page.