The Faculty of Theology invites applications for a 3-year position as Postdoctoral Fellow in the ERC-funded research project Storyworlds in Transition: Coptic Apocrypha in Changing Contexts in the Byzantine and Early Islamic Periods (APOCRYPHA), based at the Faculty of Theology, University of Oslo.

The APOCRYPHA project aims to provide the first systematic study of Coptic apocrypha covering the entire timespan of Coptic literary production. It investigates the contents, development, and functions of apocrypha over time, as they were copied, adapted, and used across Egypt throughout changing socio-religious contexts. The project is funded by the European Research Council under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (grant agreement no. 865971).

We are seeking a scholar who will study the intersection between Arabic texts and traditions (both Christian and Islamic) and Coptic apocryphal texts and traditions in the Early Islamic Period (from the 7th to the 13th century). This involves comparisons between the contents of Coptic apocrypha with Christian Arabic as well as Islamic Arabic manuscripts, texts, and traditions. While comparisons of textual contents are of central importance, comparative studies of manuscripts and practices connected to their use are also potentially relevant topics of exploration. The postdoc is expected to complete a monograph that deals with any or all of the abovementioned aspects on the basis of the submitted project proposal, as further developed in collaboration with the PI of the APOCRYPHA project (Professor Hugo Lundhaug), while collaborating with the rest of the APOCRYPHA research team, not least on the project’s database on Coptic apocryphal texts and their contents, as well as their material, literary, and practical contexts.

The appointment is a fulltime position for a period of three years, starting 1 August, 2022. It is part of the APOCRYPHA project, and the applicant is expected to be physically based in Oslo for the duration of the appointment. The successful applicant will be expected to work closely together with the PI and the rest of the APOCRYPHA research team, to represent the project at relevant seminars and conferences, and to travel to collections to study manuscripts first-hand when needed. The APOCRYPHA project as a whole works from a perspective informed by material philology, and the postdoctoral fellow is expected to do the same. 

Qualifications

• Applicants must hold a PhD degree, or the equivalent, in a relevant field (History of Religions, Theology, Coptology, Arabic Studies, Classics, Byzantine Studies, Medieval Studies, or similar). Appointment is dependent on the approval of the applicant’s doctoral dissertation at the latest by the startup date, 1 August 2022.
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English
• Proficiency in Arabic
• Proficiency in Coptic

The following qualifications will count in the assessment of the applicants:

• Publication record
• Relevant research experience
• Experience with database work and digital humanities methods
• Proficiency in other relevant ancient languages, such as Greek, Latin, Old Nubian, or Ge’ez