The Department of Linguistic and Literary Studies at the University of Padua, Italy, is seeking a postdoctoral research associate (Byzantine Literature) to work on the ERC funded project “SIQILLIYA: Debunking Eurocentric Literary History” led by Professor Nicola Carpentieri. The project aims to address the complexities of medieval Sicilian literature by studying the totality of the court poetry produced in Sicily in Arabic, Hebrew, Greek, Latin and Italian between the 10th and the 13th cc. The project thus promises to shed light on what amounts to a black hole in literary history: it will document over four centuries of cultural interactions, and allow us to fully assess the role of Sicily's many cultures in the rise of the Italian lyric. 

The postholder will conduct individual and collaborative research in Byzantine  poetry, focussing on Sicily. She or he will produce a new edition of the relevant  portion of Sicilian medieval poetry (Hebrew, Latin, Greek or Italian) and take care of the inspection, acquisition, collation and edition of all relevant manuscript and  printed materials needed. She or he will will contribute to the project’s main goal to  produce an alternative narrative to “Le Origini” (the origins of Italian literature), one that will take into account the many poetic traditions of medieval Sicily.

The position is full-time. Contract dates: 1 October 2023–1 September 2028

The successful application will have

• A PhD in Greek, Latin, Hebrew or Italian Studies (depending on application), chronologically focused on the medieval period
• Expertise in two or more of these languages: medieval Arabic, Greek, Latin, Italian, Hebrew
• Expertise in manuscript acquisition, collation, editing
• Proficiency in English