The Department of Linguistics at Ghent University (Belgium) is seeking well-qualified applicants for a fully-funded and full-time doctoral research fellowship attached to the European Research Council Consolidator Grant project MELA. The meaning of language. A digital grammar of the Greek taught at schools in Late Constantinople. Prof. Dr. Andrea Cuomo, with his interest in the history of Medieval Greek and the reception of classical literature in Byzantium, is the principal investigator.
MELA primarily aims to create the first digital grammar of the Greek taught at schools in late Byzantium on the basis of textbooks for the teaching of Greek and their manuscript copies composed by (or within the networks of pupils, scribes, etc. of) scholars ranging from Planoudes (†1305) to Gregoras (†c. 1360). Overall, textbooks considered by MELA may be divided into the following categories: (1) works defined by author and genre (e.g. Planoudes’ Dialogue on Grammar); (2) lemmata on grammar that flowed into dictionaries (e.g. Moschopoulos’ Collection of Attic Words), provided with stylistic examples from model authors; 2a Comments on model authors; (3) scholars’ notes on grammatical topics; 3a anonymous treatises, sketches, reworked excerpts of larger works.
The successful applicant will write a doctoral dissertation in the digital humanities/Greek linguistics on the philological accuracy of the Greek text of the sources that constitute MELA’s digital grammar. MELA is an open-access searchable textual corpus database, created on the basis of textbooks for the teaching of Greek.
The successful candidate will have
- an MA degree in disciplines relevant to MELA: Greek philology/ Greek linguistics/ digital humanities;
- outstanding knowledge of Ancient and/or Medieval Greek;
- a demonstrable interest in Byzantine studies and training in the digital humanities;
- a strong knowledge of the literary and cultural history of post-classical Greek as evidenced by their study trajectory (optional courses, subject of papers and dissertations, letters of recommendation, etc.);
- excellent command of English and of at least one of the following languages: Dutch, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Greek, or Russian.
Apply online through the e-recruitment system before the application deadline (April 23, 2022). We do not accept late applications or applications that are not submitted through the online system.
Your application must include the following documents:
- In the field ‘CV’: your CV and an overview of your study results (merged into one pdf file)
- In the field ‘Cover letter’: your application letter in pdf format, in which you give an account of your scholarly background and interests.
- In the field ‘Diploma’: a transcript of the required degree (if already in your possession). If you have a foreign diploma in a language other than our national languages (Dutch, French or German) or English, please add a translation in one of the mentioned languages.
- In the field “other documents”:
- two (2) reference letters;
- an autobiographical statement highlighting why you are interested in this project, how it resonates with your own expertise, what relevant experience/knowledge you have; what added value you expect to bring to the project; what you expect from MELA and your doctorate;
- your MA dissertation (and possibly other relevant writing samples such as papers or a BA dissertation).
Note that the maximum file size for each field is 10 MB.
As Ghent University maintains an equal opportunities and diversity policy, everyone is encouraged to apply for this position.
MORE INFORMATION
Shortlisted candidates will be notified by May 16, 2022.
Interviews will take place between the end of May and the beginning of June 2022.
For more information about this vacancy, please contact Prof. Andrea Cuomo at:
Universiteit Gent
Faculty of Arts and Philosophy
Department of Linguistics
Blandijnberg 2 9000 Gent
E-Mail: Andrea.Cuomo@ugent.be.
Important: do NOT send your application by email, but apply online
Medieval Art Research 