The third History of Knowledge Conference will be organized in Utrecht on 25-27 August 2027. The conference follows the first international History of Knowledge Conference in Porto in 2023, and the second edition, hosted by the Lund Centre for the History of Knowledge in 2025. Both have been great successes. Utrecht University is home of the Descartes Centre for the History and Philosophy of Sciences and the Humanities, and together with the Huygens Institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences home of the field’s flagship Journal for the History of Knowledge.
Map of the world by Ottoman admiral Piri Reis (1513). Library of Topkapi Palace Museum, No. H 1824. Source: Wikipedia.
In recent years, history of knowledge has developed into a vibrant field of interdisciplinary research and scholarship around the globe. The History of Knowledge Conference will gather scholars with a diversity of backgrounds to further develop the field and its impact on other disciplines and on society. Fostering inclusivity, we welcome all scholars working on the history of knowledge in the broadest sense, and contributions on any period, region and topic are welcome, as long as they are clearly related and relevant to the history of knowledge. However, we particularly encourage the submission of contributions that tie in with the central theme of the conference:
Decentering the History of Knowledge
What does it mean to decenter the history of knowledge? We understand it to mean:
- Decentering the geography of knowledge, adopting a global approach by comparing and connecting different geographical areas around the world.
- Include different forms of knowledge without privileging academic or written knowledge, while paying attention to shifting epistemic hierarchies.
- Dealing even-handedly with knowing and not-knowing, by shifting focus to ignorance, failure and error as inherent to knowledge practices.
- Embracing epistemic diversity in different guises, by concentrating on the role of virtues and vices in shaping the identity of knowledge actors.
- Developing a more-than-human history of knowledge, including a variety of actors including non-human animals, plants, minerals or instruments.
- Adopting transdisciplinary approaches to develop the history of knowledge, historicizing formal and informal knowledge institutions such as universities and societies, households and families.
Keynote Speakers
Inanna Hamati-Ataya (University of Groningen)
Andrés Vélez-Posada (Universidad EAFIT Medellin)
Scientific committee
The local organizers of this conference will be supported by an international scientific committee:
Deborah Coen (Yale University)
Markus Friedrich (University of Hamburg)
Thomas Haddad (University of Sao Paulo)
Matteo Martelli (University of Bologna)
Cyrus Mody (Maastricht University)
Johan Ostling (Lund University)
Tamson Pietsch (University of Technology, Sydney)
Irina Podgorny (National University La Plata)
Fenneke Sysling (Leiden University)
Nele Wynants (University of Antwerp)
Submissions
We invite submissions for individual papers, for panels, and for a broad and open category of other contributions.
All submissions should be sent by mail to mail to: HoKconference27@uu.nl
Deadline for all submissions is 15 December 2026
Paper Submissions
The conference is explicitly global in scope, and its time span is antiquity to the present. We encourage contributions moving beyond specific geographies and chronologies; we aim at a structure for the conference that does not presuppose a division in terms of geographies or chronologies. Each paper will be given 20 minutes, including discussion. Abstracts of single papers should contain the name of the speaker, full contact address (including email address), the title and a summary of the paper of maximally 250 words; please provide five keywords that can help us to place your proposal for reviewing, and, if successful, for compiling the program.
Panel Submissions
A panel should cover a coherent topic or set of questions related to the conference theme – you are explicitly encouraged to defy traditional geographical and chronological divisions in the panel. A panel should bring together a number of papers – normally between 3 and 5 – that, together with an optional commentary, fill a timeslot of 90 to 120 minutes. Please remember to leave sufficient time for general discussion. Panel proposals should contain the name of the chair, the names of the speakers (and, if applicable, the commentator), email addresses of all participants, and the title of the panel. In addition, the proposals should contain a short description of the panel’s content and a summary of each paper (in total 500 words); please provide five keywords that best characterize the topic of your panel.
Alternative Contribution Submissions
We also welcome papers or panels that discuss teaching history of knowledge, sessions that encourage hands-on activities, performances, interactions with material objects or specific locations. Proposals should contain the name(s) of the organizer(s), the names of the participants, email addresses of all participants and the title of the panel. In addition, the proposals should contain a short description of the panel’s content (in total 500 words). Please specify in your abstract if you have specific practical requirements for such a contribution. We will do our best to fulfill these requirements if your proposal is accepted.
All submissions will be reviewed by an expert committee. Applicants can expect notification of acceptance by 15 March 2027.
Registration and Conference Fee
Once notifications of acceptance have been announced, it will be possible to register for the conference; upon registration, you will have to pay the conference fee. The fee includes access to all sessions, access to the welcoming reception, lunch on the first day of the conference, and tea/coffee during the breaks.
The following fees apply:
| Registration Category | Before 1 May 2027 | After 1 May 2027 |
| Regular | €175 | €225 |
| Reduced | €125 | €175 |
The reduced registration rate is available to undergraduate and graduate students, non-tenured and part-time scholars, independent scholars, and scholars experiencing financial need.
Travel Bursaries
A limited number of travel bursaries are available to help offset travel and/or accommodation costs for participants attending the conference.
Applications are welcome from undergraduate and graduate students, non-tenured or part-time scholars, independent scholars, scholars experiencing financial need.
Applicants wishing to be considered for a travel bursary should submit a single PDF containing the following:
- Your current institutional affiliation (if any) and career stage.
- A brief statement (up to 250 words) explaining why financial support is needed and how attendance at the conference will benefit your research, teaching, or professional development.
- A short estimated budget outlining anticipated travel and accommodation expenses, together with any other sources of funding applied for or received.
Applications should be submitted by 8 April 2027 to hokconference27@uu.nl
Successful applicants will be notified by 22 April 2027 so that they can register for the early-bird rate.As funding is limited, bursaries will be awarded through a careful selection process. The organizing committee reserves the right to prioritize applications based on demonstrated financial need, the applicant’s circumstances, and geographical representation.