The project “Scanderbegus Latinus. The Image of Skanderbeg in Neo-Latin Literature” seeks to recruit a team member at the level of a doctoral student (‘pre-doc’) on a 3-year (36 months) fixed term contract to begin in April 2024.

The project is funded by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) and will be hosted at the University of Innsbruck’s Departement of Classical Philology and Neo-Latin Studies under the PI Stefan Zathammer.

The project

Gjergj Kastrioti (1405–1468), known as Skanderbeg, and his fight against the Ottomans played an important role in the formation of Albanian identity. The modern Skanderbeg myth rooting back only to the late 19th century, and which depicts a non-religious leader of a nation fighting for its existence, however, has little in common with what can be found in early modern literature. There one can read about Skanderbeg as an athleta Christi who fights for the whole of Christianity and Europe.

While much research has already been done on the historical person and the modern Skanderbeg myth, little attention has been paid to the early modern Skanderbeg literature especially Neo-Latin literature. Even though precisely these texts were decisive for the formation of the image of Skanderbeg in early modern Europe and remained a frame of reference for the literature in the vernacular. The Scanderbegus Latinus project aims to fill this gap and examine the Latin Skanderbeg literature in detail for the first time.

Responsibilities

• preparation of a critical edition of an important text of the early modern Latin Skanderbeg tradition
• collaborative work on the digital repository of Neo-Latin Skanderbeg literature
• co-organization of an international conference

Skills and qualifications

Required

• MA degree (or equivalent) in Classical Philology of Neo-Latin studies (or similar)
• focus on Neo-Latin research for the duration of the appointment
• excellent Latin reading skills
• excellent English, reading knowledge of German

Desired

• experience of working in TEI XML
• solid knowledge of another European language

Further details

• the appointment starts on 1 April 2024 and ends on 31 March 2027
• remuneration for the pre-doc position follows the salary scheme oft he FWF and will begin at monthly € 2,464.80 gross[1]
• the project is based at the University of Innsbruck’s Department of Classical Philology and Neo-Latin Studies
• the pre-doctoral researcher will have the opportunity to submit the project edition as his/her PhD thesis

Applications

Applications – consisting of a cover letter, CV, relevant certification, the contact details of a referee and a writing sample – should be sent in PDF format to fgrsna.mngunzzre@hvox.np.ng by 6 January 2024. Shortlisted applicants will be invited to an interview (most probably online) in the course of January 2024.

The University of Innsbruck is an equal opportunities employer and especially welcomes applications from women and minorities.

General enquires can be sent to the PI at fgrsna.mngunzzre@hvox.np.ng.

[1] Status as of February 2023.