Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - Berliner Institut für Islamische Theologie

The interdisciplinary conference is organized by Dr. Nadine El-Hussein and Prof. Dr. Mohammad Gharaibeh (Chair of Islamic Intellectual History, Berlin Institute for Islamic Theology) and will take place at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Germany, from 28 to 30 January 2027.

Polemics appear constantly in all epochs, from Antiquity to our modern times. During all historical periods, criticism and competition, disputes and disagreements, reproval and reprisals indicate conflictual interactions up to violent encounters. However, polemics are far more than mere attacks: They reveal social complexities and have social functions. They are important contributions to discourses, they have always determined the intellectual, religious and political developments of an epoch. 

While addressing different levels and dimensions of polemics, the key topics and objectives of the conference are:

• Authors of polemics, texts and contexts
• Addressees and target groups of polemics, reasons and purposes
• Levels of polemics at the interplay between politics, religion and scholarly careers
• Practices, positions, performances and temporalities of polemics
• Methodological framework and polemics as a concept

The conference aims also at establishing a methodological framework and to conceptualize polemics as a category from a historical point of view. 

You can find the complete Call for Papers here.

Please submit the title and abstract of your paper (250–max. 500 words) with a short academic CV (including up to five relevant publications) to Dr. Nadine El-Hussein (nadine.el-hussein@hu-berlin.de) by 30 June 2026. The acceptance of papers will be announced by the end of July 2026.

The conference proceedings will be published in a collective volume. Please submit the first draft of your contribution by 31 May 2027 to Dr. Nadine El-Hussein (nadine.el-hussein@hu-berlin.de). Details on the formal guidelines and standards will be provided in due course.