The St Magnus conference moves online

The fifth International St Magnus conference hosted by the University of the Highlands and Islands Institute for Northern Studies will take place online from Wednesday 14 April.

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Havera

The three-day event, entitled ‘Island Histories and Herstories', will explore the contribution of women and men in island communities from before the Viking age to the present, revealing the experiences of island life through research and storytelling.

The event is free and those signed up will have an opportunity to listen to over 40 speakers from more than ten countries, including Iceland, Finland, and Turkey.

Conference organiser, Dr Andrew Jennings, explains why it was important to have an event this year:

"When the pandemic first began last year, we had to make the difficult decision to postpone our annual conference.  It was disappointing, the programme was fantastic, and the speakers had already put in so much work, so we were determined to make sure it went ahead in 2021 and have moved it online.

"And, just as our students can study with us remotely, no matter where they are based geographically, now our conference delegates can join us from anywhere in the world.   It also presents a wonderful opportunity to share international knowledge gained through research with many more people, bringing alive stories from island communities without the need to travel in person." 

Keynote speaker, Dr John Goodlad will talk about the 19th century Shetland cod hunters, with other paper topics including entitled: Skyr Tactics: Power through Protein in Medieval Iceland; Medical and Magical Properties of Viking Gender Identities; Knitting Skills and Stories: Makkin and Yakkin in Shetland and the Aran Isles; and Women's Lives in 19th century Newfoundland.

For more information on how to find out more and register to attend and how to join visit www.uhi.ac.uk/stmagnus2020 or email INS@uhi.ac.uk to sign up.