Biennial conferences
Every two years, ISSEME organizes a conference which allows its members to present their latest research, form networks and communicate about the future of the society and the field at large.
“Crossing Borders” will be the theme of ISSEME 2027, the 23rd biennial conference, which will take place in Udine 30 June–2 July, 2025. This conference will be held on campus with an opportunity to present and attend online. Attendees should be members in good standing of ISSEME (become a member here).
You will soon find more information on the Udine conference on a dedicated page.
Keynote Lectures
ISSEME conferences give attendees the opportunity to hear lectures by some of the best specialists in the field. Since 2025, we have settled on a new model, to strengthen our relationship with the leading journal in our field, Early Medieval England and its Neighbours, and to give extra visibility to new voices among us.
The EMEN Lecture
The keynote speaker is chosen by EMEN‘s and ISSEME’s boards (including the Vice-President, in charge of organizing the conference) and their attendance is sponsored by Cambridge University Press. The text of the lecture is published in EMEN.
The Roberta Frank Lecture
The keynote speaker is a scholar who has completed their PhD but not yet obtained a tenured position. They are chosen by representatives of ISSEME (including the Vice-President) and former speakers. Travel expenses for the speaker is financed in part by donations to ISSEME’s dedicated fund. We express our most heartfelt gratitude to all our donors, who help making this lecture possible (while keeping the conference budget reasonable and therefore conference registration affordable).
For more information on this lecture, see our dedicated page.
The Host Lecture
The choice of the speaker for this lecture is the prerogative of the Vice-President and their local team. They may be chosen to reflect specificities of the host university or country.
Pre-Conference Workshop
The day before the conference starts, a pre-conference workshop is organized for Early-Career Researchers. It typically includes sessions on practical issues useful for researchers starting their career. ISSEME sponsors 10 spots on the workshop. The 10 successful applicants get to attend the conference for free and obtain a travel grant. Depending on local specificities, we try to obtain free or cheap accommodation for these 10 participants. Check this page to see an example of one of our past workshops.
Publication Awards
The Conference is also the occasion to celebrate the best publications released in the two years before the conference. At the very beginning of the year of the conference, members of the society may submit their own publications or those of others for consideration in one of our publication awards: best first monograph, best book, best article, etc. The winners are announced during the general meeting.
See our dedicated page for more information on the awards.
General Meeting
Between conferences, board members work together through emails and virtual meetings on the society’s various projects. They can be contacted at any time by society members who wish to get involved and/or make suggestions for the future of the society. During the conference, a time is set aside for a General Meeting, where the Executive Director presents the work undertaken by the board since the last conference and members can ask questions. The General Meeting ends with the awards ceremony.
Past Conferences
You can find an overview of past biennial conferences here: Overview of biennial conferences