Chagatai Manuscript Reading Course

The International Summer Academy Chagatai Manuscript Reading Course aims to provide an international group of participants with advanced knowledge of one of the central languages of the Islamic world—Chagatai—through the study of primary texts. Chagatai is not only one of the most important Turkic languages but also an essential source and literary language for studying the history of Central Asia, Afghanistan and Northwestern China. However, due to the disciplinary division of this area between Slavic Studies, Sinology, Turkic, Islamic and Iranian Studies, Chagatai is rarely taught.

The Summer Academy, organised jointly by Prof. Dr. Philip Bockholt (University of Münster) and Prof. Dr. Jeanine Dağyeli (University of Vienna / Austrian Academy of Sciences), seeks to fill this gap. Building upon international initiatives for beginners, it expands the offering to an advanced level and thus helps open up the massive and largely underexplored corpus of Chagatai for a future generation of researchers.

When and where?

The Summer Academy will take place at the University of Münster from Monday, 29 June to Friday, 3 July 2026. The event will be on-site only, online attendance is not provided.

Instructors and course overview

The five invited lecturers are Jeanine Dağyeli (Vienna), László Károly (Uppsala), Benedek Péri (Budapest), Eric Schluessel (Oxford) and Marc Toutant (Paris). Being renowned specialists in their respective field, they will introduce participants to a variety of literary genres and texts, including poetry, historiography, craft treatises, and medicine.

Sessions will be held in the mornings (9.30–11.00, 11.30–13.00) and afternoons (14.30–16.30), a total of 25 hours. The morning sessions will consist of a lecture and a hands-on exercise led by one of the lecturers, a presentation of a selected genre as well as discussions of ongoing research based on primary materials, while the afternoon sessions will consist of presentations and discussions by two to three participants who will present their own material, related to the texts of that day, each chaired by the teacher of the day.

Eligibility and course level

Participants from any relevant discipline at any career level whose research focuses on Central Asia, Afghanistan and Northwestern China are welcome to apply, provided that they have acquired an intermediate level of Chagatai and are able to read the Arabo-Persian script without relying on latinization. In practice, this means that they must have sufficient knowledge of the grammar (having studied, e.g., János Eckmann’s Chaghatay Manual or Eric Schluessel’s An Introduction to Chaghatay) and have some reading experience. To enhance international accessibility, visibility and recognition, the entire program will be conducted in English. The number of places is restricted to 20 participants to allow fruitful peer interaction and direct mentorship.

Fee

The fee is 200 € and includes study materials and coffee breaks. Accommodation, travel and meals are not included. Pending funding decisions, a limited number of full or partial travel grants will be available upon justified request.

How to apply?

Please send your application to translapt@uni-muenster.de in a single PDF file before 13.02.2026. The PDF file, titled with the applicant‘s surname, should consist of a letter of interest (max. one page) and a CV, including a statement on the applicant’s proficiency in Chagatai and on how the Summer Academy would support their academic development. Applicants will be informed by 02.03.2026.

For further questions, please contact us at the email address translapt@uni-muenster.de.

Looking forward to welcoming you to Münster!