Migrating Theories: Humanities Dialogues between Central-Eastern Europe and the Ibero-American World
To Mark the Centenary of the Prague Circle (1926–2026)
International Conference
Date: September 17–18, 2026
Location: Bogotá, Colombia
Languages: Spanish, Portuguese, and English
Format: In-person and virtual
Submission Deadline: May 25, 2026 (send to: praga26FCH_bog@unal.edu.co)
In 2026, the centenary of the founding of the Prague Linguistic Circle will be commemorated—one of the most influential institutions in the history of linguistics, aesthetics, and literary theory in the twentieth century. Celebrations organized worldwide acknowledge the global impact of the Prague School and its decisive role in shaping modern studies of the sign, the aesthetic function, and the structure of the work of art.
Although the reception of the Circle’s thought in the Ibero-American world has been fragmentary, Colombia has played a notable role in its study and dissemination. This is largely due to the pioneering work of Professor Jarmila Jandová (1942–2019), a graduate of Charles University in Prague, who, after her studies at the Andrés Bello Seminar, introduced the teaching of Jan Mukařovský’s aesthetics in the country and promoted the translation into Spanish of fundamental texts of the Prague School. The collaboration between Jandová and the Hispanist and literary theorist Emil Volek made possible the publication—by the National University of Colombia—of Sign, Function and Value: The Aesthetics and Semiotics of Art by Jan Mukařovský (2000, 2020) and Theatrical Theory of the Prague School: From Phenomenology to Performative Semiotics (2013). These works provided Spanish-speaking readers with terminologically precise and coherent translations, accompanied by a solid critical apparatus that consolidated the presence of Prague School thought in the Hispanic world.
This work is complemented by the figure of the Hispanist Oldřich Bělič (1920–2002), who, in close collaboration with the Instituto Caro y Cuervo, published in Bogotá in 2000 his monumental work Spanish Verse and European Verse: Introduction to the Theory of Spanish Verse in the European Context. In it, he brought Slavic versification theory into dialogue with the Hispanic metrical tradition, thus opening a previously unexplored field of comparative study.
The event “Migrating Theories: Dialogues in the Humanities between East-Central Europe and the Ibero-American World. One Hundred Years after the Prague Circle (1926–2026)” aims to celebrate this centenary from Bogotá, recognizing the history of reception, translation, and teaching of Prague School theory, as well as the intellectual links between Prague, Latin America, and Spain.
At the same time, the conference seeks to broaden the scope of reflection toward theoretical dialogues between East-Central Europe and the Ibero-American world, incorporating traditions from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Russia, among others. This perspective encompasses not only the legacies of Russian formalism and Prague structuralism but also contributions from philosophy, linguistics, and aesthetics developed in the region. Figures such as Georg Lukács, Roman Ingarden, Jan Patočka, and Mircea Eliade demonstrate the breadth and vitality of a body of thought that decisively transformed contemporary ways of conceiving the humanities.
Thematic Areas
- The legacy of the Prague Linguistic Circle: relevance, reinterpretations, and contemporary projections.
- Theoretical dialogues between the Ibero-American world and East-Central Europe: linguistics, philosophy, literary theory, and aesthetics.
- Histories of translation and reception: circulation, appropriations, and reinterpretations of East-Central European theoretical thought in the Ibero-American world.
- Contemporary digital humanities and the legacies of structuralism.
- Cross-readings: Ibero-American culture in light of East-Central European theories.
- The Prague School and contemporary artistic practices.
Submission of Proposals:
Proposals should include the title of the paper, a 300-word abstract, and a short biography (up to 100 words). Please send submissions to praga26FCH_bog@unal.edu.co by May 25, 2026. Notifications of acceptance will be sent on June 15, 2026.
Partner Organizations
- Research Group “History and Literature” (National University of Colombia).
- Research Group “Pensar Sonido” (National University of Colombia).
- Grupo de investigación TRANSFER. Comparative Literature and Translation Studies Research Group (Autonomous University of Madrid).
- Ibero-American Network of Russian and Slavic Studies.
- Atlas. Research Seedbed in World Literature (Department of Literature, National University of Colombia)
