Frontiers in Comparative Metrics V

We warmly invite proposals and abstracts, with submissions due by 1 November.

We welcome proposals addressing any aspect of poetic form and prosody, including (but not limited to):

• Comparative and historical versification
• Poetics of sound, including phonosemantics and auditory imagery
• Meters in folklore and oral performance
• Statistical and quantitative approaches to versification and poetics
• Digital tools and corpora in the analysis of verse
• Cognitive and psychological aspects of poetic rhythm
• The interrelationship between metre and meaning
• Multilingual and cross-cultural studies of poetic form

Submissions from both theoretical and empirical perspectives are welcome. We especially encourage comparative studies that transcend linguistic, cultural and disciplinary boundaries, drawing on fields such as linguistics, literary studies, folklore, psychology, cognitive science, and computational humanities.

Abstracts (max. 300 words, in English) should be submitted by November 1, 2025, to maria.lotman@ut.ee. Notification of acceptance will be sent by December 1, 2025.

Organizing committee:

Mihhail Lotman
Mari Väina
Igor Pilshchikov
Mikhail Trunin
Maria-Kristiina Lotman
 

The conference will take place at the Estonian Literary Museum, Vanemuise street 42, Tartu

The Estonian Literary Museum is a leading centre for Estonian Studies in Estonia functioning as an integrated institution that consists of archival units and research groups. The main activities of the Estonian Literary Museum include basic and applied research mainly in the fields of folklore and the study of religions, research into literature, art and culture, cultural history, life writing, ethnomusicology and bibliography, as well as participation in the respective research and development activities in the field; strategic and systematic collection, long-term preservation and scholarly study of Estonian intangible cultural heritage; making availale the results of the scholarly research as well as source materials of the intangible cultural heritage in scholarly, educational and popularising publications as well as in mediation by digital environments and as a public service.

How to get to Tartu?

From Tallinn airport the easiest way to travel to Tartu is by bus. Buses leave for Tartu at least every hour, travel time is about 2.5 hours. In Tallinn, buses stop in front of the airport, and in Tartu the bus station is in the city centre, about 1 km from the conference venue. We advise to buy the bus ticket in advance (https://www.tpilet.ee/en/).

There is also a train connection between Tallinn and Tartu. The closest train station to the airport is Ülemiste (about 1 km). Tartu Railway Station is situated about 0.5 km from the venue. Train tickets can be purchased in advance online (https://www.elron.ee/en).

Tartu can also be reached from Riga by bus, but the travel time is about 4 hours and buses do not run very often. For additional information see https://luxexpress.eu/en/.

Finnair operates flights between Helsinki (FIN) and Tartu Ülenurme Airport (EST). Tartu Ülenurme Airport (TAY) is located 11 km from Tartu and is accessible by taxi.

The airport's information service: +(372) 605 8888, e-mail tartu.info@tll.aero
https://tartu.tallinn-airport.ee/en/transport/leaving-the-airport/

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The venue is easily accessible by foot from the city centre, bus station, and train station. Public transport buses No 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 18, 20, 24 go through the city centre and stop at bus stops Riiamäe and Pauluse, which are close to the venue. A ticket for one trip can be bought from the bus driver. For bus schedules see http://peatus.ee/#route_search/eng

Where to stay?

Tartu offers a wide variety of accommodation when choosing where to stay on your trip. Information on places of accommodation in Tartu can be found here: https://visittartu.com/stay
A list of hostels and hotels:

http://academus.ee/?lang=en
https://loominghostel.ee/eng/
https://www.tamperemaja.ee/en/genres/accommodation/
https://hektorhostels.com
http://www.dorpat.ee/hotel-tartu/
https://www.barclayhotell.org/
http://www.lydia.ee/en