This theme focuses on questions connected with the transmission of writing and processes of canon-building. The notion of transmission is envisioned both in a material sense (manuscript tradition and the shift to print) and in its intellectual dimension. Multilingualism, translation processes and the choice of scripts are all taken into consideration. Libraries as places of transmission are one of the focal points for studies dealing with textual transmission in many geographical and linguistic areas.
Canon-building inevitably refers to sacred texts first : this theme will focus not only on the canons of monotheistic writings but also on those of Asian religions, promoting a comparative approach that will bring together specialists in many fields. The term is also understood more broadly as the process by which authoritative corpora, whether religious or literary, are formed.
Theme leaders : Muriel Debié, Charlotte Schmid