The Society
News and announcements
Calls for papers, conference notices, studentships and posts, the Society's statements, and its annual Bulletin.
2025
- 4 September 2025SOTS GDPR PolicyInformation we hold about you We are committed to preserving your privacy, to letting you know how we use your personal information and to making responsible use of your data. References to ‘we’, ‘us’, or ‘our’ are references to the Society for Old Testament Study based in Great Britain and…
- 25 August 2025SOTS Bulletin 2025BULLETIN 2025 The Society’s website (https://www.sots.ac.uk/) is its main source of all information, including details on how the Society operates, its future meetings, a (permanent) call for papers, other notifications and items of news. Guidance to find specific items is offered here: Meetings In…
- 21 July 2025SOTS Bulletin 2022BULLETIN 2022 The Society’s website (https://www.sots.ac.uk/) is its main source of all information, including details on how the Society operates, its future meetings, a (permanent) call for papers, other notifications and items of news. Guidance to find specific items is offered here: Meetings In…
- 21 July 2025SOTS Bulletin 2023BULLETIN 2023 The Society’s website (https://www.sots.ac.uk/) is its main source of all information, including details on how the Society operates, its future meetings, a (permanent) call for papers, other notifications and items of news. Guidance to find specific items is offered here: Meetings In…
- 21 July 2025SOTS Bulletin 2024BULLETIN 2024 The Society’s website (https://www.sots.ac.uk/) is its main source of all information, including details on how the Society operates, its future meetings, a (permanent) call for papers, other notifications and items of news. Guidance to find specific items is offered here: Meetings In…
2023
- 24 November 2023Biblical Hebrew Winter School (BHWS)Biblical Hebrew Winter School (BHWS) at Westminster College, Cambridge 3rd – 12th Jan 2024 We are delighted to be offering two ‘tracks’ for learning Biblical Hebrew from scratch this coming January: Biblical Hebrew Intensive / academic track, taught by Dr Marieke Dhont, and Biblical Hebrew for…
- 28 June 2023Margaret Beaufort Biblical Studies CourseThis ten-week short course (Oct-Dec 2023) offers a creative engagement with a breadth of texts and methods in contemporary biblical studies. More information and registration: click here The course is team-taught by leading specialists in the fields of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, Second Temple…
- 25 May 2023Kirby Laing Doctoral Studentships in Old and New TestamentKIRBY LAING DOCTORAL STUDENTSHIPS IN NEW AND OLD TESTAMENT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF GLOUCESTERSHIRE (CHELTENHAM) STARTING 1 OCTOBER 2023 The University of Gloucestershire is offering up to three full fees doctoral studentships in New Testament funded by the Kirby Laing Trusts to commence on 1st October…
2020
- 17 August 2020Information on REF2021SOTS members for whom the REF2021 research audit is relevant are encouraged to consult the information on the REF website (https://www.ref.ac.uk/guidance). Where there seems any uncertainty about their individual circumstances, they should raise such questions with the appropriate officers in their…
- 4 August 2020Hugh Pyper Reading Qohelet in ScotsProf Hugh Pyper reading his own translation of Qohelet into Scots:
- 25 June 2020Statement about the case of Jan JoostenAs the Committee of the Society for Old Testament Study, we wish to express our shock and sorrow that Professor Jan Joosten, a leading Old Testament scholar and, until recently, a member of the Society, has been convicted of the possession of images of the sexual abuse of children, and our horror…
- 19 June 2020Ancient Near Eastern Languages in Contact—eLecture SeriesWe are pleased to announce that University College London and King’s College London are co-hosting an eLecture series, entitled Ancient Near Eastern Languages in Contact (ANELC). With this initiative we aim to bring together scholars from around the world with an interest in Ancient Near Eastern…
- 15 June 2020A New Deal for Higher EducationTo:The Secretary of State for EducationRT Hon Gavin Williamson CBE Minister of State for UniversitiesHon Michelle Donelan Minister for Education in Wales,Kirsty Williams MS Minister for Higher Education and Science in Scotland,Richard Lochhead MSP Minister for the Department of Education of…
- 9 June 2020Statement on George Floyd and Use of BibleStatement on behalf of the Society for Old Testament Study As human beings we are horrified at the racist killing of George Floyd by a white policeman. George Floyd was a member of an ethnic group subject to centuries of slavery, subordination and oppression and still regarded as inferior by so…
- 12 May 2020Oxford Biblical Hebrew Summer School 2020 – ONLINEThis year’s Oxford Biblical Hebrew Summer School, which will take place online (via Zoom) from 1 to 11 September 2020 inclusive. The school offers nine days of intensive teaching in biblical Hebrew. Each weekday there will be three hours of teaching, delivered in two separate 90-minute sessions,…
- 12 February 2020Martyrdom on the MarginsFebruary 20, 2020 MBI Al Jaber Building, Corpus Christi College, Oxford A conference sponsored by:The Centre for the Study of the Bible in the Humanities, Oriel College The Oxford Centre for Byzantine Research The Faculty of Oriental Studies Organised by:Hindy Najman, Oriel and Laing Professor of…
- 12 February 2020Categories and Boundaries in Second Temple Jewish LiteratureDepartment of Theology & Religion, University of Birmingham 15th–16th July 2020 Keynote Speakers: Dr Molly Zahn, University of Kansas Dr Elisa Uusimäki, Aarhus University Deadline for Abstracts: Saturday 28th March, 2020 We invite postgraduate students and early career researchers to submit…
2019
- 23 November 2019Hermeneutic InterventionsSunday 1st and Monday 2nd December 2019 Oriel College, University Oxford Organizers: Hindy Najman (Oriel); Daniel Weidner (ZFL); Adriana X. Jacobs (St. Cross); Yael Fisch (Oriel); Rebekah Van Sant-Clark (Oriel) Is a common reading possible across languages, cultures, and disciplines? Under what…
- 10 October 2019Photos from the Summer Meeting 2019, Worcester College, OxfordPhotos by Keith Barnes, ©Susan Gillingham. posted here with kind permission by Susan Gillingham
- 5 June 2019TRS-UK response to British Academy report on ‘Theology and Religious Studies Provisions’ in UK Higher Education’TRS-UK recently posted the following on their website: TRS-UK (the umbrella organisation for all UK Departments of Theology & Religious Studies and the relevant subject associations) is very grateful for the recent British Academy report on ‘Theology and Religious Studies Provision in UK Higher…
- 12 April 2019Protestant Bible Scholarship: Antisemitism, Philosemitism, and Anti-Judaism (26-27 May 2019, Oxford)This conference brings prominent biblical scholars and scholars of Judaism together for a conversation about the foundations of our fields. We want to generate a discussion of how a biased understanding of Judaism became integral to the discipline. This conversation is about understanding, healing…
- 11 March 2019Oxford Biblical Hebrew Summer SchoolThe Oxford Biblical Hebrew Summer School will take place at the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies from September 2-13, 2019. The cost of the school is £300 per student for 30 hours of language instruction. Application forms may be downloaded from the Centre’s website: www.ochjs.ac.uk;…
2018
- 20 September 2018Report of the Joint Meeting 2018Violence in the Hebrew Bible: Between Text and Reception 22–24 August 2018, Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies, University of Groningen, Oude Boteringestraat 38, Court Room Het Oudtestamentisch Werkgezelschap in Nederland en BelgiëThe Society for Old Testament Study (United Kingdom)Die…
- 23 August 2018Lament, Reading and TherapyJoint KCL/Oxford workshop 5 November 2018 Oriel College, Oxford This workshop considers the composition, performance, and repetition of texts of lament, loss and healing. We understand the writing and reading of these lament traditions to be the work of therapy. Presentations will explore how…
- 9 May 2018Targum Studies conference (IOTS) at UCL, 9–12 JulyConference Programme: Targum Studies in London, IOTS 2018 In consultation with the Institute of Jewish Studies, the International Organization for Targum Studies announces a summer meeting at University College London, 9-12 July 2018 (the conference will start with an evening lecture on July 9th).…
- 1 May 2018Joint Meeting with OTWDavid Shepherd writes about the upcoming joint meeting of OTW and SOTS: As most of you know, the Society has a longstanding tradition of holding joint meetings with our Dutch-speaking colleagues from the Netherlands and Belgium (and occasionally South Africa). This year the joint meeting will be…
- 10 April 2018Service to celebrate the life of Richard Coggins, former President of the SocietyA service will be held in celebration of the life and work of Richard Coggins on Tuesday 22nd May 2018 at 5.30 pm in the Chapel of King’s College London, Strand, London WC2R 2LS. Members of the Society are warmly invited to attend. Those planning to attend are asked kindly to notify Paul Joyce…
- 28 March 2018Oxford Biblical Hebrew Summer School 2018 at Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish StudiesThe Oxford Biblical Hebrew Summer School will take place at the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies from August 13-24, 2018. The school offers ten days of intensive teaching in biblical Hebrew. The course corresponds to a term of intensive teaching for a full-time university student and is…
- 24 March 2018Former President, Prof. Paul Joyce appointed to sub-panel 31 (Theology and Religious Studies) for the REF 2021The Society wishes to offer its congratulations to last year’s President, Prof Paul Joyce, on his recent appointment to sub-panel 31 (Theology and Religious Studies) for the assessment phase of REF2021. For further details regarding the membership of this panel for both criteria and assessment…
- 23 January 2018Call for Papers: Borders and Boundaries in Ancient IsraelAbstracts are invited for a two-day interdisciplinary conference on borders and boundaries in ancient Israel, on 5-6 June 2018. Keynote addresses will be given by Dr Christopher B. Hays (Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena CA), Dr. Shayna Sheinfeld (Centre College, Danville KY) and Dr. Mahri…
2016
- 28 September 2016Conference Announcement: ‘The exegetical value of the Masora: Pointing and accentuation in historical perspective’The Hebrew and Jewish Studies Unit at the University of Oxford will be holding a conference on ‘the exegetical value of the Masora’. The conference will take place 7-8 November at Exeter College. For a poster see here. All are welcome but please pre-register by email: sue.forteath@ochjs.ac.uk
- 23 September 20161-Year Hebrew Bible / Old Testament lectureship at ExeterFollow this link for further details.
- 24 August 2016SOTS Centenary VolumePRE-PUBLICATION OFFER ON THE SOCIETY’S CENTENNIAL ESSAYS A special offer is available on pre-ordered copies of the SOTS Centennial Essays for prospective attendees at the SOTS Centennial Meeting (Winter Meeting 2017, at Cripps Hall, Nottingham, on 3rd-5th January 2017). Order by 1st November 2016 a…
- 25 July 2016Recent publications by Honorary Members of the Society:Athalya Brenner-Idan Samuel, King’s, Chronicles. Texts@Contexts. London: Bloomsbury T & T Clark, 2016 (together with Archie C.C. Lee). Johannes de Moor Adam, Eva en de Duivel: Kanaänitische mythen en de Bijbel, Vught: Skandalon, 2016 (together with Marjo Korpel). Kirsten Nielsen 100 salmer. Et…
- 1 July 2016Lecturer / Senior Lecturer in Old Testament at LSTThe London School of Theology are seeking to appoint a full time faculty member in the area of Old Testament. The post holder must possess a PhD in Old Testament, be able to teach Hebrew at introductory and advanced levels, and preferably have supervised a doctoral student to completion. See full…
- 13 June 2016Study of Dispersed Qumran Caves Artefacts and Archival SourcesThe Department of Theology and Religious Studies of King’s College London, together with the Institute di Culture e Archeologic dell Terre Biblische of Faculty of Theology of Lugano and the University of Malta, are delighted to announce the recent success of a Leverhulme Trust International Network…
- 29 May 2016Early Bird closing for European Association and the International Organisation for Qumran StudiesEABS and IOQS meetings in Leuven: Early Bird conference registration prices are available until May 31st. We have also added post-conference field trips (one to Antwerp, one to Flanders Fields). In the next few days, we will also add tours around Leuven for accompanying persons and evening tours…
- 18 January 2016‘In whatever tribe the stranger settles’: a symposium on the Bible and migration (Trinity College Dublin, April 6-7)‘In whatever tribe the stranger settles’: a symposium on the Bible and migration (Trinity College Dublin, April 6-7) Launching the Trinity Centre for Biblical Studies (Trinity College Dublin), this symposium (April 6-7) will offer a space for exploring biblical traditions with particular attention…
- 18 January 2016Ethnicity/Race/Religion: Identities, Ideologies, and Intersections in Biblical Texts and Interpretation 9-11th August 2016, Centre for Biblical Studies, University of Exeter, UKEthnicity/Race/Religion: Identities, Ideologies, and Intersections in Biblical Texts and Interpretation 9-11th August 2016, Centre for Biblical Studies, University of Exeter, UK We are pleased to announce that the call for papers for the Ethnicity/Race/Religion Conference is now open. To propose a…
- 18 January 2016On Biblical Manuscripts and Their Use in Biblical Studies (Salzburg, Austria; 4-8 July 2016)On Biblical Manuscripts and Their Use in Biblical Studies Summer School in Salzburg, Austria 4-8 July 2016 The Hebrew and Greek Texts of Joshua http://oldtestamenttextualcriticism.blogspot.co.uk/
- 18 January 2016Annual Meeting of the British Association of Jewish Studies (Birmingham, 10-12 July 2016)BAJS Summer Meeting 10-12 July 2016. URL here: The Texture of Jewish Tradition: Investigations in Textuality The written word as manifested in a spectrum from classical Jewish texts to contemporary literature, alongside texts unearthed in locations including desert caves, an island in the Nile, a…
2015
- 26 July 2015A Festschrift for our president Hans BarstadHans Barstad receives his copy of a Festschrift in his name: Rannfrid I. Thelle, Terje Stordalen and Mervyn E. J. Richardson (eds), New Perspectives on Old Testament Prophecy and History: Essays in Honour of Hans M. Barstad (VTSup, 167; Leiden / Boston: Brill, 2015).
- 3 May 2015Summer Meeting 2015Pollock Halls, University of Edinburgh 20th-23rd July 2015 Under the presidency of Professor Hans Barstad Here are some pictures of the well-deserved Festschrift for Hans presented to him at the Summer meeting. Printable Version of the SOTS/OTW Programme. Booking form for the Summer Meeting (word /…
- 5 January 2015SOTS on Facebook!Jim West has kindly established a SOTS group on Facebook, to bring together SOTS members and others interested in Old Testament. If you have a profile on Facebook, do join. Find us in Facebook.
- 5 January 2015Temple Studies GroupA Temple Studies Group has been established, in the first instance to convene one-day symposia on Temple themes. The first symposium was held at St Stephen’s House, Oxford, on November 8th 2008, on the theme ‘Melchizedek in Scripture, Tradition and Liturgy’, with presentations by Robert Hayward,…
- 5 January 2015New Journal: SAPIENTIA LOGOS: A Journal of Biblical Research & Interpretation in AfricaA new biblical journal, SAPIENTIA LOGOS: A Journal of Biblical Research & Interpretation in Africa, announces a special theme for October 2009 and 2010. The chosen theme is: Ethnicity and Identity in Biblical Perspective. It is a topic on which the editorial board think members of SOTS would wish…
- 5 January 2015New resource: BiblindexThe BIBLINDEX project is carried out by the “Institut des Sources Chretiennes”. The first stage of the project is completed. An index of approximately 400,000 biblical quotations and references from Greek and Latin patristic texts of the first five centuries is now available online. To search…
- 5 January 2015The Grinfield lectures on the Septuagint 2014-15, University of OxfordNICHOLAS DE LANGE, Emeritus Professor of Hebrew and Jewish Studies, Cambridge ‘Japheth in the Tents of Shem: Greek Bible translations in Medieval Judaism’ (Second series) Hilary Term 2015 Details to follow.
- 5 January 2015The Fifth St Andrews Scripture and Theology Conference: The Book of JeremiahFrom 6-9 July 2015, biblical scholars and theologians from around the world will gather in St Andrews, Scotland, to consider the Book of Jeremiah, using this ancient text to bring exegesis and theology into conversation. Keynote speakers include Hugh G. M. Williamson (Christ Church, University of…