[INDOLOGY] Call for Chapter Proposals: 'Euclid Beyond the Mediterranean' (Edited Volume & MPIWG Workshop)

Thu Sep 17 11:29:05 UTC 2026

Dear Colleagues,

I hope this email finds you well.

We are writing to announce a Call for Chapter Proposals for an upcoming
edited volume titled '*Euclid Beyond the Mediterranean*'. The volume will
be anchored in our working group of the same name under the Research Group
'Astral Science in Trans-Regional Asia' (ASTRA) at the Max Planck Institute
for the History of Science (MPIWG) in Berlin. You can view more details
about the working group project on the MPIWG website
<https://www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/research/projects/euclid-beyond-mediterranean>
.

As part of this publishing project, we are planning an international
workshop in late 2027 at the MPIWG in Berlin to bring contributors together
for a collective gathering where critical feedback can be shared internally
before final manuscript completion. The resulting volume is planned to be
published in our forthcoming Brill book series, *Astral Sciences in
Trans-Regional Asia* (launching in 2026).

The volume explicitly seeks contributions from early-career researchers and
advanced PhD students. We warmly encourage you to forward this call to
interested scholars in your networks and encourage them to apply. This
project offers a wonderful occasion to extend the conversation of Euclidean
reasoning far beyond Western Europe.

Please find the full Call for Chapter Proposals below.

With warm regards,

Anuj Misra (MPIWG Berlin / Freie Universität Berlin)

Toke Lindegaard Knudsen (SUNY Oneonta)

*___________CALL FOR CHAPTER PROPOSALS*

*Title:* 'Euclid Beyond the Mediterranean'

*Editors:* Anuj Misra (MPIWG Berlin / Freie Universität Berlin) & Toke
Lindegaard Knudsen (SUNY Oneonta)
Overview
Euclid’s *Elements* stands among the most influential works in the history
of global knowledge. However, historiographical attention has predominantly
focussed on its transmission, commentary traditions, and modern
developments within Mediterranean, Western European, and Near Eastern
contexts.

'Euclid Beyond the Mediterranean' aims to expand this perspective by
examining the multifaceted reception and translation of Euclidean geometry
across Asia, Africa, Oceania, and the Americas. Building on the momentum of
foundational initiatives such as the 'EUCLIDES
<https://izwt.uni-wuppertal.de/en/research/research/focus-on-history/euclides-euklid-in-der-neuzeit/>'
project ('Euclid in the modern era: A history of transmissions,
translations and intercultural transformations of the Elements', led by
Vincenzo De Risi and Angela Axworthy), this edited collection—tied to the
MPIWG working group of the same name—seeks to extend these inquiries to
encompass regional classical and vernacular cultures beyond the
Mediterranean basin that actively engaged with Euclidean ideas.

We seek original contributions that explore how Euclidean concepts—and the
text of the *Elements* itself—were translated, adapted, transformed,
contested, or integrated into local intellectual, practical, and
philosophical frameworks.
Themes & Scope
We welcome proposals addressing—but not limited to—the following themes in
non-Mediterranean geographies across all chronological periods:

   -

   *Translation & Vernacularisation:* The translation of the *Elements*
   into regional classical (e.g., Sanskrit, Classical Chinese, Persian) and
   vernacular languages, focussing on terminological innovation, linguistic
   adaptations, manuscript traditions, and lost or fragmentary translations.
   -

   *Transmissions & Textual Trajectories:* Circulation networks, scribal
   practices, and the material history of Euclidean texts moving across
   regional boundaries.
   -

   *Philosophical & Epistemological Encounters:* How Euclidean axioms,
   definitions, and modes of proof interacted with local cosmological,
   logical, or mathematical traditions.
   -

   *Technical & Material Culture:* Practical applications of Euclidean
   geometry in architecture, surveying, cartography, navigation, astronomy,
   and visual arts.
   -

   *Sociohistorical & Political Contexts:* Institutional adoption,
   patronage, educational reform, colonial encounters, and post-colonial
   re-evaluations of Euclidean knowledge.
   -

   *Historiographies & Modern Appropriations:* How regional translations
   and interpretations of Euclid shaped local histories of science and
   mathematics.

To foster diverse perspectives and support the next generation of
scholarship, early-career researchers (ECRs) and doctoral candidates are
particularly encouraged to apply.
Workshop & Publication Plan
Contributors whose proposals are accepted will be invited to participate in
a collective working group workshop in late 2027 at the MPIWG in Berlin to
share feedback internally. The finalized volume is scheduled for
publication in the forthcoming Brill book series *Astral Sciences in
Trans-Regional Asia* (launching in 2026).Submission Guidelines
To apply, kindly send a tentative title and a 150–200 word abstract
outlining the topic, methodology, sources, and central argument, along with
your name and contact details, as a single PDF file to:

   -

   Anuj Misra: amisra at mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
   -

   Toke Knudsen: toke.knudsen at oneonta.edu

*Subject line:* 'Chapter Proposal: Euclid Beyond the Mediterranean'
Key Dates & Timeline

   -

   *Abstract Submission Deadline:* 30 November 2026
   -

   *Notification of Acceptance:* 15 January 2027
   -

   *Full Chapter Submission (approx. 7,000–9,000 words):* 15 September 2027
   -

   *Working Group Workshop (Berlin):* Late 2027
   -

   *Target Publication:* Spring 2028

-- 
<https://www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/research/departments/max-planck-research-group-astra>
*Anuj MISRA*, Ph.D (he/him)
*Max Planck Research Group Leader
<https://www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/people/amisra>*
RG: Astral Sciences in Trans-Regional Asia (ASTRA
<https://www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/research/departments/max-planck-research-group-astra>
)
Max Planck Institute for the History of Science (MPIWG)
Boltzmannstraße 22, 14195 Berlin, GERMANY

Room 102, Harnackstraße 5
+49 30 22667 313 <+49%2030%2022667313>
amisra at mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de

─ *in conjunction with*─

*Professor of the History of Science and the History of Knowledge
<https://www.geschkult.fu-berlin.de/en/e/wissensgeschichte/mitarbeiter_innen/Anuj-Misra/index.html>*
Institute for the History of Knowledge in the Ancient World
Department of History and Cultural Studies, Freie Universität Berlin
Otto-von-Simson-Str. 7, 14195 Berlin, GERMANY

Room 205
+49 03 838 59046
a.misra at fu-berlin.de

─
*Affiliated External Researcher
<https://ccrs.ku.dk/staff/?pure=en/persons/663586>* (2024─25)
Department of Cross-Cultural and Regional Studies (CCRS)
University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, DENMARK
anuj.misra at hum.ku.dk

─
*Adjunct Senior Fellow <https://profiles.canterbury.ac.nz/Anuj-Misra>*
(since September 2021)
School of Mathematics and Statistics | Te Kura Pāngarau
University of Canterbury | Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha
Christchurch, NEW ZEALAND
aj.misra at canterbury.ac.nz
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