Postdoc Position: Social Norms in Medieval Canon Law

The medieval body of texts known as 'canon law' not only regulates strictly religious or ecclesiastical issues but also communicates social and moral ideas about the inner life of society. With a combination of traditional philological study and advanced digital humanities methods, the SOLEMNE project aims to chart how such ideas are transmitted, appropriated, altered, and promoted in canonical collections. As a postdoctoral researcher, you will contribute to this project by researching the spread of thoughts and ideas on social norms through clusters of authoritative statements within these collections.

This three-year position is part of the project 'The Social Life of Early Medieval Normative Texts' (SOLEMNE), funded through the ERC Consolidator Grant awarded to Dr Sven Meeder. A fuller description of the project can be found here. The SOLEMNE project aims to describe and contextualise the spread of social norms as articulated in specific combinations of canons in a bottom-up approach starting from the vast corpus of manuscript witnesses of canonical collections in every shape and form (4th-12th centuries). A dynamic database forms an essential element of the project, combined with an innovative digital tool that allows for queries of shared content in canonical collections or manuscripts and of levels of affinity based on combinations of authoritative statements.

Your postdoctoral research will contribute to the main objectives of the project. Studying the rich textual source material and its reception in different social and cultural contexts, you will investigate the ways in which developing social norms and values are manifested in the changes of particularly unstable texts, characterised by numerous ‘recensions’, variant readings and ‘contaminations’.

You will use the project's dataset, as well as contribute research results to it. Your findings should be presented in at least three major articles in international scientific journals, and you are also expected to contribute to wider communication of the project's results. Furthermore, you will cooperate closely with all other subprojects and participate in the project's programme of meetings as a speaker and organiser.

Profile

• You should hold a PhD degree in Late Antique, Medieval or Legal History (or a related field). If you have not yet completed your PhD, please submit a statement from your supervisor confirming that the degree will be obtained by the time of appointment.
• You have excellent research skills in relation to your career stage, clear descriptive and analytical abilities, and experience with palaeography, manuscript studies and the study of canon law.
• You have affinity with Digital Humanities and are willing to acquire or expand your digital skillset. Familiarity with exploratory data analysis would be an advantage.
• You must have excellent competence in English and Latin and a passive knowledge of the relevant modern languages. You are an independent thinker, ready to engage in interdisciplinary research, bridging philology, manuscript studies and social history.
• You have a strong willingness to work collaboratively in an international research team and you are able to adopt a leadership role.

We are

The position is supervised by Dr Sven Meeder (PI), but you will work closely with all current and future team members of the SOLEMNE project. The research is embedded in the Radboud Institute for Culture & History (RICH).

Radboud University

At Radboud University, we aim to make an impact through our work. We achieve this by conducting groundbreaking research, providing high-quality education, offering excellent support, and fostering collaborations within and outside the university. In doing so, we contribute indispensably to a healthy, free world with equal opportunities for all. To accomplish this, we need even more colleagues who, based on their expertise, are willing to search for answers. We advocate for an inclusive community and welcome employees with diverse backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives. Will you also contribute to making the world a little better? You have a part to play.

Faculty of Arts

The Faculty of Arts is committed to the development of knowledge with a strong scientific and social impact. With over 500 academic and support staff, we teach and conduct research in the fields of art, history, language, culture and communication, using innovative methodologies and collaborating closely across disciplines. Our research is embedded in two research institutes: the Centre for Language Studies (CLS) and the Radboud Institute for Culture & History (RICH). Approximately 2,500 students are currently enrolled with us across our three departments: the Department of History, Art History and Classics, the Department of Modern Languages and Cultures and the Department of Language and Communication. The faculty is characterised by a pleasant and open culture with various opportunities for the professional development of our staff.

We offer

• We will give you a temporary employment contract of 3 year(s).
• Your salary within salary scale 11 depends on your previous education and number of years of (relevant) work experience. The amounts in the scale are based on a 38-hour working week. Starting scale 10 may apply.
• You will receive an 8% holiday allowance and an 8,3% end-of-year bonus.
• You will be able to use our Dual Career and Family Support Service. The Dual Career Programme assists your partner via support, tools, and resources to improve their chances of independently finding employment in the Netherlands. Our Family Support Service helps you and your partner feel welcome and at home by providing customised assistance in navigating local facilities, schools, and amenities. Also take a look at our support for international staff page to discover all our services for international employees.
• You will receive extra days off. With full-time employment, you can choose between 30 or 41 days of annual leave instead of the statutory 20.

Additional employment conditions

Work and science require good employment practices. Radboud University's primary and secondary employment conditions reflect this. You can make arrangements for the best possible work-life balance with flexible working hours, various leave arrangements and working from home. You are also able to compose part of your employment conditions yourself. For example, exchange income for extra leave days and receive a reimbursement for your sports membership. And, of course, we offer a good pension plan. We also give you plenty of room and responsibility to develop your talents and realise your ambitions. Therefore, we provide various training and development schemes.