Call for Papers: “‘Superstitio’ from Ancient to Early Modern: Philosophy, Lexicography, and History of Ideas

Lexicon Philosophicum is the flagship journal of ILIESI (Istituto per il Lessico Intellettuale Europeo e Storia delle Idee). It investigates its particular domain – the ‘history of texts and ideas’ – in a broad vision of the boundaries of philosophical production, and through the peculiar lens of the historiography of learned terminology that characterizes the ILIESI. While historians have often studied ‘superstition’ tracing past practices of now sunken beliefs and systems of belief, we are especially interested in charting the intricate lexical and semantic field that originates from and surrounds ‘superstition’: a web of word usages, associations, and meanings, as well as of connected terms and concepts, that arose in the early modern reception of ancient debates and in the transformation, extensions, and innovations that modernity brought about in this domain. It invites submissions of papers to be included in the special issue of Lexicon Philosophicum on ‘Superstitio’, that will appear at the end of 2021. Contributions may focus on concepts and lexica stemming from individual philosophers, from dynamics of cultural transfer, from debates and controversies, etc. The issue will include some invited contributions from international scholars. We encourage young scholars, including post-docs and Ph.D. students, to submit. Please refer to the journal website for submission instructions. All submissions will be double-blind refereed.