The universities of La Laguna (ULL), Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Madeira (UMa), Azores (UAç) and Cape Verde (UCV), together with the Institute of Medieval Studies (IEM) of NOVA University, the Humanities Centre (CHAM) of NOVA University -University of the Azores and the ANCV – the National Archive of Cape Verde (ANCV) and sponsored by the Dirección General de Patrimonio Cultural del Gobierno de Canarias, whould hereby invite the scientific community, private owners of family archives and members of cultural and scientific institutions to submit their proposals for papers for the International Conference on “Património cultural e arquivos de família nos arquipélagos da Macaronésia” / “Herencia cultural y archivos de familia en los archipiélagos de la Macaronesia” (Cultural heritage and family archives in the archipelagos of Macaronesia), which will be held in Tenerife between 16 and 19 May 2018.

In the last decade, several lines of research in history and archivistics have promoted new research perspectives on the construction of archives and historical sources. These new currents, in the field of Historical Archivistics and the epistemology of history, raise questions around the revaluation of family archives, not only as repositories of alternative documentary sources to the institutional archives of the church and state, but also as objects of study in themselves, due to the specific context of creation and transmission of the family archives built up on the margins of the official spaces of the coeval political-institutional powers. This renders family archives as common heritage with a value transcending their historical dimensions to involve the whole society as they are especially interesting as expressions of identities, memories and plural historical discourses. Precisely because they integrate into this common cultural heritage, the proposal we make here is to deepen knowledge on the family archives of the Macaronesian archipelagos.

The congress will be structured around four thematic tables coupled with an inaugural conference on family and community archives. Each thematic table will be preceded by a paper that introduces the thematic axis of the table. The thematic axes of each table are as follows:

  1. The family archives as cultural heritage of the community;
  2. The search for new relationships between historical research, archives and documentary sources;
  3. The particular historical context of family archives in Atlantic societies and especially on the Atlantic archipelagos;
  4. The cultural policies under development in the Atlantic geography that contribute to the conservation, research and dissemination of this heritage.

This first call would urge historians, archive owners, archivists and the rest of the scientific community to participate in the congress sessions. We are also calling for the presentation of papers in the free papers section within the scope of the four Congress sessions themes.

Proposals must be submitted by 16 February.

All information, dates and instructions for submitting proposals can be found on the congress website, at: www.congresoarchivosmacaronesia.com


Contact for further information:
conarcmac.ctcd@gobiernodecanarias.org