Call for Papers
McGill Institute of Islamic Studies Student Council
13th Annual Symposium
April 22-23, 2026
Apply Here

Call for Papers: 13th Annual MIISSC Symposium - “Uttering the Unutterable”

McGill Institute of Islamic Studies Students Council is delighted to announce the Call for Papers

for its hybrid 13th annual graduate symposium, entitled “Uttering the Unutterable,” scheduled

for April 22-23, 2026.

This symposium seeks to explore the limits of language, representation, and expression across

diverse intellectual traditions. We invite graduate students to investigate the spaces where meaning

resists articulation - whether due to sacred awe, philosophical impossibility, traumatic memory,

political censorship, or cultural taboos. Submissions should engage with the challenges inherent

in speaking the inexpressible, the methods used to approach it (e.g., silence, metaphor, ritual), and

the ethical or political implications of such attempts.

Key Information and Eligibility

This symposium is open exclusively to graduate students working in fields where the symposium theme is relevant. We specifically encourage submissions from the following disciplines:

• Islamic Studies

• Religious Studies

• Literature

• Philosophy

• Theology

• Anthropology

• Sociology

• And all other relevant disciplines across the humanities and social sciences.

Submission Guidelines

Accepted abstracts are invited for 15-minute presentations that directly address the symposium

theme.

• Abstract Length: Submissions must be no more than 300 words.

• Submission Deadline: The deadline for abstract submissions is December 20, 2025.

• Submission Procedure: Please submit your abstract, along with a brief academic bio (no

more than 100 words) and your institutional affiliation, to the form here.

Should you have any questions, please contact: miissc.symposium@mcgill.ca

You can also check out our website at: www.miisscsymposium.ca

We look forward to receiving diverse and engaging abstracts that interrogate the central concept

of the symposium.

Sincerely,

Symposium Co-Chairs,

Institute of Islamic Studies, McGill University