Program
Schedule subject to change. Keep an eye on this space for updates.
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10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. |
Registration |
American Ancestors Research Center |
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2:00 - 4:00 p.m. |
Opening Ceremony and Keynote Address |
Trinity Church |
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6:00 p.m. |
Opening Reception |
Harvard Club of Boston |
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9:00 - 10:30 a.m. |
Presentations |
Old South Church |
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11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. |
Presentations |
Old South Church |
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12:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. |
Break for lunch |
Old South Church |
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2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. |
Presentations |
Old South Church |
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4:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. |
Presentations |
Old South Church |
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6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. |
Exhibit Opening & Reception |
American Ancestors Research Center |
|
9:00 - 10:30 a.m. |
Presentations |
Old South Church |
|
11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. |
Presentations |
Old South Church |
|
12:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. |
Break for lunch |
Old South Church |
|
2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. |
Presentations |
Old South Church |
|
4:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. |
Presentations |
Old South Church |
|
9:00 - 10:30 a.m. |
Presentations |
Old South Church |
|
11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. |
Presentations |
Old South Church |
|
12:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. |
Break for lunch |
Old South Church |
|
2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. |
Presentations |
Old South Church |
|
4:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. |
Closing Ceremony |
Trinity Church |
| 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. | Gala Dinner | Fairmont Copley Plaza |
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10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. |
Historical and cultural excursions |
Revolutionary Boston Harvard University Lexington & Concord |
Gala
Join us for our Gala Dinner
Friday, September 27 at 7:00 p.m.
Fairmont Copley Plaza
138 St James Ave
Registration to come.
Excursions
Visit famous Boston-area locations during your stay in the city. Join us on Saturday, September 28 for your choice of three full-day excursions.
Information to come.
Information to come.
Information to come.
Travel & Lodging
Call for Speakers
Deadline Extended: December 1, 2023
Version français Deutsche Übersetzung
The 36th International Congress of Genealogical and Heraldic Sciences will be held Tuesday, September 24, to Saturday, September 28, 2024, in the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. The theme of the Congress is “Origins, Journeys, Destinations.”
The Congress’s Program Committee is now accepting proposals for presentations to be delivered at the Congress by interested scholars, historians, and researchers. In keeping with the theme of the Congress, each presentation should address how genealogy or heraldry relate to the ways in which heritage and identity are reshaped by the journeys people take. Such journeys may be of any era and scope, of long distances or short, of a single person, a small group, or an entire ethnic community. They may be from rural communities to cities, from one end of a continent to the other, or massive overseas migrations.
Accepted speakers will receive a complimentary pass to the Congress with extended access to the newly remodeled American Ancestors Research Center. Speakers traveling from outside the United States may also apply for bursaries from L’Académie Internationale d’Héraldique (AIH) and the Societas Heraldica Scandinavica (SHS).
To enrich discussions at the Congress, the Program Committee will try, to the extent possible, to organize each session around a theme common to the various presentations. Depending on the proposals received, some themes may take up several sessions. The Committee especially welcomes presentations that connect heraldry and genealogy. The following potential thematic tracks are offered as examples to spur ideas for proposed papers:
- In the area of genealogy:
- DNA evidence documenting a genealogical journey across spatial or demographic distances
- Case studies demonstrating strategies and resources for tracing people or families on the move
- Collections, especially little-known, that highlight immigration, emigration, and migration
- In the area of heraldry:
- How are arms of incomers received or naturalized in the destination country?
- How is heraldry used to preserve, reinforce, or create group identity within diasporas?
- How do heraldic customs evolve in communities separated from the ancestral place of origin?
- Potential topics which combine these two disciplines:
- Genealogically validating a family tradition of descent from a heraldic family
- Using heraldic artifacts to verify a previously unknown genealogical connection
- Showcasing innovative new resources for pre-modern heraldic and genealogical research
Presentation Requirements
Presentations will be strictly limited to 30 minutes, followed by 10 minutes for questions. Presentations should be illustrated with PowerPoint slides. In accordance with Congress rules, presentations may be made in any of the following languages (in alphabetical order): English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish. As we expect the majority of attendees will be English speakers, those presenting in one of the other Congress languages are asked to summarize the key aspects of their talks in English on their slides. Those presenting in English are requested to similarly annotate their slides in one of the other languages, preferably French. In this way the potential impact of each talk will be maximized.
Proposal Submissions
Submission deadline extended: December 1, 2023
The Program Committee will select presentations based on their originality and their relevance to the theme of the Congress. Work that has already been published will not be accepted. The final decisions of the Committee and notifications to submitters will be made by January 15, 2024.
We also invite the submission of posters for consideration. Please note in the proposal abstract that it is intended as a poster. Selected posters will be published on the Congress website.
Publication
The acceptance of a proposal means that the author agrees to its publication in the proceedings of the Congress. Copyright is shared between the author and the Organizing Committee, but the author grants permission for the Congress to publish in any medium, including PDF, eBook, and hard copy. Papers are to be submitted for publication by December 31, 2024. Technical parameters for published papers will be shared later.
Consistent with participation in the Congress, presenters do not receive an honorarium or travel compensation.
Speaker Scholarships
Speaker Scholarships
The Académie internationale d'héraldique (AIH) is pleased to announce that two scholarships worth a maximum of €1,000 each will be offered to support researchers and professionals at the start of their careers with their travel, accommodation, and registration for the Boston conference. One of these two scholarships is co-funded by the AIH and the American Heraldry Society (AHS). Only applicants who reside outside of the United States are eligible for these two scholarships.
The Societas Heraldica Scandinavica (SHS) is also offering a scholarship in memory of Antti Matikkala worth a maximum amount of €1,000 to help a researcher/early career professional with their travel, accommodation, and registration costs for the Boston congress. This scholarship is also reserved for candidates residing outside the United States.
Candidates must hold a baccalaureate (or equivalent), enrolled in higher education, or recently hold a master's or doctorate. Their university dissertation must deal with a heraldic theme or one closely associated with heraldry. Early-career professionals with an affinity for heraldry can also apply. Selected applicants must commit to presenting their work in person at the Boston conference, attending the entire conference, and providing supporting documentation for their expenses.
Applicants for the AIH scholarship, the combined AIH/AHS scholarship, or the Societas Heraldica Scandinavica scholarship must also submit their proposal to the conference organizers (form above) and correspond to the conference theme: “Origins, Journeys, Destinations”. The presentation should, if possible, be captioned in a language other than that used orally, in order to broaden the audience for your presentation.
For scholarship requests, first contact Dr Steven Thiry (steven.thiry@uantwerpen.be) who will provide the form and all information. Applications must then be sent to the President of the AIH by December 1: president@aih-1949.com
Application in ENGLISH (.docx)