An intellectual community beyond the summer

Abarbanel Ongoing Conversations

Learning at Abarbanel doesn’t end when students leave Leiden. Throughout the academic year, Abarbanel alumni gather online with leading scholars, writers, and cultural figures to explore questions about Jewish history, literature, culture, and contemporary life.

These conversations extend the intellectual community formed during the summer seminar, introducing students to new subjects and perspectives while giving them opportunities to continue asking questions, exchanging ideas, and learning together.

2026-27 Conversations

November 8, 2026: Abe Socher on the Jewish Review of Books and the History of Little Magazines

December 6, 2026: Joseph Koerner on Bourgeois Living Rooms in Fin-de-siècle Vienna

January 17, 2027: Adam Kirsch on Being a Writer after October 7

February 7, 2027: Lara Rabinovitch on Making Sense of a Jewish Recipe

February 28, 2027: Isabelle Levy on Hebrew Love Poetry in Renaissance Italy

March 21, 2027: Hélène Jawhara Piñer on a Crypto-Jewish Culinary Journey from Spain to Italy (Purim Cooking Workshop)

April 11, 2027: Laurie Pearce on What Cuneiform Tablets Reveal About Jewish Exile

An exclusive program for alumni of the Abarbanel Summer Seminar