Raphael Patai Prize
in Jewish Folklore and Ethnology

Call for Papers

The Jewish Folklore and Ethnology Section of the American Folklore Society and the Committee on the Anthropology of Jews and Judaism of the American Anthropological Association invite submissions for their Raphael Patai Prize in Jewish Folklore and Ethnology for 2008. The Prize is awarded for the best unpublished essay in Jewish folklore and ethnology by a student completed in 2007 or 2008.

The winners for 2007 were Gabrielle Berlinger (Folklore, Indiana University) for "770 Eastern Parkway: Brooklyn Brownstone, Sacred Space," and Irit Koren (Gender Studies, Bar-Ilan University) for "The Power of Discourse: Issues of Gender and Social Control Regarding Changing the Jewish Wedding Ritual." Berlinger's paper will appear in volume 2 ("Jews at Home") and Koren's will appear in volume 3 ("Re-Visioning Ritual") of the Jewish Cultural Studies series for Littman Library of Jewish Civilization (littman.co.uk/jcs).

Submissions are reviewed by an international committee and notifications will be made by October 2008. Papers sent for the Prize are considered submissions to the book series Jewish Cultural Studies (Littman Library of Jewish Civilization, Oxford, UK, http://www.littman.co.uk) and should not be under review with any other publication. The winner of the prize receives $200 and a citation from the American Folklore Society.

Criteria for submission:

1. Approaches to the subject must cover folkloristic and ethnological perspectives and Jewish content
2. The length of papers must be of publishable essay length, usually 8,000-12,000 words
3. The preferable citation style is in-text citation style with a reference list at the end
4. The submitted unpublished paper must have been written by a student in 2007 or 2008, and not submitted for publication
5. Submitters must identify the university and department where the paper was prepared, and provide contact information, including postal and email addresses.

Contact: Papers should be submitted electronically in English on or before September 1, 2008; Use Word software and email directly to sbronner@psu.edu

Simon J. Bronner, Ph.D.
Distinguished University Professor of American Studies and Folklore
Coordinator, American Studies Program
Director, Center for Pennsylvania Culture Studies
The Pennsylvania State University, Harrisburg
777 West Harrisburg Pike
Middletown, PA 17057-4898
(717) 948-6039 (office)
(717) 948-6724 (fax)

The Raphael Patai Prize honors the eminent folklorist and ethnologist Raphael Patai (1910-1996) who published 600 articles and over 35 books. He taught at many universities in Israel and the United States, including Hebrew University, Columbia University, Princeton University, and the University of Pennsylvania. He also served as director of research for the Herzl Institute and editor of the Herzl Press.