SIEF2025: Aberdeen, Scotland: June 3–6 2025
The 17th international SIEF Congress took place at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, hosted by the Elphinstone Institute for Ethnology, Folklore, and Ethnomusicology. The congress explored the theme “Unwriting” — a powerful tool with which to retract or rewrite what has been inscribed or recorded, allowing us to reshape that which power has imposed and presenting an opportunity for those who have often only been written about.
The 2025 Congress in Aberdeen made the Scottish sun shine on more than one occasion, the convenors sing, the keynotes recite, and all delegates dance — in a glorious celebration of folklore and ethnology. A new chapter of scholarship has been (un)written.
The event welcomed 1,128 delegates, featured 118 panels, and saw the presentation of 880 papers.
Photo: Sebastian Mikael Magagni
Gallery
The printed programme is now available to view. Please note that this programme went to print mid-May and so does not show the latest changes to panels and events. Please refer to the web programme for up-to-date info
Aberdeen
Elegantly seated between the Rivers Dee and Don, the Granite City of Aberdeen sparkles in the sun. Our region is internationally renowned for its traditional singers and musicians, its unmatched legacy of traditional balladry, and the global impact of its whisky, fishing, granite, and oil industries. Scotland’s third largest city is also one of the most diverse in Britain, with roughly one in five residents coming from across the world. Join us at SIEF2025 for a journey from culture to castles, from working life to spectacular coastlines and mountains, from neolithic stone circles to the contemporary arts!
