We are delighted to hear from the “Histories on Wings: Exploring Human-Bird Interactions and Their Cultural Significance in Asian History” project team at Sapienza University, Rome. They recently hosted their first international workshop exploring the topic of birds in Asian history on 28 October 2024.
This workshop opened with a special lecture by Professor Roel Sterckx FBA, Joseph Needham Professor of Chinese History, Science and Civilization at the University of Cambridge. Paolo De Troia – PI of the project – and the project’s members then shared their avian research. Presentations covered topics as varied as intelligent birds, falconry, avian deities, and carrion-eating raptors from Chinese, Indian, and Mesopotamian contexts. See the programme below for more information.
This research project, which you can find more about here, aims to delve into the multifaceted relationships between humans and birds within the context of Asian history. This project seeks to explore the concept of co-agency, wherein humans and birds share active roles and influence in historical processes. Through an examination of the cultural and social dimensions of human-bird interactions, this research aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of the multispecies dynamics that have shaped Asian societies. The project is characterised by its extensive geographical scope, covering a significant portion of the Asian continent, and its temporal span, stretching from the Neolithic era to modern times. Highlighting captivating and thought-provoking case studies, the project aims to scrutinise human-bird interactions at historical, cultural, and textual levels, in the process uncovering potential pathways for further research and future studies.
