"languages and cultures" blog posts
Decolonising Bluecoat: A Collaborative Project
PhD researcher Michelle Girvan tells us about her work with the Bluecoat, Liverpool's oldest inner-city building, to investigate the building's complex connections with global trade, slavery and empire.
Posted on: 16 March 2022
Beyond the Viking homestead, the example of Aud the Deep-minded
Two major roles have been discussed for women in the Viking Age, the conforming housewife who took care of the homestead, and her polar opposite the fierce shieldmaiden. However, my research focuses outside these categories, on women who went abroad with Viking fighting forces who were not warriors. Often these women are nameless in literary sources, but one stands out from the Icelandic Sagas, Aud the Deep-minded.
Posted on: 9 March 2022
Mala Zimetbaum- An Auschwitz Heroine
Mala Zimetbaum was a 22-year-old woman of Polish Jewish descent who was living in Belgium when the Second World War began. Mala’s life, along with millions of others, was turned upside down by the Nazi invasion of the country in May 1940. In September 1942, at the age of 24, Mala was deported to Auschwitz Birkenau concentration camp in Poland.
Posted on: 9 March 2022
Why Asexual Representation Matters
31st October 2021, I entered News From Nowhere, an independent bookstore on Bold Street. As I placed 3 items on the counter to purchase, I felt free. I bought a pin badge, a 5x3ft flag and a mini-handheld flag, all displaying a black stripe, a grey stripe, a white stripe and a purple stripe from top to bottom. These colours represent the asexual, or ace for short, flag, although I’m sure many of you may already be familiar with that flag. And although I’d long ago discovered my own asexuality, it was the first time I’d openly and proudly admitted to myself and another person that I am asexual.
Posted on: 9 February 2022
Books to read for the celebration of LGBTQ+ History Month
If you are like me and love celebrating LGBTQ+ History Month by reading stories that include queer identities, I have a list of fiction stories to recommend. However, it’s important to also read non-fiction and own voices stories and I highly recommend doing that too.
Posted on: 8 February 2022