Latin Humanism

Cassamarca Foundation

The Cassamarca Foundation of Treviso, Italy, has funded thirteen posts in Italian and Latin studies around Australia. The Australasian Centre for Italian Studies (ACIS) advertises up to three Cassamarca scholarships of up to $5000 each for Australasians wishing to undertake research in Italy the following year. They are available to students at Australasian universities who will be enrolled, full-time or part-time in the relevant year, in honours, research masters or PhD degrees and who will be engaged in research projects in any of the following areas of Italian studies: archaeology and classical antiquities, language, literature, culture, history, politics and society, including migration studies. Successful applicants will have a knowledge of Italian adequate for their research purposes. Scholarships will not be awarded to attend language classes in Italy.

Read more about A/Prof. Haskell’s activities as incumbent of the Cassamarca Chair in Latin Humanism.

ARC Discovery Project- Psychosomatic Illness in Early Modern Italy: Lessons for Modern Psychiatric Theory and Practice

A/Prof. Yasmin Haskell is leading an ARC Discovery project (2007-2009) on 'Psychosomatic Illness in Early Modern Italy'. She is collaborating with Prof. Sergio Starkstein (Psychiatry, UWA), and with two neo-Latin scholars in Rome, Dr Maurizio Campanelli and Dr Agata Pincelli.

This multidisciplinary project explores 'hypochondria' in early modern Italy, and the ways both concept and 'condition' spread. 'Hypochondria' was thought to be a serious disease, causing severe physical problems (gastric, cardiac and respiratory) and mental illness from depression to psychosis. Drawing on untapped early sources in Latin and Italian, our project will track theoretical models of 'hypochondria' against case histories (by doctors) and personal histories (by sufferers). It will study the links between the circulation of information about 'hypochondria' and the view that it was epidemic in parts of Italy.

Radio Interviews

What's so new about neo-Latin?

A/Prof Haskell discusses the topic on ABC Radio National's 'Lingua Franca' on 20 October 2007

Chocolate as a cure for hypochondria?

A/Prof Haskell discusses the topic on ABC Radio National's 'Ockham's Razor' on 19 November 2006