The International Organization for Septuagint and Cognate Studies

IOSCS

The International Organization for Septuagint and Cognate Studies (IOSCS) is a nonprofit, learned society formed to promote international research in and study of the Septuagint and related texts. By the term Septuagint is meant the ancient translations of the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek, including both the translation of the Pentateuch and that of the other books of the “Alexandrian Canon.” By the term cognate studies is meant the study of the ancient translations made from the Septuagint (“daughter versions”) and the so-called apocryphal and pseudepigraphical literature circulating around the turn of the era.

Membership

Individuals and institutions with an interest in the Septuagint and related materials are welcome as members in the IOSCS. For more information about membership, please follow this link.

Journal

jscs-cover The IOSCS publishes an annual journal. Through issue 43, this publication was known as the Bulletin of the International Organization for Septuagint and Cognate Studies (BIOSCS). With issue 44 (2011), the name became Journal of Septuagint and Cognate Studies (JSCS).

Articles submitted to the journal are double-blind peer-reviewed by multiple scholars. To safeguard the integrity of the peer-review process, the names of reviewers are not published or made known. The current Editor is Eberhard Bons (Université de Strasbourg).

All current members and subscribers receive the Journal. Follow this link to become a subscriber or to renew your subscription.

The first 51 volumes of our Journal are available online in PDF form.

Septuagint and Cognate Studies (SCS) Monograph Series

Under the auspices of the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL), the IOSCS publishes a monograph series, refereed by its Editor (a member of the Executive Committee) in consultation with other scholars at the Editor’s invitation. The current editor is Martin Rösel, and the editorial board is composed of Daniela Scialabba, Gideon Kotzé, Siegfried Kreuzer, Jean Maurais, Arie van der Kooij and Bénédicte Lemmelijn.

Critical Editions of Septuagint or Old Greek Texts

In response to questions about the best available critical editions of the Septuagint or Old Greek for use in scholarly discussion and development, including electronically based research, the Executive Committee of the IOSCS offers recommendations.

Septuagint Translations Available

New translations of the Septuagint into modern languages have become available in recent years. Read more …

Projects of the IOSCS

The following projects are conducted under the auspices of the IOSCS.

The John William Wevers Prize in Septuagint Studies

The International Organization for Septuagint and Cognate Studies (IOSCS) offers an annual prize of $500 to be awarded to an outstanding paper in the field of Septuagint studies. The prize has been named in memory of John William Wevers to honor his many contributions to the field of Septuagint studies. More information is available. The deadline for this year’s submissions is September 1.

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News and Announcements

Obituary for Albert Pietersma (1935–2025)

Albert Pietersma
Professor Emeritus of Septuagint and Hellenistic Greek
Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations
University of Toronto
September 28, 1935 – March 25, 2025

Albert Pietersma passed away peacefully on Tuesday, March 25, 2025 at the age of 89. He was born on September 28, 1935 in a small town in The Netherlands called Opende, which is in the province of Groningen just across the eastern border of the province of Friesland. He was the second eldest in a family that included four boys and two girls. In the Spring of 1951, the Pietersmas emigrated to Canada, settling on a farm near Brockville, Ontario. Al took a job at a nearby factory and also worked on the farm.

In 1956, realizing that farming was not really something he wanted to do for the rest of his life, he began high school studies by correspondence and started to think about the kind of career he would like to have. Two years later, he enrolled as an undergraduate at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan and fell in love with the Classics, especially Greek Classical Literature. The greatest love of his life, however, was Margaret Stadig, a native of Amsterdam, who had also emigrated to Canada and come to Brockville. They were married in August of 1960.

Al graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Classics and Philosophy from Calvin College in 1962, and then in 1965 with a Bachelor of Divinity degree from Calvin Theological Seminary. He went on to do graduate studies at the University of Toronto, majoring in Hebrew Language and Literature, with a first minor in Septuagint and a second minor in Aramaic-Syriac. He completed his PhD program in 1970 with a dissertation that was focused on the Chester Beatty Papyri of Genesis (Rahlfs manuscripts 961 and 962), and which led ultimately to his publication of the volume entitled Chester Beatty Biblical Papyri IV and V: A New Edition with Text-Critical Analysis (ASP 16; Toronto/Sarasota: Samuel Stevens Hakkert and Company, 1977). This doctoral research coincided with the work of his Doktorvater, John Wevers, who was at that time preparing the critical edition of Genesis for the Göttingen Septuaginta series. Al was appointed to a tenured position at the University of Toronto where he and Wevers introduced a PhD program in Septuagint Studies, and Al remained on the faculty there until his retirement in 2001.

Al played a significant role in the leadership and development of the International Organization for Septuagint and Cognate Studies, serving in various capacities over the years, as Secretary and Archivist (1972-80), President (1980-87), Immediate Past President (1987-93) and Honorary President (1993–). He was a remarkable scholar whose contributions to the discipline of Septuagint Studies were stimulating and impactful, not least in his capacity as Joint-Editor-in-Chief (along with Benjamin Wright) of A New English Translation of the Septuagint (OUP, 2007) and of the forthcoming Society of Biblical Literature Commentary on the Septuagint series (SBL Press). Included among his numerous publications were monographs and essays dealing with Greek and Coptic papyrus texts of Genesis, Psalms, The Apocalypse of Elijah, The Acts of Phileas, and The Apocryphon of Jannes and Jambres, as well as with topics pertaining to the textual criticism, exegesis, and hermeneutics of the Septuagint. A representative sampling of his work on the critical study of the Septuagint is found in a collection of essays edited by Cameron Boyd-Taylor entitled A Question of Methodology: Albert Pietersma, Collected Essays on the Septuagint (BTS 14; Leuven: Peeters, 2013). On the occasion of his sixty-fifth birthday, Al was presented with a Festschrift entitled The Old Greek Psalter: Studies in Honour of Albert Pietersma (ed. Robert J. V. Hiebert, Claude E. Cox, and Peter J. Gentry; JSOTSup 332; Sheffield Academic Press, 2001; Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2009).

Al was an attentive mentor to his students and a model of conscientious, scholarly rigor to students and colleagues alike. He was also the devoted husband of Margaret, a loving father to their children, a beloved grandfather, and an enduring friend who, along with Margaret, extended generous hospitality to many. In addition to his scholarly pursuits, Al enjoyed woodworking, being a handyman, and gardening, and he was an avid environmentalist. He will be greatly missed.

Wed 02 Apr 2025 | Robert Hiebert

2025 IOSCS Congress in Berlin

The conference registration and program for the 2025 IOSCS Congress in Berlin is now available online.

Fri 14 Mar 2025 | Board

Call for Papers: IOSCS sessions at the SBL Annual Meeting, Boston, 22-25 November 2025.

The International Organization for Septuagint and Cognate Studies (IOSCS) is soliciting papers for its annual meeting in Boston, to be held in conjunction with SBL. We invite proposals for twenty-minute papers on any aspect of the LXX and cognate literature. One of the sessions will be devoted to translations of the LXX into East-Asian languages and to East-Asian research on the LXX more broadly (chair Jonathan Lo). Proposals of max. 350 words for that session or on any other relevant topic are welcome and should be submitted through the SBL Annual Meetings website. All presenters and panelists must be members in good standing with the IOSCS. Please direct any queries to Reinhart Ceulemans at reinhart (dot) ceulemans (at) kuleuven (dot) be.

Thu 23 Jan 2025 | Board

John William Wevers Prize 2025

Annual John William Wevers Prize Competition: The International Organization for Septuagint and Cognate Studies (IOSCS) offers an annual prize of $500 to be awarded to an outstanding paper in the field of Septuagint studies. The prize has been named in memory of John William Wevers to honor his many contributions to Septuagint studies.

The field of Septuagint studies is construed broadly, and a paper may focus on any aspect of the study of the Greek translation of the Jewish Scriptures. The IOSCS wants to encourage the study of these translations by scholars early in their careers, and eligibility is thus limited to advanced graduate students or recent Ph.D. recipients (4 years or less after receiving the degree).

The papers will be judged by a committee of IOSCS members, with the expectation that the winning paper be published in the Journal of Septuagint and Cognate Studies (JSCS).

The deadline for submitting papers for the current year is 1 September 2025. Papers should be between 4500–5500 words in length. Please submit the paper electronically to Dr. Theo van der Louw at the following address: theo_vanderlouw@sil.org. The winner will be announced 1 November 2025.

Thu 02 Jan 2025 | Board

Isabella Maurizio: winner of the John William Wevers Prize 2024

The jury is pleased to announce that the John William Wevers Prize in Septuagint Studies 2024 has been awarded to Dr. Isabella Maurizio for her paper “The Contribution of the Secunda to the Study of the Septuagint: The Case of the Psalter.” Dr. Maurizio obtained her PhD in 2023 with a dissertation titled Le contexte linguistique et la tradition de langue hébraïque de la Secunda (deuxième colonne des Hexaples d’Origène), PhD diss., “Alma Mater Studiorum” University of Bologna / École Pratique des Hautes Études, Paris, 2023.

We extend our congratulations to Dr. Maurizio on her splendid work.

Thu 02 Jan 2025 | Board

More News and Announcements

For previous news and announcements, please consult our news archive.