Our Activities » Conferences » International Congress of Nineveh Academic Chair 2025

Assyrian Language, History and Continuity.

6th, 7th & 8th October 2025.
University of Salamanca, Spain.
Director: Prof. Dr. Efrem Yildiz (University of Salamanca)
Collaborators: Prof. Dr. Vega García . Prof. Dr. Diego Corral . Prof. Dr. Isabel Pérez . Prof. Dr. Manuel Nevot Navarro

The Fourth International Congress of the Nineveh Academic Chair of the University of Salamanca, to be held will focus on Assyrian language, history, and continuity.

The congress will feature conferences, communications, and roundtable discussions designed to offer participants and speakers a comprehensive historical, linguistic, and cultural perspective on the Assyrian people, grounded in rigorous scientific research. Throughout the event, experts will contribute innovative and enlightening insights into Assyrian history, language, and the much-debated question of continuity-both within internal and external academic forums.

The congress is open to anyone interested in Assyrian history, language and culture. The participation of the new Assyrian generation is essential, as the whole effort of the members of the Nineveh Academic Chair and the participating scholars is to strengthen and revitalise the Assyrian language, deepen the history and promote the Assyrian culture on an international level.

Our Speakers

Updated: 17 Sep 2025

Meet our speakers

Samir Khoshaba.
Linnaeus University. Bearing failures in Assyrian language. ܐܬܝܠܦܫ ܐܢܘܥܛܕ ܐܢܫܠܒ ܐܝܪܘܬܐ

Dr. Robin Bet-Shmuel
Academy of Bagadad: ܼܬܝܸܪܼܘܣܠ ܢܿܘ ܼܝܠܓܢܘܸܐܕ ܐ̈ܝܡܕܩ ܐܸܡܓܪ̈ܘܬ The First Translations of the Gospel into (Sureth

Abdulmesih BarAbraham
L’Action Assyro-Chaldeenne (1920/21): Promoting Political Case and Perspectives during the Paris Peace Conference.

Sargon Hasso
Illinois Institute of Technology. Toward a Digital Renaissance: Computational Methods for Preserving and Revitalizing the Assyrian Language and Cultural Identity

Rawaa Qasha
AI for Endangered Languages: Opportunities and Challenges for the Preservation of the Assyrian Language

Nicholas Al Jeloo
The Upper Land of Nimrod, son of Nimrod”: Referencing Assyria in a Late Antique Syriac Hagiography

Isabel Pérez Alonso
University of Salamanca. El funeral romano de una asiria: el caso de Sitti Maani Gioerida (The Roman funeral of an Assyrian woman: the case of Sitti Maani Gioerida).

Anahit Khosroeva
The Struggle of Survival: Middle Eastern Wars and the Vanishing Assyrian Communities

Lawrence Makho
Political effects of Semele massacre 1933 on Assyrian community in Iraq.

Eve Sada
Gilgamesh Opera: Reviving the Ancient Epic through Innovative Music, Dance, and Visual Design

Etlal Salim Hanna
The role of the university and the church in preserving the Syriac language in Nineveh after 2003

Abdulmassih Saadi
Reviving the Past, Sustaining the Future: The Enduring Legacy of Syriac Language and Literature.

Önver Çetrez
Place and Homeland: Everyday Community Resilience Among Assyrians in Tur Abdin

Michel Shamoon-Pour
Binghamton University: The Assyrian Diaspora in the Era of Live-Streamed Genocides and the West’s Moral Rot

Programme

Updated: 17 Sep 2025

Download Program

09:30-13:00	Registration \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA.
09:30-10:00	Inauguration of Nineveh Academic Chair Congress \| Faculty of Philology : AULA MAGNA. Raúl Sánchez Prieto: Vice-President of the University of Salamanca Manuel González de la Aleja: Dean of the Faculty of Philology. Efrem Yildiz: President of Nineveh Academic Chair.
10:00-10:45	Opening Lecture: \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Efrem Yildiz. Why Modern Assyrian Linguistic, historical and literary Legacy Matters. Nineveh Academic Chair’s initiatives.
10:45-11:30	Conference: Moderator: Efrem Yildiz\| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Sargon Hasso. Illinois Institute of Technology. Toward a Digital Renaissance: Computational Methods for Preserving and Revitalizing the Assyrian Language and Cultural Identity.
11:30-12:00	COFFEE BREAK: Faculty of Philology: in the HOSPEDERÍA courtyard.
12:00-12:45	Conference \| Moderator: Sargon Hasso\| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Samir Khoshaba. Linnaeus University. Bearing failures in Assyrian language. ܐܬܝܠܦܫ ܐܢܘܥܛܕ ܐܢܫܠܒ ܐܝܪܘܬ
12:45-13:30	Conference \| Moderator: Nicholas Al Jeloo\| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Rawaa Qasha: University of Mosul. AI for Endangered Languages: Opportunities and Challenges for the Preservation of the Assyrian Language.
14:00-16:00	Welcome Lunch/Cocktail
16:00-16:45	Conference \| Moderator: Eve Sada\| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Anahit Khosroeva. Harvard University: The Struggle of Survival: Middle Eastern Wars and the Vanishing Assyrian Communities.
16:45-17:30	Conference \| Moderator: Samir Khoshaba\| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Abdulmesih BarAbraham L'Action Assyro-Chaldeenne (1920/21): Promoting Political Case and Perspectives during the Paris Peace Conference.
17:30-17:45	COFFEE BREAK: Faculty of Philology: in the HOSPEDERÍA courtyard.
17:40-18:30	Conference \| Moderator: Abdulmesih Bar Abraham\| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Abdulmassih Saadi. Reviving the Past, Sustaining the Future: The Enduring Legacy of Syriac Language and Literature.
18:30-19:15	Conference \| Moderator: Abdulmassih Saadi\| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Eve Sada. Harward University: Gilgamesh Opera: Reviving the Ancient Epic through Innovative Music, Dance, and Visual Design.
19:15-20:00	Conference \| Moderator: Önver Çetrez\| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Etlal Salim Hanna. University of Mosul. The role of the university and the church in preserving the Syriac language in Nineveh after 2003.
20:30-22:00	DINNER.

09:30-12:30	Registration \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA.
09:30-10:30	Conference \| Moderator: Efrem Yildiz. Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Önver Çetrez, Uppsala University. Place and Homeland: Everyday Community Resilience Among Assyrians in Tur Abdin.
10:30-11:15	Conference: Moderator: Nicholas Al Jeloo\| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Robin Bet Shmuel: Academy of Bagadad: ܼܬܝܸܪܼܘܣܠ ܢܿܘ ܼܝܠܓܢܘܸܐܕ ܐ̈ܝܡܕܩ ܐܸܡܓܪ̈ܘܬ The First Translations of the Gospel into (Sureth
11:15-11:30	COFFEE BREAK: Faculty of Philology: in the HOSPEDERÍA courtyard.
11:30-12:15	Conference \| Moderator: Anahit Khosroeva \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Susan Yousif Khoshabah. PhD at University of Salamanca. Christian Religious symbols in Rawe verses.
12:15-13:00	Conference \| Michel Shamoon-Pour \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Edmound Kabrial: Contemporary Assyrian Language and Figurative Metaphorical Term
13:00-13:45	Conference \| Moderator: Samir Yona \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Michel Shamoon-Pour. Binghamton University: The Assyrian Diaspora in the Era of Live-Streamed Genocides and the West's Moral Rot.
14:00-15:45	LUNCH.
15:45-16:30	Conference \| Moderator: Rawaa Qasha \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Matay Barsomo, PhD University of Salamanca. Four Syriac medieval chroniclers - and the Arabs.
16:30-17:15	Conference: Moderator: Abdulmassih Saadi \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Rony Patrous Eramia. PhD University Freie Berlin. The Assyrians in the poems of Gewargis Warda of Erbil 13th century.
17:15-17:45	COFFEE BREAK: Faculty of Philology: in the HOSPEDERÍA courtyard.
17:45-18:30	Conference: Moderator: Efrem Yildiz \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Isabel Pérez Alonso. University of Salamanca. El funeral romano de una asiria: el caso de Sitti Maani Gioerida (The Roman funeral of an Assyrian woman: the case of Sitti Maani Gioerida).
18:30-20:30	Nahreen Odisho, Assyrian Royal Clothing Tradition.
20:30-22:00	GALA DINNER.

09:30-10:15	Conference \| Moderator: Efrem Yildiz \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Nicholas Al Jeloo. The Upper Land of Nimrod, son of Nimrod”: Referencing Assyria in a Late Antique Syriac Hagiography.
10:15-11:00	Conference \| Moderator: Nicholas Al Jeloo \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Samir Johna ܡܸܬܛܵܘܪܵܢܘܼܬܵܐ ܕܠܸܫܵܢܵܐ ܐܵܬܘܿܪܝܵܐ ܒܚܲܩܠܵܐ ܕܐܵܣܝܘܼܬܵܐ ܘܚܘܼܠܡܵܢܵܐ.
11:00-11:30	COFFEE BREAK: Faculty of Philology: in the HOSPEDERÍA courtyard.
11:30-12:15	Conference \| Moderator: Abdulmesih Bar Abraham \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Maroudeen Thomas-Zadeh. Ancient Echoes: Assyrian Floral Motifs in the Evolution of Iranian Rug Design.
12:15-13:00	Conference \| Moderator: Anahit Khosroeva \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Lawrence Makho. University of Duhok Political effects of Semele massacre 1933 on Assyrian community in Iraq.
13:00-13:45	Conference \| Moderator: Efrem Yildiz \| Faculty of Philology: AULA MAGNA. Round Table/Conclusion
14:00-16:00	LUNCH.
17:00-18:30	CITY TOUR.

Travel Info

Download Travel Info

Direct BUS from the Airport Madrid – Salamanca

Route: The most convenient and direct option. Buses depart directly from Terminal 1 and Terminal 4 (Airport Terminal) and take you to Salamanca’s central bus station without stops.
Duration: Approximately 2 hours 30 minutes.
Online booking: Monbus or Omio
Advantage: No transfers inside Madrid, direct and non-stop.
Departure times: 13:15 . 17:15 . 19:15 . 21:30

High-Speed Train: Madrid (Chamartín Station) – Salamanca

Step 1: Getting to Chamartín Station from the airport:
Take Metro Line 8 from the airport to Nuevos Ministerios, then transfer to Metro Line 10 or Cercanías C1/C10 to Chamartín.
Travel time: approx. 30–40 minutes.

Step 2: High-speed train (AVE or Alvia) to Salamanca:
Duration: approx. 1 hour 40 minutes.

Online booking: Renfe or Omio
Advantage: Fastest option to reach Salamanca.

Normal Bus Madrid (Méndez Álvaro Station) – Salamanca

Step 1: Getting to Méndez Álvaro bus station from the airport:
Take Metro Line 8 from the airport to Nuevos Ministerios, then transfer to Metro Line 6 (circular) to Méndez Álvaro.
Travel time: approx. 40 minutes.

Step 2: Direct bus Madrid–Salamanca (Avanza):
Buses run every 1–2 hours throughout the day.
Duration: approx. 2 hours 30 minutes.
Online booking: Avanza Bus or Omio

Regular Train Madrid–Salamanca (from Príncipe Pío Station)

Step 1: Getting to Príncipe Pío Station from the airport:
Take Metro Line 8 from the airport to Nuevos Ministerios, then transfer to Line 10 to Príncipe Pío.
Travel time: approx. 35–45 minutes.

Step 2: Regional train (Media Distancia) Madrid–Salamanca:
Duration: Minimom . 2 hours 55 minutes.

Online booking: Renfe or Omio
Advantage: A more economical option compared to high-speed trains.

Car Rental from Madrid Barajas Airport

For participants who prefer maximum flexibility, car rental services are available at Madrid Barajas Airport across all terminals. Several international and local companies operate desks at the airport, including Avis, Hertz, Europcar, Enterprise, and Sixt.
Driving time to Salamanca: approximately 2 hours (220 km) via the A-50 highway.
Advantages: Full independence in scheduling, direct door-to-door travel, and the possibility to combine the trip with visits to nearby cities.
Booking: Reservations can be made in advance through the rental companies’ websites or global platforms such as Rentalcars or Kayak.

Note:Ensure you have a valid driver’s license recognized in Spain and check whether an International Driving Permit (IDP) is required for your country of origin.

Hotel Eurostars Las Claras

For the hotel reservation, please enter the booking code for the Eurostars Las Claras Hotel: CONGFILO. This code entitles you to a 15% discount.

Furthermore, if you register on the hotel’s website before booking your room, you will receive an additional 10% discount.

Hotel website
Code: CONGFILO
Hotel’s Location

Additional Travel Information

OMIO Booking Platform: For convenience, participants can also use Omio to compare and book all available transport options (bus, train, or flight) between Madrid and Salamanca in one place.
Local Transport at Madrid Barajas Airport: The airport is well connected with city buses (day and night services) as well as official airport taxis available 24/7 at all terminals. Taxis have a fixed fare to central Madrid, making it easy to reach bus or train stations if you choose Options 2, 3, or 4.

Important Note

High-speed trains (AVE/Alvia) to Salamanca depart exclusively from Madrid Chamartín Station.
Príncipe Pío Station serves only regular and regional trains, with travel times ranging from 2h 45m to 3h 45m, depending on the route.
For bus travel, please note that in addition to the direct airport–Salamanca line, other bus services departing from Madrid city may include intermediate stops. This can extend the journey time to between 2h 45m and 3h 45m depending on the number of stops.
Taxi or Ride-Hailing Apps: Services such as Uber and Cabify are widely used. Alternatively, taxis are available at the airport exit.
NOTE: Madrid city buses do not allow large suitcases, so they are less convenient if you are traveling with heavy luggage.