Department of Italian, Spanish, Portuguese & LAS, University of Toronto

Department of Italian, Spanish, Portuguese & LAS, University of Toronto A vibrant community exploring the Italian, Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American languages, cultures, histories and their diasporas. Join us!

Expanded programs, research opportunities, and connections that cross borders.

Convocation season is here, and it’s time for one final victory lap around the track! 🏁🏆This is more than a ceremony, it...
06/07/2026

Convocation season is here, and it’s time for one final victory lap around the track! 🏁🏆

This is more than a ceremony, it’s a meaningful rite of passage that marks years of hard work, grit, growth, and discovery. It’s a moment to celebrate everything you’ve accomplished and to recognize the dedication that brought you to this unforgettable milestone! 🎉

Heartfelt congratulations to all the students graduating from our programs! We are proud of your commitment, determination, and the unique contributions you’ve made to our community. We can’t wait to see where your journey takes you next. 👏

Stay tuned as we will share stories from some of our exceptional graduating students!

Please join us in congratulating Professors Susan Antebi, Ana Teresa Pérez-Leroux, and Luca Somigli on their new appoint...
06/05/2026

Please join us in congratulating Professors Susan Antebi, Ana Teresa Pérez-Leroux, and Luca Somigli on their new appointments in the Department of Italian, Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American Studies.

Professor Susan Antebi has been appointed Chair and Graduate Chair for a five-year term, effective July 1, 2027, to June 30, 2032.

Professor Ana Teresa Pérez-Leroux has been appointed Interim Chair and Graduate Chair from July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027.

Professor Luca Somigli has been appointed to the Emilio Goggio Chair in Italian Studies for the period July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2029.

We extend our warmest congratulations and best wishes to all three colleagues in their new roles.

We would also like to thank Professor Somigli, who has served as the inaugural Interim Chair and Graduate Chair of ISPLAS since July 1, 2025.

2,000 followers strong! 🎉This milestone feels especially meaningful as we come together from two former units into one l...
06/02/2026

2,000 followers strong! 🎉

This milestone feels especially meaningful as we come together from two former units into one larger constellation! Thank you for being part of our community and helping us grow.

We’re excited for what’s ahead: there is lots to be excited about.

What comes after Lava Jato? In the years since Brazil’s signature anti-corruption operation came to an end, the country’...
06/02/2026

What comes after Lava Jato? In the years since Brazil’s signature anti-corruption operation came to an end, the country’s institutions have been quietly reorganizing themselves: building new tools, recalibrating old agreements, and preparing for an election year that is putting the entire anti-corruption framework to the test.

Chaired by Prof. Mariana Mota Prado (U of T), this panel will map what is changing across the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches, and what it means for the broader picture of Brazilian democracy, with Prof. Fabio Kerche (UNIRIO), Prof. Marjorie Marona (UNIRIO/UFMG), and Dr. Lucas Sena (Post-doctoral Fellow, U of T).

🗓️ Monday, June 8, 2026

🕧 12:30 to 2:00 PM

📍Solarium, Falconer Hall, 84 Queen’s Park, Toronto

Co-hosted by the Faculty of Law and the Department of Italian, Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American Studies (ISPLAS), University of Toronto.

No registration required.

Congratulations to ISPLAS PhD candidate Beatrice Bruno on the publication of her first book, “Il narratore inaspettato. ...
05/28/2026

Congratulations to ISPLAS PhD candidate Beatrice Bruno on the publication of her first book, “Il narratore inaspettato. Sciascia, Einaudi e la nascita di uno scrittore Italiano.” (The Unexpected Narrator. Sciascia, Einaudi and The Birth of an Italian Writer” (Editpress, Florence).

Through letters, publishing contracts, and previously unpublished archival materials, the book retraces the literary and editorial journey of Leonardo Sciascia (1921 – 1989), from an unknown elementary school teacher in Sicily to one of the most influential voices in twentieth-century Italian literature.

From Laterza to Einaudi, two major Italian publishing houses, and through figures such as the Italian novelists and writers Elio Vittorini (1908 – 1966) and Italo Calvino (1923 – 1985), Beatrice Bruno reconstructs the encounters, editorial choices, and unexpected turns that shaped the making of a writer.

Alongside her doctoral research at the University of Toronto, Beatrice contributes to the Sciascia Archive Project, an initiative dedicated to organizing and promoting archival and journalistic materials related to Sciascia in Canada.

A remarkable achievement and an important contribution to Italian literary and publishing history.

The book is available on the publisher’s website: https://www.editpress.it/catalogo/il-narratore-inaspettato/.

The Department of Italian, Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American Studies at the University of Toronto, together with the ...
05/28/2026

The Department of Italian, Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American Studies at the University of Toronto, together with the Università per Stranieri di Siena and Christ Church College at the University of Oxford, is inviting submissions for the third international conference “Queer Kinship: Migrations, Diasporas, Communities.”

Scholars, activists, artists and community leaders are encouraged to submit proposals exploring q***r and trans kinship, migration, transnationalism, colonialism, racialization and ethnicity.

The conference will feature keynote speakers Dr. Joseph M. Pierce and Liana Cusmano (Luca/BiCurious George).

Submission deadline: June 20, 2026.

More information:
www.q***rkinshipnetwork.com/conferences

✨Congratulations to all our undergraduate and graduate students whose dedication, passion, and hard work were recognized...
05/28/2026

✨Congratulations to all our undergraduate and graduate students whose dedication, passion, and hard work were recognized at the ISPLAS End-of-Year Party! ✨

We are proud to celebrate the incredible achievements of our students and the many awards and scholarships presented to close another successful academic year.

🏆 Award and Scholarship Recipients:

• Ambassador of Switzerland Prize in Italian: Cindy Staffieri
• Castrilli Family Scholarship: Nick Gianfelice
• Department of Italian Studies Grant: Blessed Udobor, Maria Orozco Chavarria, and Tiffany Chu
• Doris May Barker Scholarship: Romi Wilder
• Emilio Goggio Undergraduate Scholarship: Enna Rejc
• Gianrenzo Clivio Memorial Scholarship in Linguistics & Dialectology: Brianna Davidson and Vale Abbott
• Jean Arnold Tory Scholarship: Olivia Pontecorvo
• John A. Grohavaz Italo Canadian Youth Club Bursary: Vale Abbott
• Latin American Studies Fellowship: Natalia Rena Pena
• Michael Ukas Scholarship in Italian Studies: Alicia Butchko Guerrero, Carmina Cornacchia, Christopher Ryan, Oliver Kraeker, and Vale Abbott
• Milton A. Buchanan Scholarship in Spanish and Portuguese: Caitlin Correa (also recipient of the Pedro da Silva Award, sponsored by Caixa Geral de Depósitos) and Sarah Chen
• S. Bernard Chandler Scholarship in Italian Studies: Christopher Ryan

✨Your achievements inspire our community! ✨

Dominican Republic Ambassador to Canada José A. Blanco visited ISPLAS on April 2 to donate a selection of volumes from t...
04/29/2026

Dominican Republic Ambassador to Canada José A. Blanco visited ISPLAS on April 2 to donate a selection of volumes from the “Library of Dominican Classics” to the Latin American Studies Program.

The donation includes 30 volumes by prominent Dominican writers and is intended to support the study and appreciation of Dominican literature, history and intellectual thought among students, researchers and the broader academic community at the University of Toronto.

The Embassy of the Dominican Republic said the donation aims to strengthen cultural and academic ties between the Dominican Republic and Canada, and to encourage greater exchange between institutions in both countries.

The ambassador was accompanied by Bianca M. Báez Pearson, counsellor at the Embassy of the Dominican Republic.

The donation was received by Paula Karger, assistant professor, teaching stream, and program director, Latin American Studies, and Prof. Bob Davidson, associate chair, undergraduate, at ISPLAS.

A new podcast in the Department of Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies is opening space for Latino v...
04/22/2026

A new podcast in the Department of Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies is opening space for Latino voices. Created by Prof. Juan Carlos Rocha Osornio, ‘More Than Tequila’ features interviews with students, faculty and community members, sharing reflections on identity, language and belonging in Canada.

Through spontaneous, unscripted conversations, the podcast highlights the diversity and lived experiences of Latino communities at U of T.

On the ISPLAS website, Rocha Osornio discusses building community through storytelling and what he has learned along the way.

🔗 Read the full interview at
https://uoft.me/morethantequila.

12/11/2025

The screening of “Bodies in Crisis” last Saturday, December 6, was a wonderful success! We had an amazing audience and a rich, heartfelt Q&A with María Teresa Larraín, the director of this powerful documentary.

A huge thank you to all our partners who helped the Department of Italian, Spanish, Portuguese & Latin American Studies (ISPLAS) bring this event to life:
Cinema Studies Institute, Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, Toronto Arts Council, and the Ministerio de las Culturas, las Artes y el Patrimonio del Gobierno de Chile.

We’re grateful for your support and for everyone who joined us for such an inspiring evening. 💙🎬

Image Description:
A vertical collage of four photos.

The first photo shows Susan Antebi, Professor of Latin American Literature at ISPLAS.

The second photo shows Professor Antebi with filmmaker María Teresa Larraín and the Chilean political scientist Dr. Noam Titelman, postdoctoral fellow at the University of Calgary.

The third photo shows Dr. Titelman and María Teresa Larraín speaking during the Q&A session at Innis College.

The fourth photo shows the audience seated and facing the speakers.

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