The TALOS Centre announces the final call for papers for the 2nd Semantic Annotation for the Ancient World (SA4AW) Conference 2026, taking place 7–8 May 2026 in Rethymno (Student and Cultural Center “Xenia”) and online (Zoom).

SA4AW 2026 explores the role of semantic annotation in dialogue with hybrid AI approaches, large language models (LLMs), deep learning, and knowledge graphs for the study of the ancient world and cultural heritage. By linking concepts, entities, and relationships, semantic annotation helps turn texts and images into structured, interoperable knowledge, supporting transparency, precision, and reuse in line with FAIR and Linked Open Data principles.

We invite submissions (junior and senior scholars) on topics including, among others: ontology-driven semantic annotation, standardisation, multilingual annotation, automatic/semi-automatic annotation, ancient geography, FAIR/LOD data, Semantic Web, NER for ancient Greek/Latin, RDF-based digital editions, and methods, tools, and platforms.

Submission guidelines

• Abstract length: up to 1,000 words (bibliography excluded), free format
• Review: double-blind peer review via EasyChair
• Presentations: 20 minutes + discussion
• Working language: English
• Publication: accepted papers will be invited to submit a longer version for an edited volume after the conference (details forthcoming)

Important dates

• Abstract deadline: 15 February 2026
• Notification of acceptance: 15 March 2026
• Confirmation by accepted authors: 30 March 2026
• Camera-ready abstract: 15 April 2026
• Conference dates: 7–8 May 2026

The conference is organised by the TALOS Centre in AI4SSH of the University of Crete (Horizon ERA Chair TALOS AI4SSH ID: 101087269) in collaboration with the Department of Philology, University of Crete.