2023 Annual Meeting of the American Folklore Society
Submit Your Proposal for the 2023 AFS Annual Meeting
AFS Invites You to Our 2023 Annual Meeting in Portland, Oregon, and Online
Join us this fall for the 135th annual meeting of the American Folklore Society! Find all of your annual meeting information here.
The proposal window is March 1-31. Read the full call for papers.

Annual Meeting
Financial Support
You can defer your registration payment until later (choose “Pay by invoice” "Pay by invoice" in the Payment Information section of the registration form), and/or you can apply for financial assistance for registration or membership fees.
Every little gift can make a big difference
With your help, we can make the AFS annual meeting more accessible than ever.
We’re Planning for Virtual + In Person Gatherings
This year, AFS is offering up to two days of dedicated virtual programming, October 11-12, in addition to a four-day, in-person gathering in Portland, Oregon, November 1-4.
AFS will also offer virtual access to some Portland-based programming in the form of streamed keynotes, a limited number of hybrid sessions, and more session recordings.
Learn more in FAQ.
Register and Submit a Proposal by March 31
Registration and the proposal window are open. The proposal submission deadline is March 31, 2023.
You will have the opportunity to select between virtual or in-person presentation modes when you submit your proposal. Chairs proposing pre-organized sessions may also apply to be considered for one of the limited number of hybrid slots in Portland.
For more information, read the full call for papers.

Meeting Theme
The theme of the conference is Roots, Rootlessness, and Uprooting, pointing to historic, natural, and social processes of connection, creation, and removal. It also invites us to consider how and why injustice manifests, how it can be confronted, and invites presentations that highlight the role of folklore and folklorists. We invite participants to reflect on notions of roots as they connect to geographies and migration or more broadly to cultural practice or even shifts in disciplines or institutions. How might folklorists contribute to larger conversations in productive ways?
(Image: Fresh produce at the Portland Farmers Market at Portland State University (PSU). The Saturday market at PSU is open year-round, with
more than a hundred vendors participating. Photo by Iris Teeuwen.)
Plan to Participate
Whether or not you plan to present, please plan to participate! Registration provides access to both the fully virtual (Oct. 11-12) and in-person (Nov. 1-4) portions of the annual meeting.
Virtual attendees can expect access to some Portland-based programming in the form of streamed keynotes, a limited number of hybrid sessions, and more session recordings, as well as the full virtual program October 11-12. Place-based attendees can also join the fully virtual components before gathering in Portland for the immersive, in-person conference experience.
The in-person portion of the conference will be held at the Hilton Portland Downtown, 921 SW Sixth Ave, Portland, Oregon.
More information for attendees coming soon

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Meeting Essentials
Everything you need to prepare for the 2023 AFS Annual Meeting.
Register now -
Annual Meeting Registration
Registration is open. Your registration fees are important to us as a contribution to the cost of producing a meeting to keep us all connected, come what may.
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Annual Meeting Proposals
Proposals may be submitted March 1–March 31, 2023. Proposals are reviewed by a committee of folklorists who live in the region hosting.
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Annual Meeting Policies
Please review these important terms and guidelines before registering.
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Annual Meeting FAQ
Wonder what’s going on with annual meeting planning? Read on to find answers to your questions.
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Annual Meeting Financial Support
If registration fees might prevent your participation in the Annual Meeting, apply for a scholarship to reduce or eliminate the obstacle.
Special Event Request
Organizing a section business meeting or other sponsored event that should take place outside of general sessions, such as lectures, receptions, performances, jam sessions, and the like?
Submit a request no later than March 31. Specify in your request whether the envisioned event would happen in Portland or online.
Preliminary information is sufficient to be given full consideration in scheduling. You don’t have to register to submit.
Sponsors, Exhibitors, and Advertisers
Now, more than ever, we have many options for raising awareness of your work, services or products.

Questions about the annual meeting? Check our FAQs, or send a message to [email protected].