The Sofia University is hosting a prestigious international conference on ancient divination techniques.

Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski" hosted the 25th Melammu Workshop, an international academic conference dedicated to "Divination Techniques in the Ancient Near East and the Mediterranean World". The forum was held on May 29-30, 2025 in the Mirror Hall of the university.

Melammu conferences are interdisciplinary and comparative academic events focused on the legacy of ancient Mesopotamia and its dissemination. The organization of the Melammu Project, currently led by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sebastian Fink from the University of Innsbruck, aims to research and popularize this important aspect of ancient culture.

The event in Sofia attracted 27 participants, including 5 representatives of Bulgarian institutions such as the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and Sofia University. The remaining 21 participants were from leading European universities and research centers specialized in Near Eastern studies.

Among the distinguished scholars who participated were Prof. Martti Nissinen, an expert in the field of Near Eastern divination and prophecy, Prof. Velizar Sadovski and Prof. Paolo Ognibene, specialists in Iranian and Indological studies, as well as Semitist Dr. Alinda Damsma. Many guests from various Bulgarian institutions were also present.

This was the first time that Sofia University hosted the Melammu Workshop, which is a significant achievement for the institution. The previous Melammu conference in Bulgaria was held in 2008.

The discussions at the forum were conducted at the highest professional level, and the organization met the modern standards of the humanities on a global scale. Dr. Zozan Tarhan, who led the event, was praised by the participants for her excellent work.

The presented papers will be published in a volume edited by Z. Tarhan, from the Zaphon publishing house (Münster), known for its precise anonymous peer-review process - a guarantee of the highest level of academic publication.