The American Folklore Society (original) (raw)
Folklore WorksJAF Special Issue on Folklore, Comics, and Graphic Storytelling (Fall 2026) This special issue of JAF: A Global Quarterly (Fall 2025) is groundbreaking in its combination of scholarly essays, creative non-fiction, pedagogical strategies, and public-facing pieces, curated by Erin Kathleen Bahl and Andy Kolovos.Join Us
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The American Folklore Society is an international professional network serving the field of folklore, open to anyone working to understand or advance folk and traditional arts and the communities that sustain them. Our strength lives in our members, as we work to support them, their work, and our field.
Sections
The American Folklore Society is home to more than 30 groups that serve as gathering places for special interests.
I believe that the study of folklore is a crucial way to understand human beings and their cultures, and the American Folklore Society will help keep the field of folklore healthy.
Elaine Thatcher
Our Work
The American Folklore Society manages a number of publications, projects, and programs serving our mission to strengthen, support, and increase understanding of the field of folklore.
More about our work
- Journal of American FolkloreOur quarterly journal is one of the oldest and most respected folklore journals in the world, featuring work that engages with the broad field of folklore across academic, public, and applied works.
- Annual MeetingThe AFS annual meeting is the largest single gathering of folklorists in the world, where we gather to exchange work and ideas, and to create and strengthen friendships and working relationships.
- PrizesAFS recognizes outstanding achievement by awarding seven major prizes and numerous awards in specific subject areas. Taken together, the recipients of these prizes embody excellence in many forms of folklorists' work.
- China-US Folklore and Intangible Cultural Heritage ProjectSince 2007, this project has united scholars from the large and energetic folklore studies communities in China and the United States to share knowledge around the diverse work in and around the folk and traditional arts.
- National Folklore Archives InitiativeThis AFS-coordinated effort documents and provides access to information about folklore archival collections held by folklore programs at a variety of institutions and organizations in the United States.
- Veterans Oral History WorkshopsAFS partners in this project to bring experienced folklorists and oral historians to lead workshops to teach the interviewing skills needed to document the stories of US war veterans.
Spread the Word!
One of the most powerful ways to get involved is by becoming an advocate for the field and sharing all the wonderful things we do as folklorists and cultural practitioners.