The SIE’s main activity is organizing the European Conference of Iranian Studies (ECIS). Held every four years since 1987 in cities across Europe with university departments and research institutions in Iranian Studies, ECIS brings together scholars from the humanities and social sciences to share research on Iran and the broader Persianate cultural sphere. Attracting 300–400 participants, each conference covers topics ranging from history, archaeology, sociology, religious studies, art, literature, philology, and linguistics, from antiquity to the present. Midterm conferences on more focused topics are held in the interim between ECIS events.