Studentafton | The Academic Society

Scandinavia's leading politically and religiously independent forum for speech and debate Studentafton (lit. “Student Evening”) was founded by the Academic Society in 1905. Our events, which take place in our classic 19th century halls, feature well-known politicians, authors, musicians, royals, Nobel Prize laureates, scientists and other persons of interest to the student body. We are a politically and religiously independent organization and our mission is to honor the freedom of speech. We have an unparalleled reputation for bringing international guests and speakers to Lund. Among our many distinguished guests over the years are: Dag Hammarskjöld, Jimi Hendrix, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Albert Schweitzer, Mahalia Jackson, Gao Xingjian, Ingmar Bergman, Duke Ellington, Miriam Makeba, Diana Ross, Richard Lester, The Black Panthers, José Saramago, Bobby Seale, Ella Fitzgerald, Olof Palme, Frank Zappa, Will Ferrell, Henry Kissinger, Louis Armstrong, Kurt Vonnegut, Ray Charles, John le Carré, Georg Henrik von Wright, Pink Floyd, Pierre Balmain, Günter Grass, Roger Vadim, Her Majesty Queen Margrethe of Denmark, Sir Joseph Rotblat, Jan Eliasson, Sir George Martin, Bianca Jagger, F W de Klerk, Depeche Mode, Carl Bildt, Barbara Hendricks, Martti Ahtisaari, Sir David Attenborough, Hans Blix, Shazia Mirza, Susan Sontag, Margot Wallström, Anton Corbijn, Tarja Halonen, Prince El-Hassan bin Talaal, Melanie C, Her Majesty Queen Silvia of Sweden, Geir Lippestad, every Swedish prime minister since 1934 and many more. A complete list of our guests since 1905 can be found at: http://www.studentafton.se/historik/