Working together to explore the big questions: What are humour and laughter?
The foundations of the AHSN were laid in July 1996 when the International Society for Humor Studies (ISHS) held its 15th Conference on Humour and Laughter in Sydney at the University of New South Wales.
The success of this gathering of 120 scholars from around the world led the then ISHS President, Jessica Milner Davis, to propose the establishment of the Australasian Humour Scholars (now Studies) Network (AHSN), which launched the following year.
Our network has grown from 40 members and 10 discipline areas in 1997 to over 350 scholars and practitioners in more than 25 different disciplines and professions.
Although the website of our network was initially hosted by UNSW, in 2008 it was re-launched within the School of Letters, Art and Media at the University of Sydney, and in 2020, it became an independent website.