THE ASP WAS FOUNDED IN 1961 TO FURTHER THE STUDY OF ANCIENT GREEK AND LATIN PAPYRI AND OF THE MATERIALS CONTAINED IN THEM. SINCE THAT TIME, THE SOCIETY HAS EMBRACED PAPYROLOGICAL RESEARCH IN OTHER LANGUAGES AS WELL; ITS JOURNAL CURRENTLY SUPPORTS PUBLICATIONS IN DEMOTIC EGYPTIAN, COPTIC, AND ARABIC, WITH THE AMBITION TO BROADEN COVERAGE TO INCLUDE HIERATIC EGYPTIAN AND ARAMAIC IN THE FUTURE. THE SOCIETY SUPPORTS AND ENCOURAGES RESEARCH IN THE FIELD, THE TEACHING OF THE DISCIPLINE, AND INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION BY SCHOLARS. THE ASP PUBLISHES THE BULLETIN OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF PAPYROLOGISTS (BASP), THE ONLY NORTH AMERICAN JOURNAL IN THE FIELD OF PAPYROLOGY. IT PUBLISHES A MONOGRAPH SERIES, AMERICAN STUDIES IN PAPYROLOGY, AND OCCASIONAL SUPPLEMENTS TO BASP. IT ALSO SPONSORS SUMMER INSTITUTES IN PAPYROLOGY, TO TRAIN FUTURE GENERATIONS OF PAPYROLOGISTS.