December 2019
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International conference LOW 2019 held in Graz



November 20 to 22 the SOAS World Languages Institute (UK), Mercator European Research Centre/ Fryske Akademy (NL), the Interdisciplinary Centre for Social and Language Documentation (CiDLeS, PT) and the Plurilingualism Research Unit/ treffpunkt sprachen (AT) organized the international conference "Languages in an Open World" in Graz (Austria).

The conference focused on aspects of language status against a background of an ideal open,  pluralistic society. Topics such as the visibility of languages, language diversity in the classroom and language revitalization were discussed. Among many interesting presentations, Joana Duarte, Mirjam Günther-van der Meij and Mercator colleague Cor van der Meer presented on Translanguaging as a bridge between languages: The case of Frisian. The participants look back on a highly interesting and successful event

Visit the LOW2019 website





Mercator Network Picture

Three Regional
Dossiers published 

The Mercator European Research Centre has published the third edition of 'the Breton language in education in France', a Russian translation of "the Udmurt language in the Udmurt republic in Russia", and "the Hungarian language in education in Ukraine".

Click here for an overview of
Mercator's dossiers



 


Xavier Vila discusses linguistic immersion

On 26th November, CUSC-UB researcher Xavier Vila participated in the TV show Planta Baixa (TV3), where he talked about linguistic immersion in Catalan schools.

Watch the episode of Planta Baixa


General Secretary of the Council of Europe calls upon member states to protect the Romani language



VirtuLApp in Ghent


On November 5th, International Romani Language Day, the General Secretary of the Council of Europe, Marija Pejčinović Burić, called upon the member states to recognize, protect and promote the Romani language as an integral part of European cultural heritage. The Romani language, she noted, is spoken by 10-12 million Roma in Europe and if left unprotected, the Romani lose an integral part of their identity. National governments should create more opportunities for young Romani to learn their mother-tongue in school. Finally, she urged the member states to recognize the Romani language as a minority language under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages as a clear commitment to the cultural and linguistic diversity in Europe. The Council of Europe advocates the promotion and tuition of Romani Language and has created Curriculum Framework for Romani (CFR).


Read more




Mercator Network Picture

Protest in Paris in defense of minority languages.

November 30th - Hundreds of people gathered in front of the Ministry of Education in Paris in defense of Catalan, Occitan, Basque, Breton, Flemish and other languages minoritized by the French government. The protest brought together more than forty organizations, which all demand a change in policy in France regarding these languages.

Read more



 


Conference series on Catalan language in secondary school

On 8th November a series of conferences - organized by GELA - called «La llengua catalana a l’ensenyament de secundària» (The Catalan language in the secondary school) took place at Universitat de Barcelona. Several specialists in language teaching, teachers and policy makers participated in the event, along with CUSC researcher Llorenç Comajoan, who gave the first conference of the day: «Les llengües a l’ensenyament obligatori: models, realitats i futurs» (Languages in the compulsory education: models, realities and futures).

Read more




INTERESTING LINKS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 







EUROPE




● RUTU Foundation presents Language friendly schools

● Video of the "NPLD Seminar on Education: Digital Technologies, Linguistic Models and Immigrant Integration" held in Brussels past 7th November 2019

● The European Union and the Council of Europe support discussions on the draft Law on national minorities in Armenia

● Committee of Experts visits Netherlands in the framework of the 6th monitoring cycle of this country.

● Book presentated by Sheila Queralt and Roser Giménez: Soy lingüista, lingüista forense (I’m a linguist, a forensic linguist

● UOFG receives major funding award to establish gaelic immersion year

● Book published: From language shift to language revitalization and sustainability

● Bilingualism and dementia: how some patients lose their second language and rediscover their first

● Number of people speaking Luxembourgish increasing

● The challenges of minority languages: 1 in 4 children cannot speak Galician in Galicia Spain

● British-Irish Council discuss minority languages






Website:
Kulturstiftung Sibirien


winner "Me human"

The Foundation for Siberian Cultures is dedicated to maintaining cultural diversity in Siberia and the Russian Far East. The website is maintained by Dr. Erich Kasten. Projects are presented on the site in the form of alternating photo-video shows.




Article by Mercator researcher Ruth Kircher

Brexit

An article by Mercator researcher Ruth Kircher was published 13 November. Based on collected empirical data the study argues which factors influence intergenerational transmission of French in Quebec.





INTERESTING LINKS







WORLD




● On the edge of extinction: the drive to save endangered languages

● “Let’s celebrate Karnataka’s minority languages too”

● Urdu linguistic minority students seek exemption from learning Tamil as compulsory language



The Mercator Network wishes all readers Happy Holidays!




This was the last newsletter of 2019. The next Mercator Network Newsletter will appear end of February.









INTERESTING EVENTS






14 - 15 November 2019, Udine (Italy)
2nd International Colloquium on Plurilingualism (2nd ICP )
Organised by Udine University / Centro Internazionale sul Plurilinguismo.

20 - 21 November 2019, Agadir (Morocco)
2nd International Conference on Multilingualism: Challenges, Theoretical Perspectives and Practical Implications
Organised by Faculty of Languages, Arts, and Humanities Campus Universitaire Ait Melloul.

20 - 22 November 2019, Graz (Austria)
Languages in an Open World 2019 (LOW 2019)
Organised by SOAS World Languages Institute (UK), Mercator European Research Centre (NL), the Interdisciplinary Centre for Social and Language Documentation - CiDLeS (PT), and the University of Graz /Plurilingualism Research Unit – Treffpunkt Sprachen (AT).

28 - 29 November 2019, Brussels (Belgium)
European Language Council (ELC) Conference on 'Language and Education'
Organised by the Vrije Universiteit Brussel.

5 - 7 December 2019, Paris (France)
Conference: Family languages: attitudes, uses, policies and experiences
Organised by the Sorbonne 3 University.

14 - 15 December 2019, Prague (Czech Republic)
Multilingual and Multicultural Learning: Policies and Practices (MMLPP2019)
* Deadline Call for Papers: 15 October 2019.
Organised by the Charles University, Faculty of Arts.

24 - 26 February 2020, Szczecin (Poland)
International Conference on Multilingual Practice (ICOMP)
Organised by the Uniwersytet Szczeciński.

11 - 13 March 2020
ECSPM symposium - Linguistic and cultural (super)diversity at work: From theory and policy to action and (digital) practices
Hosted, sponsored and co-organised by the Babylon Centre for the Study of Superdiversity and the School of Humanities and Digital Sciences, Tilburg University, Netherlands

25 - 27 May 2020, Paris (France)
Minority languages spoken or signed and inclusive spaces
* Deadline Call for Papers: 1 December 2019.
Organised by INSHEA.

18 - 19 June 2020, Flensburg (Germany)
International Conference on Multilingual Practice (ICOMP)
Organised by European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI) and the Danish Central Library for South Schleswig (DCBIB).

1 - 3 July 2020, Soria (Spain)
6th International Colloquium on Languages, Cultures, Identity, in Schools and Society
Organized by the Loyola Marymount University School of Education

6 - 7 July 2020, Athens (Greece)
13th Annual International Conference on Languages & Linguistics
Hosted by the Athens Institute for Education and Research

9 - 14 August 2020, Groningen (the Netherlands)
AILA 2020: World Congress of Applied Linguistics
* Deadline Call for Papers: 16 September 2019.
Organised by the University of Groningen, Multilingual Matters and others.






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