Fairbanks to host language documentation conference
April 15, 2016
The University of Alaska Fairbanks will host the fifth Institute on Collaborative
Language Research June 20 through July 23, 2016. Known as CoLang, the institute will
offer interactive workshops on language documentation and courses in linguistic fieldwork
for registered participants, as well as a series of public talks and films.
Language documentation has gained importance with the rapid endangerment of many of
the world’s languages. UAF’s Alaska Native Language Center, which documents, preserves and
revitalizes Alaska's endangered indigenous languages, will host this event.
The institute brings together leading practitioners of language documentation from
around the world, including undergraduate and graduate students, practicing linguists,
and indigenous language speakers and language activists. They train and share in cutting-edge
community-based language documentation. CoLang emphasizes collaborative documentation
and the development of meaningful and sustainable practices. This CoLang will have
a distinctive Alaska flair and focus on the languages of Alaska and language archiving.
As part of CoLang, a series of public daytime talks and evening films will explore
language documentation and revitalization activities around the world; the final presentation
will allow CoLang participants to share experiences from the institute.
The Alaska Native Language Center is part of the UAF College of Liberal Arts. The
college, the largest of UAF’s academic units, comprises the arts, humanities, social
sciences and language disciplines across 20 departments.
ON THE WEB: To register, visit www.alaska.edu/colang2016. For a list of the public lectures, see http://www.alaska.edu/colang2016/public-events/.
CONTACTS: Naomi Horne, 907-474-6464, nehorne@alaska.edu. Anna Berge, 907-474-5351, amberge@alaska.edu