ASAO grant funds lexicon distribution in Vanuatu (March 2013) At this year’s meeting of the Association for Social Anthropology in Oceania (ASAO), SIL anthropologist Dr. Ken Nehrbass was recognized for his role in producing and distributing a reference work that compares six languages spoken on Vanuatu’s Tanna Island. In 2012 the six-language comparative lexicon was distributed to ninety schools on the island. The project was funded by ASAO’s Grant for Returning Indigenous Knowledge to Pacific Island Communities (GRIKPIC). Read more about ASAO grant funds lexicon distribution in Vanuatu
SIL researchers at joint meetings of ACAL 44 and GURT 2013 (March 2013) The 44th Annual Conference on African Linguistics (ACAL) is being held jointly with this year’s Georgetown University Round Table on Languages and Linguistics (GURT). The theme of the combined gathering is “African Languages: Specifics and Universals.” Meetings and workshops are taking place 7-10 March on Georgetown’s campus in Washington, DC. Several SIL researchers are among those scheduled to present papers: Read more about SIL researchers at joint meetings of ACAL 44 and GURT 2013
Collaborating on language documentation and conservation (March 2013) Language researchers and documentation specialists from around the world are participating in the 3rd International Conference on Language Documentation and Conservation (ICLDC). The event is taking place 28 February-3 March on the Campus of the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa. The theme of this year’s conference is “Sharing Worlds of Knowledge.” According to conference organizers, this theme “highlight[s] the interdisciplinary nature of language documentation and the need to share methods for documenting the many aspects of human knowledge that language encodes.” Read more about Collaborating on language documentation and conservation
Celebrating 60 years of partnership in the Philippines (February 2013) This year marks the 60th anniversary of SIL’s entry into partnership with the government of the Philippines to work together for the country's language communities. With more than 170 distinct ethnolinguistic communities, the island nation is a colorful mosaic of languages and cultures. Since 1953, SIL staff members have been involved in language development efforts with many of these communities. Read more about Celebrating 60 years of partnership in the Philippines
International Mother Language Day 2013 (February 2013) Each year on 21 February, the value of local languages is recognized with International Mother Language Day (IMLD). First designated by UNESCO in 1999, the annual event provides an opportunity to promote linguistic diversity and focus on a number of issues related to communities’ mother tongues. Read more about International Mother Language Day 2013
