Uto-Aztecan Conference

Dear Friends of Uto-Aztecan languages,This year, we are pleased to host the annual Friends of Uto-Aztecan Conference (FUAC) in Boise, Idaho, on the Boise State University campus in conjunction with the Western Conference on Linguistics (WECOL, see attached flier), October 20-22. FUAC itself will take place on Friday, October 20 (and possibly the morning of October 21, depending upon the level of interest).The deadline for abstracts for FUAC is June 15, 2017. Abstracts can be on any topic in linguistics relating to Uto-Aztecan languages (and their neighbors). Registration fees will cover attendance at both FUAC and WECOL sessions (with the addition of a FUAC-only optional fee for a Friday evening dinner on the Basque Block in beautiful downtown Boise with your fellow FUACers).October is a beautiful time of the year to visit Boise. The weather is still reasonably mild and the trees are still turning. The Boise State campus is located directly across the Boise River from parks, the zoo, museums, and downtown, and so friends, companions, and kids will not be bored! If there is interest, we'll also organize a hike into the Boise foothills that weekend.Thank you, and hope to see you in Boise!Sincerely, Tim ThornesDownload the WECOL flyer here.

2017-2018 Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Native American Studies Initiative (NASI) Fellowships

The American Philosophical Society Library invites applications for three new fellowships under a grant received from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Native American Studies Initiative (NASI).These opportunities are for scholars at various stages of their careers, especially Native American scholars in training, tribal college and university faculty members, and other scholars working closely with Native communities on projects. Each fellowship provides a stipend and travel funds. The application deadline for all is March 1, 2017 and all materials must be submitted online. Full details can be found in the links below.Long-term Predoctoral FellowshipThis 12-month fellowship is intended for an advanced Ph.D. student working toward the completion of the dissertation. Applications are open to scholars in all related fields and all periods of time, although preference will be given to those who have experience working with Native communities.For more information and to apply: https://amphilsoc.org/mellonpredoc.Long-term Postdoctoral FellowshipA one-year, residential fellowship for post-doctoral scholars at any stage of their careers, including tribal college faculty members and others who work closely with Native communities. Applications are open to scholars in all related fields and all periods of time, although preference will be given to those who have experience working with Native communities.For more information and to apply: https://www.amphilsoc.org/mellonpostdoc.Digital Knowledge Sharing (DKS) FellowshipsA new research fellowship aimed to encourage Digital Knowledge Sharing among scholars of the history, culture, and languages of indigenous people of North America. These Digital Knowledge Sharing (DKS) fellowships are open to scholars working on Native American and indigenous topics who need to do archival research at the APS Library or elsewhere in order to complete their projects.For more information and to apply: https://www.amphilsoc.org/mellondks.

The relevance of language documentation to the field of linguistics

Terrence Kaufman and Nora C. England delivered presentations on January 7 at the 2017 Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the Americas as part of an organized session on The Relevance of Language Documentation to the Field of Linguistics: Case studies based on the Terrence Kaufman Collections at the Archive of the Indigenous Languages of Latin America, organized by Susan Smythe Kung and Gabriela Pérez Báez. Other presentations in this session were given by Eric Campbell, Daniel Suslak, Jaime Pérez González, and Gabriela Pérez Báez. The session included posters about the Kaufman Collections at AILLA presented by Susan Smythe Kung, Ryan Sullivant, Stéphanie Villard, Wikaliler Daniel Smith, and Justin D. McIntosh.Terrence Kaufman (Emeritus, University of Pittsburgh) expands on his 50 years of goal-driven language documentation in Meso-America.Nora C. England (University of Texas, Austin) discusses the impact of the Proyecto Lingüístico Francisco Marroquín (PLFM) on linguistics.

SSILA Best Student Presentation Award

SSILA is delighted to announce the first ever winner of a SSILA Best Student Presentation Award: Ignacio Montoya (Graduate Center of the City University of New York, Linguistics) is receiving the 2017 SSILA Best Student Presentation Award for his research paper entitled "Navajo verb constituents under a learning-based framework."Thank you to all the students and evaluators for your participation in the process.

Jaime Germán Peña: Mary Haas Book Award Recipient

The Mary Haas Book Award winner was announced at the business meeting of the Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the Americas, held in Austin, Texas. This award is presented to a junior scholar for an unpublished manuscript that makes a significant contribution to our knowledge of Native American languages.Jaime Germán Peña was awarded the Mary Haas Award for his 2015 dissertation, A Grammar of Wampis. University of Oregon. 970 pp.The Haas Award Committee commented on Jaime Peña's dissertation:

[This] is an extremely ambitious and comprehensive descriptive grammar based on extensive fieldwork and primary data collection. It constitutes the first grammatical description of Wampis, a vulnerable language of the Jivaroan family, spoken in Peru.The grammar is richly exemplified and replete with charts and tables that summarize the kinds of information people often go looking for in descriptive grammars, and has the necessary internal cross-referencing that helps make descriptive grammars more user-friendly as reference resources.Peña’s work is truly exceptional in breadth and depth; not only are all parts of the grammar of Wampis (i.e. phonology, morphosyntax, discourse) discussed in-depth but the author also seeks to offer diachronic explanations for observed patterns and provide cross-linguistic comparison. The use of data from natural discourse and the author’s focus on both form and function provide a window into language use among the Wampis. Additional, Peña’s diachronic approach enables him to capture the dynamic nature of the language as an entity that is constantly in flux.It is ... truly remarkable that this work constitutes the first-ever description of this language and that the author was able to achieve this level of analysis without any prior work.[This is] a truly impressive and comprehensive effort that constitutes a major contribution to the study of indigenous languages of the Americas and is clearly worthy of the Haas Award.

Two dissertations were also selected for honorable mention.  Both these works exemplify a very high standard of scholarship and truly commendable dedication on the part of their authors. Perhaps most importantly, members of the Haas Award Committee felt that both are representative of types of documentation and analysis that we as an organization value highly and would like to see of more of within the discipline.

  • Lewis Lawyer was awarded Honorable Mention for his 2015 dissertation, A Description of the Patwin Language. UC Davis. 395 pp.
  • Konrad Arkadiusz Rybka was awarded Honorable Mention for his 2016 dissertation, The Linguistic Encoding of Landscape in Lokono. Universiteit van Amsterdam. 376 + 105 pp.

The 2016-2017 Mary Haas Book Award Committee consisted of Patricia A. Shaw (Chair); Gabriela Perez-Baez, Spike Gildea, Jorge Rosés Labrada, Kristine Stenzel, and Siri Tuttle.Patricia A. Shaw, Chair of the Haas Committee, presented the award to Jaime Germán Peña via Skype:Patricia A. Shaw, Chair of the Haas Committee, and Alice Taff, President of SSILA, recognize the Honorable Mention awardees, Lewis Lawyer and Konrad Arkadiusz Rybka:

Patricia A. Shaw: Ken Hale Prize Winner

At the business meeting of the Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the Americas, held in Austin, Texas, Patricia A. Shaw was awarded the Ken Hale Prize in recognition of her commitment to the documentation, description, maintenance, and revitalization of the indigenous languages of the Americas.Alice Taff, President of SSILA, presented the award:

Victor Golla: Lifetime Achievement Award

The annual meeting of the Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the Americas was held in Austin, Texas from January 5-8 in conjunction with the 91st annual meeting of the Linguistic Society of America.At the SSILA business meeting, Victor Golla was recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Award for his 25 years of service as Founding Secretary-Treasurer and Newletter Editor of the Society. SSILA would not exist without Victor Golla's efforts and we are all extremely grateful.Alice Taff presented the award:

Save the Date: Dene / Athabaskan Language Conference

Dene / Athabaskan Language Conference

June 27–29, 2017

Preliminary Announcment

The 2017 Dene/Athabaskan Language Conference is scheduled to take place on June 27th, 28th, and 29th at Cliff Castle Casino, hosted by, and on the territory of the Yavapai-Apache Nation, Camp Verde, Arizona.This is the only international conference dedicated to the language and cultures of the Dene/Athabaskan people, the largest Indigenous language family in North America, and represents a unique meeting opportunity for Athabaskan and non-Athabaskan scholars from the US and Canada.  All aspects of the scientific study of Dene/Athabaskan languages will be discussed, but this conference will be the first ever with a special focus on Apache languages and their conservation.  The results will be documented in podcasts, as well as published in the Alaska Native Language Working Papers.The official announcement will follow soon, and the Conference Website is under construction.

Call for Papers: Workshop on American Indigenous Languages (WAIL)

20th Annual Workshop on American Indigenous Languages (WAIL 2017)

Santa Barbara, CA

May 12–13, 2017

Meeting Description

The Linguistics department at the University of California, Santa Barbara announces its 20th Annual Workshop on American Indigenous Languages (WAIL), which provides a forum for the discussion of theoretical, descriptive, and practical studies of the Indigenous languages of the Americas.We are pleased to announce that our keynote speaker for this year will be Mary S. Linn (Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage).

General Information

Santa Barbara is situated on the Pacific Ocean near the Santa Yñez Mountains. The UCSB campus is located near the Santa Barbara airport. Participants may also fly into LAX airport in Los Angeles, which is approximately 90 miles southeast of the campus. Shuttle buses run between LAX and Santa Barbara.

Call for Papers

Anonymous abstracts are invited for talks on any topic relevant to the study of Indigenous languages of the Americas. Talks will be 20 minutes, followed by 10 minutes for discussion. Abstracts should be 500 words or less (excluding examples and/or references).Individuals may submit abstracts for one single-authored and one co-authored paper. Please indicate your source(s) and type(s) of data in the abstract (e.g. recordings, texts, conversational, elicited, narrative, etc.). For co-authored papers, please indicate who plans to present the paper as well as who will be in attendance.Abstracts should be submitted in .pdf format through the EasyAbs system at www.linguistlist.org/easyabs/WAIL20.Hard copy submissions will be accepted from those who do not have Internet access. Please send four copies of your abstract, along with a 3x5 card with the following information: (1) your name; (2) affiliation; (3) mailing address; (4) phone number; (5) email address; and (6) title of your paper.

NSF INCLUDES Preliminary Proposals & Webinar

SSILA members may be interested in the message below from Colleen Fitzgerald, Program Director, Documenting Endangered Languages, National Science Foundation:

Dear colleagues, many of you are involved in broadening participation initiatives in linguistics and the language sciences.  NSF INCLUDES is a funding initiative for which linguists at U.S. institution are eligible;  this comes out of the National Science Foundation's commitment to diversity, inclusion, and broadening participation in linguistics and other fields funded by the NSF.  Preliminary proposals are due February 14th; only 1 proposal may be submitted by institution.  A webinar will be held on January 12 and full information appears below.

NSF INCLUDES: Launch Pilots Preliminary Proposal Webinar

Presentation and Q&A session of program goals, requirements and instructions for NSF17-522January 12, 2017 1:00 PM to 2:00 PMWebEx Meeting

DESCRIPTION

Members of the NSF INCLUDES Implementation Working Group are pleased to present the second webinar on Design and Development Launch Pilots Preliminary Proposal to the current solicitation for NSF INCLUDES (NSF 17-522).Thursday, January 12, 2017 1pm Eastern Standard TimeDuring this webinar, a video message from NSF Director France Córdova will provide a brief overview of the INCLUDES program, followed by a presentation of program goals, contacts, requirements and instructions for those interested in submitting a preliminary proposal to NSF for design and development launch pilots. The session will include interactive text Q&A with NSF Program OfficersThe webinar is FREE but registration is required.  A confirmation email with instructions for joining the session will be sent following registration.You are encouraged to invite your colleagues to attend as well. In some cases, it may be useful to reserve a conference room in your institution and invite faculty and program administrators from across the institution to attend the webinar collectively from one location.There will be opportunities to ask Program Officers questions and also receive tips on writing competitive NSF grant proposals. Questions may also be submitted in advance by email to NSFINLCUDES@nsf.gov

EVENT DETAILS

Start and End Dates:

  • Thursday, January 12, 2017 1:00 -2:00 pm | Eastern Standard Time (New York, GMT-05:00) | 1 hr

Timezone:  ESTLink to register:

Registration Close Date:

  • Thursday, January 12, 2017

Contacts

NSFINCLUDES@nsf.govRelated WebsitesPROGRAM SOLICITATION NSF 17-522: https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2017/nsf17522/nsf17522.htmNSF INCLUDES SPECIAL REPORT: https://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/nsfincludes/index.jspNSF INCLUDES Frequently Asked Questions: https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=nsf16060

University of Arizona Native American Languages and Linguistics M.A. accepting applications

The M.A. in Native American Languages and Linguistics (NAMA) program at the University of Arizona is accepting applications for the fall 2017 cohort. The NAMA program is an accelerated M.A. focusing on helping students learn to work on language revitalization in their communities.Areas of focus include:

  • Increasing how often the language is spoken or how many people speak the language
  • Planning and policy development for language programs
  • Developing language teaching materials/making archival materials accessible to the community

The NAMA program prepares students to work with their language communities or to continue on for a PhD in Linguistics or another field. For more information, please visit https://linguistics.arizona.edu/NAMA or contact Dr. Elizabeth Kickham, Visiting Assistant Professor, (lizkickham@email.arizona.edu) or Dr. Ofelia Zepeda, Regents Professor, (ofelia@email.arizona.edu).Applications are officially accepted until the admissions committee meets in mid-February, but may late applications may still be reviewed. To apply, please visit: https://grad.arizona.edu/admissions/procedures/apply-now.​

Global Survey of Language Revitalization

The Recovering Voices initiative of the Smithsonian Institution and the Linguistics Department at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa are carrying out a survey of language revitalization initiatives worldwide. We are asking practitioners such as yourself to share their experience with us so that we may all learn from each other.This survey has 30 questions about revitalization activities and we estimate it will take about a half hour of your time. The questions will be presented to you in 8 consecutive pages, so please make sure to navigate through all 8 pages.
All responses are optional to give you the flexibility to provide us the information that is available to you and that you are comfortable sharing. All information requested in this survey is about revitalization initiatives and not about individuals. The information you provide will allow us to do a comparative analysis of the factors that may improve the outcomes of revitalization efforts.
The survey is available in English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, and Russian at the following link:
http://recoveringvoices.si.edu/research/associatedresearch.htmlIf you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at PerezBaezG@si.edu.
Many thanks in advance!
Gabriela Pérez Báez, PhD.
Curator of Linguistics
Director, Recovering Voices
National Museum of Natural History
Smithsonian Institution