Endangered languages conference

[Kate Burridge]

----------------------------Original message----------------------------
Symposium

LANGUAGE ENDANGERMENT
AND LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE:
AN ACTIVE APPROACH

La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia
Monday-Tuesday 29-30 November 1999

convened by David Bradley, Department of Linguistics

The symposium will start with a panel discussion on issues in language
endangerment, with David Bradley as well as Alexandra Aikhenvald
(Australian National University; from 2000 La Trobe University), Michael
Clyne (Monash University), Bob Dixon (Australian National University; from
2000 La Trobe University), Peter Mühlhäusler (Adelaide University) and
Steven Wurm (Australian National University) and conclude with a general
discussion on strategies for language maintenance.

The panel discussion will focus on (1) factors contributing to language
endangerment: demographic, political, geographical, economic, social,
attitudinal and linguistic; (2) the process of language shift and its
linguistic and practical implications, and (3) the stages of language
endangerment, whether gradual or abrupt.

Case study presentations on individual communities will be given by these
and other scholars including Barry Blake, Kate Burridge and Maya Bradley
(La Trobe University), Margaret Florey (University of Newcastle), Rob Amery
(Adelaide University) and others. These case studies will include
Australian Aboriginal and migrant communities as well as indigenous and
migrant communities in various other countries including Indonesia,
Thailand, China, Canada and the Netherlands.

Specific case studies to be presented include studies on the revival of
Australian Aboriginal languages (Blake and others in Victoria, Amery and
Mühlhäusler in South Australia), preparation of materials to assist
communities in language maintenance (Bradley, Burridge and others, in
Canada, China and Thailand), language maintenance in migrant versus
autochthonous communities (Florey and others, in Indonesia and the
Netherlands), sociolinguistic factors in language maintenance, and other
topics.

All others who wish to make a presentation (20 minutes plus 10 minutes
discussion) should submit a one-page abstract and email or fax address by 1
November; notification of acceptance will be sent by email or fax on 14
November.

It is intended to produce a volume on the outcomes of the symposium.

Those who wish their presentation to be considered for inclusion in this
volume should submit it in hard copy AND on disk or as email attachment in
rtf or Word 6 at or before the symposium. Please follow the Pacific
Linguistics format which is available from
<http://pacling.anu.edu.au/authors>. If you use any unusual fonts, please
provide details and if possible a copy of the font.

The symposium is planned to start at 10:30 AM on 29 November and finish on
the afternoon of 30 November. It will be held in the HuEd area which is
near the Department of Linguistics. Registration (no charge) will be in the
David Myers Building, East wing, Room E229 starting from 9:30 AM on 29
November. Accommodation should be booked directly with Menzies College
(tel. (+613/03) 9479 1071, fax (+613/03) 9479 3690, email
<Menzies at latrobe.edu.au>; a few double rooms $40, single rooms $30 or
$24-50; please indicate that you are coming for this symposium) or Parkside
Inn (1045 Plenty Road, Bundoora VIC 3083; tel. (+613/03) 9467 3344, fax
(+613/03) 9467 5462; motel-style accommodation walking distance from the
campus, $69 and upwards). Those who prefer to stay in the centre of
Melbourne can travel by bus or tram to the university in under an hour.
Meals are available on campus weekdays until 7 PM. Free parking is
available in unpaved Car Parks 4 and 2A, or parking by daily permit in
paved areas.

This symposium is free and open to the public.
Support from the UNESCO CIPSH Endangered Languages programme and the
Australian Research Council (A59803475) is very gratefully acknowledged.
Koori and other indigenous and NESB participation is most welcome.

All enquiries and abstracts to <Linguistics at latrobe.edu.au> or
Department of Linguistics, La Trobe University, Bundoora VIC 3083, Australia
Telephone       +613/03 9479 2338
Fax             +613/03 9479 1520
+613 is the international dialling code from outside Australia; 03 is the
STD prefix from outside Victoria

Please consult our web site on <http://www.latrobe.edu.au/www/linguistics>;
the final symposium programme will be on this web site from 14 November.


text ends


David Bradley
Linguistics
La Trobe University
Bundoora VIC 3083
Australia

tel     +61 3 9479 2362
fax     +61 3 9479 1520
web     http://www.latrobe.edu.au/www/linguistics

Kate Burridge
Associate Professor, Linguistics
La Trobe University
Bundoora, 3083
Vic