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    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><span
          style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language:EN-US" lang="EN-US">PhD
          position in linguistics "The evolution and diversification of
          the Caucasian languages"</span></b></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><span
          style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language:EN-US" lang="EN-US">Where</span></b><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language:EN-US" lang="EN-US">:
        Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History (MPI-SHH)
        in cooperation with the University of Jena, Institute for
        Caucasian Studies. The project is part of the International Max
        Planck Research School for the Science of Human History
        (IMPRS-SHH) (see the website <a
          href="https://imprs.shh.mpg.de/"><span
            style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">https://imprs.shh.mpg.de/</span></a>).
        The IMPRS-SHH provides doctoral researchers with optimum
        conditions for their PhD projects and custom-made preparation
        for the time thereafter, both with regard to academic and
        non-academic careers. We offer a clearly structured doctoral
        program with three pillars: a mentoring program for individual
        supervision by outstanding scientists, a scientific program of
        high academic standard, and a transferable skills program.</span></p>
    <p><br>
    </p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><span
          style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language:EN-US" lang="EN-US">Description
          of the project</span></b><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language:EN-US" lang="EN-US"> (<a
href="https://imprs.shh.mpg.de/index.php/applications/open-positions/"><b
            style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><span
              style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;
              mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">https://imprs.shh.mpg.de/index.php/applications/open-positions/</span></b></a>)</span></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">This
        project will contribute to the development of large-scale
        comparative databases of the languages of the Caucasus from both
        lexical and typological perspectives. The student will be
        responsible of building up the database in close cooperation
        with the LexCauc project currently conducted at the Institute of
        Slavonic and Caucasian Studies, supervised by the project
        leaders Dr. Diana Forker and Dr. Oleg Belyaev. These data will
        provide both a detailed resource for the Caucasus languages as
        well as being integrated into the DLCE’s large-scale lexibank
        and grambank projects to enable global comparisons. In the
        second step the student will analyze these data using both
        traditional linguistic comparative method techniques, as well as
        leveraging the powerful tools developed by the DLCE including <i
          style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">Edictor, LingPy, CLICS</i>,
        and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Concepticon</i>. The
        project will then use quantitative statistical and phylogenetic
        tools for inferring the origins, dispersal and timing of the
        expansions of the Caucasian languages and evaluate the results
        in comparison with the existing literature (e.g. Nikolayev &
        Starostin 1994, Koryakov 2006). A key component will be to use
        cutting-edge phylogeographic models to infer the geographic
        patterning of the underlying expansions through the region. In
        addition, since we will build our study on computer-assisted
        techniques, our study will allow for a very detailed
        representation of linguistic data that allows us to then apply
        cutting-edge techniques for sequence comparison, high-level
        annotation, including full and partial cognates inside and
        across the same concepts in our dataset, and will in this way
        also contribute to cross-disciplinary studies by integrating,
        for example, the names that the languages give to the physical
        objects to artifacts in archaeological records, or early
        attestations of domestication.</span></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><span
          style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language:EN-US" lang="EN-US">The
          applicant should have: </span></b></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">-
        MA or equivalent in linguistics</span></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">-
        knowledge of historical linguistics</span></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">-
        basic knowledge of quantitative methods in linguistics</span></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">-
        knowledge of Russian (at least A2)</span></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">For
        further information on the position please contact <a
          href="mailto:diana.forker@uni-jena.de"><span
            style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;
            mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">diana.forker@uni-jena.de</span></a></span></p>
    <p><br>
    </p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">The
        preferred <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">starting date</b>
        of PhD appointment: September 1<sup>st</sup>, 2019 /</span><strong><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;
          mso-ansi-language:EN-US" lang="EN-US"> </span></strong><strong><span
style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-ansi-language:EN-US;font-weight:normal;mso-bidi-font-weight:bold"
          lang="EN-US">or an individual basis between July 1 and October
          1, 2019</span></strong><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language:EN-US" lang="EN-US"> </span></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><strong><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US"
          lang="EN-US">Contract type:</span></strong><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">
        TV-B/L 13 (50% / Max Planck support contract or contract with
        university), temporary, 3 years (extension possible)</span></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">Application:
        via the online application portal <a
          href="https://s-lotus.gwdg.de/mpg/mjws/perso/shh_d012.nsf/application"><span
style="mso-bidi-font-family:Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin">https://s-lotus.gwdg.de/mpg/mjws/perso/shh_d012.nsf/application</span></a></span></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US"> </span></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><strong><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US"
          lang="EN-US">The application deadline is January 31<sup>st</sup>,
          2019. </span></strong></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><strong><span style="font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:
minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US"
          lang="EN-US">The deadline for references is February 3<sup>rd</sup>,
          2019.</span></strong></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">For
        further information on how to apply, please visit the website,
        or contact us at </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><a
          href="mailto:imprs.humanhistory@shh.mpg.de"><span
            style="mso-bidi-font-family:
Calibri;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-US"
            lang="EN-US">imprs.humanhistory@shh.mpg.de</span></a></span><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language:EN-US" lang="EN-US">.</span></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US"> </span></p>
    <p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span
        style="font-size:12.0pt;mso-ansi-language: EN-US" lang="EN-US">IMPRS-SHH
        is supporting equal opportunities and welcomes applications from
        all sections of the community. The Max Planck Society is
        committed to employ more handicapped individuals and especially
        encourages them to apply.</span></p>
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