[Lingtyp] 2 PhD positions in Spatial typology at the University of Freiburg

[Matías Guzmán Naranjo]

Apologies for cross-posting

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Description

Two fully funded PhD positions (4 years) in Spatial Typology at the
University of Freiburg im Breisgau

There are two positions available in the newly funded Emmy Noether Project:
Bayesian modeling of Spatial Typology.
Spatial typology encompasses contact, areal linguistics, dialectology, as
well as the effects of geography and cultural features on language.
This project aims to develop new statistical techniques to model different
types of contact scenarios,
the role of physical barriers and pathways, asymmetric contact situations,
as well as well as more realistic representations of areal data.

The students will work on one of the following topics:

Position 1 - Asymmetric and symmetric relations in spatial typology:

Models of contact usually assume that the influence of one language on
another is symmetric.
However, we know from the literature that this does not reflect the reality
of many contact situations.
Very often there are asymmetric relations between two communities, which
can lead to different types of contact effects.
The student working on this topic will develop statistical models of
asymmetric language contact.

Position 2 - Spatial language modelling with polygon and areal data

Most work on quantitative spatial typology assumes that languages are
represented as points in space.
While this assumption is an adequate representation of certain situations,
it greatly simplifies the complexities of how languages
are spread in space.
This topic aims to remedy this by building statistical models using more
realistic spatial representations of languages in the form of polygon data.
This topic in particular will give the student the opportunity to learn
about and work with different geoinformation system tools and techniques.

While the two positions are independent from each other, collaborations and
joint work are expected.

Required qualifications:

- MA/MSc degree (by the start date) in linguistics or computational
linguistics with emphasis on typology, dialectology or statistical modeling.
- Interest in the general topic of the project.
- Some knowledge of statistics and R is required.
- Good command of written and spoken English (knowledge of German is not
required).

Desired qualifications:

- Knowledge of Bayesian statistics, spatial modeling and geoinformation
systems.

Most importantly, candidates should be willing to acquire multiple new
technical skills.

What are the benefits:

- PhD can be completed in 3 or 4 years
- Salary according to Entgeltgruppe 13 TV-L 65%
- Students will have the opportunity to work on cutting-edge research in
spatial typology
- Funding for conferences and workshops, as well as potential summer
schools or short research stays at other universities
- Access to High Performance Computing resources
- A vibrant community of linguists working on dialectology, typology and
historical linguistics

How to apply:

Send the following documents to mguzmann89 at gmail.com with the subject "PhD
application - Emmy Noether":

- CV
- Letter of motivation indicating the topic you would like to work on and
why, and your overall qualifications
- MA/MSc thesis
- Writing sample other than thesis (if available)
- Contact details of two referees who can provide letters of recommendation
upon request

Shortlisted candidates will be interviewed via zoom.

Review will start 15.10.2022 and will continue until both positions are
filled.

The starting date will ideally be the 01.01.2023, but a later starting date
is possible.

For further information please contact Dr. Matías Guzmán Naranjo at
mguzmann89 at gmail.com
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