37.864, Confs: 5th Globalising Sociolinguistics Conference (Georgia)

Tue Mar 3 19:05:02 UTC 2026

LINGUIST List: Vol-37-864. Tue Mar 03 2026. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 37.864, Confs: 5th Globalising Sociolinguistics Conference (Georgia)

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Date: 28-Feb-2026
From: Globalising Sociolinguistics (GloSoc5) [Glosoc5 at tsu.ge]
Subject: 5th Globalising Sociolinguistics Conference

5th Globalising Sociolinguistics Conference
Short Title: GloSoc5
Theme: The Sociolinguistics of Language Learning and Teaching

Date: 16-Jul-2026 - 17-Jul-2026
Location: Tbilisi, Georgia
Contact: Dick Smakman (Leiden University), Giuli Shabashvli (Ivane
Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University)
Contact Email: glosoc5 at tsu.ge

Linguistic Field(s): General Linguistics; Language Acquisition;
Psycholinguistics; Sociolinguistics
Subject Language(s): English (eng)
                     Georgian (kat)

Submission Deadline: 01-May-2026

Conference Theme:
This fifth edition of the Globalising Sociolinguistics conference
series focusses on the sociolinguistics of formal as well as informal
L2 language learning. This year, the conference is organized by the
Faculty of Humanities at Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University
and will be held in a hybrid format.
Below are some suggestions for themes of the papers.
 - Language policing inside and outside the L2 classroom
 - Online language learning
 - Using the L1 as language of instruction in the classroom
 - Language rights, the right to speak one’s L1 under all
circumstances
 - Use of the native-speaker model
 - Discrimination in language-learning contexts
 - Informal language acquisition, outside the L2 classroom
 - Diversification of learner populations
 - Role of native speakers as teachers
 - Informal language learning through gaming and social media
 - Gamification of L2 learning and teaching
 - Use of authentic materials in the L2 classroom
 - Awareness of cultural connotations of the L2
 - Teaching and learning of heritage languages
 - The Successful L2 learner as a language-learning model
 - Practical teaching methods based on postmodern principles of
equality/diversity
 - Sustainability of L2 teaching as we know it
 - Cultural representations in the classroom
 - Decolonising the classroom
 - Critical Pedagogy through L2 teaching
Abstract deadline: 1 May 2026
Conference Venue: Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University,
Faculty of Humanities
Conference Dates: 16-17 July
Abstract should be sent on the following email: Glosoc5 at tsu.ge
Conference Fees:
Regular fee:
 - PhD/MA/BA students: 90 Euro
 - Other: 150 Euro
 - Online presentations: 70 Euro
Detailed Conference Theme:
Common sociolinguistic dynamics that shape people’s first language
(L1)—including the development of dialects, sociolects, and other
lects derived from that L1—are not peripheral to Second Language
Acquisition (SLA). Acquiring a second language requires learners to
understand not only grammatical structures and lexicon but also the
social norms, interactional routines, and identity related meanings
embedded in everyday second-language use. In this light, the decision
to imitate or reproduce a language that is not one’s L1 is both
crucial and loaded—this act carries significant social weight, because
using an L2 can index (and be interpreted as signalling) social
alignment, distancing, aspiration, resistance, or identity
negotiation. It is therefore not a neutral linguistic choice but one
infused with social meanings, expectations, and potential consequences
within the communities where the language is used.
Crucially, second language learning does not occur exclusively in
formal contexts such as language courses, school curricula, or
university programs. Most SLA occurs partially or even predominantly
outside the classroom, through daily interactions, digital
communication, community networks, workplace encounters, and
participation in multilingual public spaces. This reality further
underscores the sociolinguistic nature of SLA, as learners engage with
language in settings where vernacular practices—not standardized
forms—are often dominant.
Learners are informally exposed to regional dialects, youth
vernaculars, migrant community varieties, and shifting ideological
evaluations of “legitimate” language. Their L2 acquisition is shaped
by participation in social networks, exposure to linguistic
variability, and alignment or resistance to locally valued norms.
Learners navigate complex repertoires that include local languages,
regional lingua francas, urban speech styles, and national standards.
These multilingual ecologies shape not only the linguistic features
learners acquire but also how they position themselves socially and
negotiate their identities, even through their Second Language.
This view aligns with the sociolinguistic turn in SLA research, in
which scholars such as Geeslin and Long (2014) argue that second
language development is inseparable from the social conditions of
language use. They emphasize that learners build linguistic competence
through engagement with varied input, interaction in diverse
communities, and orientation toward the vernacular forms they
encounter outside formal instructional environments. Their work
demonstrates that SLA is inherently social, shaped by identity,
ideology, and the learner’s position within dynamic linguistic
ecologies.
Geeslin, K. L., & Long, A. Y. (2014). Sociolinguistics and second
language acquisition: Learning to use language in context. New York,
NY: Routledge.
Previous  Globalising Sociolinguistics Conferences:
The GloSoc conference series has tried to focus on less commonly known
sociolinguistic settings, especially from outside the mainstream
Anglo-Western realm.
 - Leiden University (Netherlands), 15-18 June 2015, Challenging the
Anglo-Western nature of Sociolinguistics and expanding theories
(GloSoc1)
 - Leiden University (Netherlands), 13-15 December 2018, Communicating
in the City (GloSoc2)
 - Tallinn University (Estonia), 22-24 August 2024, Language and
Inequality (GloSoc3)
 -  Ain Shams University, Helwan University, Cairo University (Egypt),
7-9 February 2026, Decolonising Sociolinguistics (GloSoc4)
Publications:
Selected talks for GloSoc 5 will be published in the (open-access)
Journal of Global Sociolinguistics, which is published by Leiden
University:
https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/research/research-projects/humanities/the-journal-of-global-sociolinguistics#tab-1
The following publications have been published on the basis of
previous editions:
 - Dick Smakman & Patrick Heinrich (Eds.) (2015) Globalising
Sociolinguistics. Challenging and Expanding Theory. Routledge.
 - Dick Smakman & Patrick Heinrich (Eds.) (2018) Urban
Sociolinguistics. The City as a Linguistic Process and Experience.
Routledge.
 - Dick Smakman, Jiří Nekvapil, Kapitolina Fedorova (Eds.) (2022)
Linguistic Choices in the Contemporary City. Postmodern Individuals in
Urban communicative Settings. Routledge.
 - Dick Smakman & Kapitolina Fedorova (Eds.) (2026, expected) Language
& Inequality. Routledge.
Abstract Submission Guidelines:
Submissions must include the following elements (listed above the
abstract text):
 - Title of the abstract
 - Name(s) of the author(s)
 - Institutional affiliation(s)
 - Country and email address(es)
 - 3–5 keywords describing your research
The abstract text should clearly present:
 - The key idea of the presentation
 - Research question(s)
 - Theoretical framework
 - Research methods
 - Main outcomes
 - A short bibliography should also be included.
Please include a statement confirming that the submission is original
and unpublished research.
Length: The total length of the abstract, including the bibliography
and keywords, must not exceed 500 words.
Working languages: Georgian and English
Font: Sylfaen
Font size: 11
Line spacing: 1.15
All submitted abstracts will be anonymously peer-reviewed by a panel
of scholars.

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