Category Archives: Events

Digital Resources, Endangered Language Activism, Events, Gregory D. S. Anderson, Language Documentation, Luke Horo

Presentation at LISPRUL 2022

We are pleased to announce that Dr. Gregory D. S. Anderson and Dr. Luke Horo presented their work at the conference, Linguistic Issues in Speech Processing Research of Under-Resourced Languages (LISPRUL 2022) on March 2-3, 2022. The title of their presentation is “Under-resourced Languages and Documentation in India: The Living Tongues Approach.” Their abstract can be read below.

View all presentations and slides

ABOUT LISPRUL 2022

From the conference website: “There are 22 scheduled languages in India and several hundreds of under-resourced languages. Development of speech technologies like speech recognition, machine translation, speech synthesis and speech to speech translation systems for these languages is a resource and time intensive task. Apart from technology development, speech and language data collection in the under-resourced languages may also be aimed towards creating linguistic archives for community use and for linguistic analysis in digital, easily usable and open access manner. In this workshop, we intend to learn how linguistic data archiving, analysis and technology development can be accomplished in a synergetic manner.

Eminent researchers from all over the world, specialising in the fields of speech and language processing, linguistic analysis, archiving and technology development will share their experience and expertise in this workshop. Apart from in-depth discussions, the sessions are designed to have ample time for the participants to have open discussions with the speakers.”

LISPRUL Flyer
Official LISPRUL Flyer

TITLE OF PRESENTATION
“Under-resourced Languages and Documentation in India: The Living Tongues Approach”

by Gregory D. S. Anderson and Luke Horo

ABSTRACT
In this presentation we offer some details about our work documenting the under-resourced languages of India. We begin with a discussion of the two sets of languages we have worked on over the past decades in India which belong to the Munda and various subgroups of the Trans-Himalayan (Tibeto-Burman) language families. We then draw attention to how we have gone about classifying these languages and situate this against computational phylogenetics based on Swadesh lists that dominate the field today. We then give an overview of the Munda Languages Initiative and detail the types of data we collect and how we analyze it and why we feel this is the correct way to do so. We then detail some of the past and ongoing scientific and applied outcomes of this work including an introduction to a powerful tool the Living Dictionary app that we have developed that aids linguists and citizen-scientists alike in creating high-quality and free documentation records. We conclude with a look to ongoing and future projects and ways that interested and qualified participants can find roles in the furthering of these projects and the development of skills in best practice in language documentation.

Digital Resources, Endangered Language Activism, Events, Featured Videos

Looking Back On Conferences In 2021

With many international conferences going virtual in 2021, it was a good year for researchers at Living Tongues Institute for Endangered Languages to participate in virtual gatherings around the world. Our teams presented their work at many fascinating scientific conferences and language activism events.

From the documentation of endangered Munda languages in India, to the creation of Living Dictionaries for under-documented languages around the world, we were very active in disseminating the results of our ongoing research projects.

Some of the conferences we presented at in 2021 included:

  • The International Conference on Language Documentation & Conservation (ICLDC 2021)
  • The 9th International Conference on Austroasiatic Linguistics (ICAAL9)
  • New Contexts for the Use of Minoritized Languages (NEWCON 2021)
  • Southeast Asian Linguistics Society (SEALS 2021)
  • The 13th International Austronesian and Papuan Languages and Linguistics conference (APLL 13)
  • Contribuling 2021
  • The 10th World Congress of African Linguistics (WOCAL10)
  • Stabilizing Indigenous Languages 27
  • RightsCon 2021 (human rights in the digital age)
  • International Indigenous Resistance Conference
  • The 1st International Conference on Tone and Intonation (TAI)
  • eLex: Electronic lexicography in the 21st century
  • Nilo-Saharan Linguistics Colloquium
  • The 53rd Foundation Day Lecture Series at the Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL Mysore)

    …and others!

Check out this YouTube playlist to see a diverse array of our video presentations from 2021. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4eA20iK0XI9DoP7CgenPZgMnlg7NyKqV

We are including some screenshots from various conferences and related proceedings below.

 

 

 

 

 

1st International Conference on Tone and Intonation (TAI) 2021

Donate Now, Endangered Language Activism, Events, Get Involved

Gala Celebrating the Documentation of Endangered Jewish Languages

The Jewish Language Project, Living Tongues Institute for Endangered Languages and Wikitongues are teaming up to bring you this unique online event on Sunday, October 17th, 2021, celebrating ongoing efforts to document and safeguard Jewish languages around the world.

Gala Celebrating the Documentation of Endangered Jewish Languages
RSVP to attend

In 2,000 years, there have been at least thirty Jewish languages, each reflecting unique histories of migration and resilience. However, Jewish linguistic diversity was nearly destroyed by migrations and violence in the 20th century, as ancient communities across Europe, Africa, and Asia were displaced. Today, with the exception of Yiddish, Ladino, and revitalized Hebrew, long-standing Jewish languages are under-documented, under-resourced, and spoken by aging populations, with few public resources to keep these languages alive. In other words, Jewish linguistic diversity—and all the history it represents—is critically endangered, with little time to safeguard it for the next generation. If not now, when?

This gala event on October 17th will show how current grassroots efforts are making a huge difference in protecting Jewish languages for future generations. The gala will include a panel of speakers of endangered Jewish languages, a presentation of oral history videos compiled by Wikitongues, a showcase of Living Dictionaries for endangered Jewish languages, as well as a brief introduction to Jewish languages by Professor Sarah Bunin Benor.

Act now and donate.

Digital Resources, Events, Indigenous Language Activists, Language Documentation, Launches and Public Events, Living Dictionaries, Workshops

Living Dictionaries: Upcoming Webinars in English, French and Spanish

Living Dictionary Webinars

To end 2020 with a bang, we are pleased to be teaching three Living Dictionary online workshops during the month of December. We are offering them via Zoom in English, French and Spanish to accommodate the diverse community of people using our Living Dictionary platform around the world. This workshop series is for language activists and researchers who have started Living Dictionary projects with us in recent years, or are interested in starting one soon.  We will also hold more events of this kind in January and February.

Register below to reserve your spot.  Español abajo.  Français ci-bas. 

Living Dictionaries

Living Dictionaries: an online workshop
(taught in English)
Monday, Dec 14th, 2020. 6:30pm-8pm EST.
Register here

Living Dictionaries are mobile-friendly web tools that support endangered, under-represented and diasporic languages. During this Zoom webinar, we will cover these topics:

  • How to create a new Living Dictionary online
  • How to add word and phrases, audio, images and more
  • Show examples from three existing Living Dictionaries
  • Give an overview of our latest features

The teaching portion will be followed by Q&A and a group discussion. This event will be recorded and will be uploaded online within 5 days of the event.  Register here!

 

Diccionarios Vivos: un taller en línea
(enseñado en español)
miércoles 16 de diciembre de 2020. 11am-12:30pm EST.
Regístrese aquí

Diccionarios Vivos son herramientas digitales móviles que apoyan a las lenguas amenazadas, subrepresentadas y diaspóricas. Durante este taller por Zoom, vamos a mostrar:

La enseñanza será seguida por preguntas y respuestas, y una discusión de grupo. Este evento será grabado y subido a la red dentro de 5 días. Regístrese aquí.

 

Les dictionnaires vivants: un atelier en ligne
(enseigné en français)
vendredi 18 décembre 2020. 11h-12h30 EST.
S’inscrire ici 

Les dictionnaires vivants sont des outils mobiles qui soutiennent les langues menacées, sous-représentées et diasporiques. Durant cet atelier, nous allons vous montrer:

La partie pédagogique sera suivie d’une séance de questions-réponses et d’une discussion en groupe. Cet atelier digital sera enregistré et sera mis en ligne dans les 5 jours suivant l’événement. S’inscrire ici .

Questions / preguntas?
email Anna Luisa Daigneault: annaluisa@livingtongues.org

Like our work?
Please help us protect linguistic diversity by donating today. 

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