skip to main content

Call for papers

LiCLA 1

LiME, the Linguistics & Language Variation group at the Meertens Institute in Amsterdam invites abstracts for the first edition of the LiME Conference on Language Variation (LiCLA 1). The conference will take place in Amsterdam on 17–18 September 2025.

Variation and change are key properties of natural language. Not surprisingly, then, these dynamic features have generated large bodies of linguistic research, in different subdisciplines and in different paradigms of linguistics. A recurring theme in that research tradition is the desire for a genuine “socio‐syntax”, i.e. a fusion between formal syntactic analysis on the one hand and sociolinguistics on the other (see e.g. Cornips and Corrigan 2005). In spite of this long‐standing research interest, however, there is to date only limited collaboration across discipline boundaries. This is regrettable, not only because language variation is hardly ever unidimensional—it typically spans both the grammatical and the social—but also because increased collaboration would be beneficial to help the field make progress in a number of key domains:

  • Syntax and social meaning. To what extent do social and cultural features play a role in syntactic variation and change? How can we extract and analyze (e.g. prestige or dynamism) associations of syntactic variants from social media data?
  • Aggregating over linguistic features. How can we aggregate over grammatical features of language varieties to delimit their linguistic essence? How do we encode (linguistic and extra‐linguistic) borders in a formal grammatical system?
  • Computational approaches. To what extent can computational techniques be used to (semi‐)automatically detect hitherto undiscovered syntactic variation patterns? Which statistical techniques are available for large‐scale dialect syntax mapping?

LiCLA wants to contribute to a more intensive rapprochement between (formal) syntax and (new) domains of sociolinguistics, and in this light, it welcomes presentations that zoom in on questions such as those raised above, or that address more general issues relevant to the burgeoning field of socio‐syntax.

Invited speakers

Organizing Committee

  • Marjo van Koppen (LiME/Utrecht University)
  • Hans Broekhuis (LiME)
  • Jeroen van Craenenbroeck (LiME/KU Leuven)
  • Kristel Doreleijers (LiME)
  • Stef Grondelaers (LiME)
  • Khalid Mourigh (LiME)
  • Jos Swanenberg (LiME/Tilburg University)

Abstract Guidelines

Abstracts should not exceed two pages, including data, references, and diagrams. Abstracts should be typed in at least 11‐point font, with one‐inch margins (letter‐size; 8.5 by 11 inch or A4) and a maximum of 50 lines of text per page. Abstracts must be anonymous and submissions are limited to max. 2 per author, at most one of which is single‐authored. Only electronic submissions will be accepted. Please submit your abstract using the EasyChair link for LiCLA 1.

Important dates

  • First call for papers: 25 March 2025
  • Second call for papers: 25 April 2025
  • Abstract submission deadline: 30 May 2025
  • Notification of acceptance: 30 June 2025
  • Conference: 17–18 September 2025

Conference webpage:

https://lime.meertens.knaw.nl/en/events/licla-1/

References

  • Cornips, Leonie, and Karen P. Corrigan, ed. 2005. Syntax and variation: Reconciling the biological and the social. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company.

Download this call for papers as a pdf.