Newsletter 06 (May/ June 2010) Eurolinguistics Newsletter No. 6 (May/June 2010) The Eurolinguistic Circle of Mannheim (ELAMA, e. V.) on behalf of The Eurolinguistic Association (ELA) and the Faculty of Political Science in Editorial Rome. This topic also attracted a large Contents number of foreign guests and scholars 1. In Lisbon: Dear Eurolinguists, from various international universities in Europe and overseas: e.g. “Global and Local Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Eurolinguistics”, ELA- This sixth issue of the Newsletter contains three conference reports and Serbia, France, Germany etc. (see Workshop at SLE-Meeting, Section 2). one summary report on the Tempus 9-12, Sept., 2009. Project “Foreign Languages in the Third, an International Symposium on Field of Law” in Croatia. 2. In Rome: the importance of a well-organized International Conference, First, an ELA-workshop at the SLE foreign language programme in today’s multilingual and multicultural Meeting in Lisbon was held in “Mother Language Day”, society was dealt with at a second September 2009 when nine papers Feb. 21, 2009. were presented under the title “Global conference in May 2009, organized by the Dept. of Languages for Public and Local Eurolinguistics” by members 3. In Rome: Policies of the “Sapienza”, Univ. of of three branches of the Eurolinguistic International Symposium Rome, in cooperation with other Association (AES, ELAMA and ENSE) organisation and societies in things “Dynamics of Global founded in Lille three years ago (2007). The ELA-workshop in Lisbon pedagogical and didactic. A number of Communication” May 8-12, new concepts such as British English, was one of the numerous workshops, 2009. Euroenglish, Globish or Europese etc. which were attended by more than 300 participants of the SLE-Meeting. were suggested as Europe-wide terms 4. In Zagreb and Croatia: for facilitating the learning of a medium The goals and contents of the specific “Final Report on the for efficient European communication. branches of ELA were presented and Tempus Project in Croatia” also made known to the public by The goal is a creation of an easier means of learning, which is free from distributing Eurolinguistic information (2006-2009)”. complicated structures at the phonetic, material. Despite the overcrowded main sessions of the SLE, the ELA- lexical as well as phraseological levels, but which nevertheless are 5. Goals and Statutes of workshop could attract a small but Associazione Euro- Europe-oriented public (see Section easily accessible to a major and ever growing international public of foreign 1). linguistica Sud (A.E.S.) speakers than the heavily founded in 2004. (Handout). Fig. 1 “Torre BELÉM”, Lisbon standardized British English variety, which is not perceived as being the 6. Plurilingualism and Cultural most accessible variety of English (see Section 3). Awareness: The Activities of Eurolinguistica-Sud Fourth, aside from these conference activities in Rome in 2009, Euro- 7. An Outline of the Euro- linguistics saw the fulfillment of a linguistics Association Tempus Project profusely financed by (ELA): Membership the European Commission for furthering “Foreign Languages in the APPENDIX: Field of Law” between 2006 and 2009 in Croatia (see Section 4). Through an The ELA Constitution and EU-grant to the Univ. of Zagreb, the the Pushkin Manifesto Faculty of Law served as the co- a) In English ordinating centre of a common b) In Russian Croatian consortium consisting of Second, the year 2009 also saw an three other law faculties in Rijeka, Split international conference on “Mother and Ossijek within Croatia, on the one (See www.elama.de/Homepage) Language Day” in February 2009 hand, and the Universities of Antwerp, organized by AES at “La Sapienza” Innsbruck, Mannheim, Paris II Eurolinguistic Association (ELA) 1 Newsletter 06 (May/ June 2010) (Panthéon-Assas) and London (South The main title of the SLE Meeting was However, since it would be impossible Bank University) and the Forensic entitled “Global Languages, Local for an individual to master all the Linguistics Institute in Llanfair Languages” to which nine members of different languages in Europe, the Caerinion/Wales, on the other. The ELA (Eurolinguistic Association) Euro LSJ- approach suggested by foremost goal of the Tempus Project presented papers. The whole SLE Steller assures the possibility of was a harmonization between the Meeting was divided into eight acquiring the main traits of European Croatian legal system and EU-law in sections with at least 300 participants languages through LSJ so as to view of the Croatian accession to the including speakers and public. In the ensure a global vision of them and to EU. The heavy coordinating job was ELA workshop three Eurolinguistics learn their common traits. These on Dr Lelija Sočanac’s shoulders branches (AES, ELAMA and ENSE) common traits could then work as an whose organisational talent and Euro- were represented with nine papers. independent language, namely linguistics knowledge of European Europese that could be learnt just like languages and cultures were an asset As the chairman, Sture Ureland any other language. At the moment, for the success of the project. A well- (University of Mannheim), pointed out Erhard Steller and his collaborators organized and successfully planned in his introductory paper to the are writing an etymological dictionary conference held in Dubrovnik in Sept. workshop on Eurolinguistics, the of Europese. 2008 will give further impetus to dichotomy of “inner and global further conferences on Law and Eurolinguistics“ was a basic notion in Leiljia Sočanac (University of Zagreb) Language to be held in other European linguistics, as presented introduced the ENSE association and European countries (Poland) and even also in the Pushkin Theses. The its activities in Croatia. The objective overseas (Japan) in the near future influence that many European of ENSE, Eurolinguistics Network (see the review of the 2008 Dubrovnik languages have had on other South East, namely a branch of ELA, Conference in Newsletter 5, April languages worldwide gives rise to a is to support research on 2009). A publication on “Curriculum crucial matter, namely the fact that multilingualism, language contacts, and Multilingualism and the Law” Eurolinguistics does not limit itself to minority languages, language policy could be completed before the end of Europe but works also as a “linguistic and language planning and the Tempus Project (cf. Sočanac, innovator for languages spoken intercultural communication in the Goddard and Kremer (eds.) 2009), outside Europe”. region. Dr Sočanac also presented the which is a considerable accomplish- ment by the editors. Furthermore, a “Centre for Language and Law” is being planned in Zagreb to coordinate higher education and modernization between partner countries and the EU. The Centre also hosts the ELA-branch Eurolinguistics Network South-East (ENSE) which is concerned with the study and research of multilingualism, language contacts, common linguistic properties between European languages, lesser-used Fig. 2: The Main Building of the research carried out by Croatian languages and European languages in Universidade de Lisboa linguists that have focused on “the a global context and the promotion of English Element in European multilingual programmes for language In line with introductory Remarks, Prof. Languages”, Croatian in contact with learning and teaching. (PSU) Ureland also stressed the common other languages and legal and aspects of European languages. linguistic aspects of multilingualism. 1. Global and Local Erhard Steller (University of Eurolinguisics The aim of the next speaker, Laura Mannheim) could use this perspective Ferrarotti (‘Sapienza’ University of for his presentation of a very Rome), was to present the activities Eurolinguistic Workshop in Lisbon, interesting work entitled Europe as a and purposes of the Rome-based 9-12 September, 2009 language – the concept of Euro LSJ. Association Eurolinguistica-Sud The three letters L, S and J in the title Laura Ferrarotti (AES), which was founded in 2005 by namely stand for the main European a group of professors belonging to An ELA workshop was held at the linguistic families: the Romance/ Neo- European universities (Italy, France, 42nd Meeting of the Societas Latin languages, Germanic and Slavic Spain, Portugal, Romania) and, like Linguistica Europaea (SLE) at the languages. These languages should ENSE, it is a branch of ELA. Laura Faculdade de Letras of the University be sufficient representation of the Ferrarotti spoke on behalf of Professor of Lisbon, on September 9-12, 2009. basic core of the European languages. Giuseppe G. Castorina, President of Eurolinguistic Association (ELA) 2 Newsletter 06 (May/ June 2010) the AES. One of the main aims of the Aside from the autochthonic Dutch- Swedish influence on regional association is to promote research on speaking population from the varieties of American English in the plurilingualism, language minorities, Netherlands (also in part of Germany Middle West, in which, given the and translation and teaching and France), other reasons for presence of a Swedish substrate in programs. One of the most recent contacts included religious, cultural Midwestern American English, he issues was the study of phenomena and economic neighbourhood discussed the influences of this sub- like the Plain English Campaign and relations through colonization in stratum and juxtaposed them with simplification initiatives that have