(Murcia, 15-18 June 2016)

The 21st Sociolinguistics Symposium will be held on June 15-18, 2016, at the University of Murcia, Spain. Since the 1970s, the Sociolinguistics Symposia have brought together sociolinguists and discourse researchers interested in investigating and theorizing issues concerning language in society. Attracting hundreds of participants and exhibitors, the Symposium is also a stimulating space for networking. We warmly welcome you to discuss fundamental issues in sociolinguistics studies, and not only to rethink our present understanding of these disciplines but also to imagine their future frontiers.

Attitudes and Prestige will be the thematic orientation for Sociolinguistics Symposium 21. In addition to this major trend, contributions to any of the directions within the spectrum of the Language and Society paradigm are welcome: Sociology of language, Social psychology of language, Discourse analysis, Conversation analysis, Ethnography of communication, Language and gender, Anthropological linguistics, Media language, Socio-stylistics, Variationist sociolinguistics, Dialectology, Geolinguistics, Historical sociolinguistics, Creole sociolinguistics, Cognitive sociolinguistics, Applied sociolinguistics, Sociolinguistic methods, etc. Covering major areas in the field, the plenary speakers will be:

• Dennis Preston (Oklahoma State University, USA)
• Rebecca Clift (University of Essex, England)
• David Britain (University of Bern, Switzerland)
• Laura Wright(University of Cambridge, England)
• Francisco Moreno-Fernández (University of Alcalá de Henares, Spain)
• Kathryn Woolard (University of California, San Diego, USA)

As in recent Symposia, and in addition to the six plenaries and the usual Sessions and Posters, a series of Invited Colloquia (Round Tables) will be run focusing on theory, methods or applications in Sociolinguistics. Celebrating the 40th anniversary since the first Sociolinguistics Symposium was organized at Walsall in 1976, a Special Session entitled Sociolinguistics: Milestones and Challenges will also be scheduled.

COLLOQUIA: THEORY, METHODS AND APPLICATIONS IN SOCIOLINGUISTICS

A series of parallel invited colloquia (Round Tables) will be scheduled focusing on either theory, methods or applications in Sociolinguistics on Friday 17th June:

1)Historical Sociolinguistics (convenor: Terttu Nevalainen)

2)Style in Sociolinguistics (convenor: Allan Bell and Natalie Schilling)

3)Sociolinguistics, Migration and Discrimination (convenor: Ruth Wodak)

4)Forensic Sociolinguistics (convenor: Malcolm Coulthard)

5)Attitudes and Prestige (convenor: UnnRøyneland)

6)Cognitive Sociolinguistics (convenor: Gitte Kristiansen)

7)Sociolinguistics in Spain (convenor: PilarGarcía-Mouton)*

8)Sociolinguistic Trends in the Spanish-speaking World (convenor: Manuel Díaz-Campos)*

Papers for these invited colloquia will be submitted either by invitation or through a separate/specific call for papers. But proposals of colloquia focusing on relevant topics in your sociolinguistic sub-field will be welcome (Submission of Proposals).

* In Spanish

PROPOSALS

The four categories for proposals are (1) individual papers, (2) posters, (3) e-posters, and (4) colloquia.

1) Individual papers:  Individual papers are formal presentations on original research by one or more authors, lasting a total of 30 minutes (20 minutes for presentation and 10 minutes for discussion). Please note that the time limit will be strictly adhered to. The length of abstracts for individual papers is max 500 words.

2) Posters: Poster sessions are for displaying research and they offer the opportunity for individualized informal discussions. Poster is a good format for presenting work-in-progress, fieldwork and results of empirical research when data can be presented visually (e.g. charts, graphs, tables). A block of time will be designated when presenters are available to discuss their posters (Friday morning). In addition, the posters will be available online in a virtual poster exhibition for viewing and commenting throughout the conference (for conference participants only). The length of abstracts for posters is max 500 words. Detailed instructions regarding the appropriate format for on-line exhibition will be sent to presenters once they have received notification (January 2016) that their proposals have been accepted.

3) e-Posters: Participation in the virtual poster exhibition of the SS21 website will be available for those who are unable to attend the Conference and would be interested in presenting work-in-progress, fieldwork and results of empirical research when data can be presented visually (e.g. charts, graphs, tables). The length of abstracts for e-posters is max 500 words. These virtual posters will be on-line together with their abstract and a 5-minute presentation video. Detailed instructions regarding the appropriate format for on-line exhibition will be sent to presenters once they have received notification (January 2016) that their proposals have been accepted.

4) Colloquia: Colloquia allow for extended discussion on a particular topic with a cluster of several independent papers and a joint discussion. Colloquia are presented in time blocks of 21/2 hours, and the colloquium organizer(s) will decide upon the allocation of this time between the introduction, individual papers and the discussion (20 minutes per paper is strongly recommended, with 15 minutes for presentation and 5 minutes for discussion strictly). It is expected that colloquia organizer(s) have invited colloquium contributors, including a potential discussant, in advance. The colloquium submission includes two phases:

i) Only the colloquium organizer(s) submits an abstract (max 750 words) for the entire colloquium. The abstract has to include an overall description of the colloquium, the names of the individual contributors and the titles of their presentations. The organizer(s) are also asked to indicate the length of the colloquium in time blocks (11/2, 2 or 21/2 hours).

ii) Only after possible notification of acceptance in January 2016, the colloquium organizer(s) will be asked to submit all individual abstracts (max 500 words, by the end of February) to be included in the symposium programme.

SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS

Submission of proposals for papers, posters, and colloquia opens on 15 July, 2015. The proposals will be submitted via an online author submission management system. Please consult the conference website for more information.

EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS

Proposals for individual papers, posters, and colloquia will be evaluated by the SS21 Scientific Committee and the Organizing Committee in terms of quality of content, significance, originality, thematic relevance and quality of abstract presentation.

SS21 CONFERENCE PRESENTATION POLICIES

• Individuals may submit only one abstract as the first author of a paper, a poster, or a presentation in a colloquium. In addition, an individual may have a role as a colloquium organizer, discussant, or co-author/co-presenter of other papers or posters.

• It is assumed that all proposals represent original and unpublished work that is not yet available to the research community.

• Paper and poster presenters as well as colloquium organizers need to be registered attending participants at the Symposium.

• The language of the conference is English, except in some invited colloquia focused on Hispanic Sociolinguistics.

• The conference policy is that the author will present the paper on the day and time assigned by the conference program committee.

IMPORTANT DATES

Submission of abstracts opens 15th July, 2015

Submission of abstracts closes 30th September, 2015

Notification of acceptance in January 2016

Registration opens in January 2016

Conference takes place June 15-18, 2016

Website: http://www.um.es/sociolinguistics-symposium21

Contact: ss21murcia@um.es

On behalf of the Organizing Committee