HomeThe circulation of linguistic and philological knowledge between Germany and the world, 16th to 20th century

The circulation of linguistic and philological knowledge between Germany and the world, 16th to 20th century

Sprachwissenschaftliche und philologische Wissenstransfers zwischen Deutschland und dem Ausland (16.-20. Jhdt)

La circulation des savoirs linguistiques et philologiques entre l'Allemagne et le monde (XVIe-XXe siècle)

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Published on Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Abstract

By all measures, Germany played an overwhelming role in the development of philology and linguistics during the 19th century. This ascendancy rests on the transmission to other national academies of theoretical constructs and views, methods and institutional practices. On the other hand, German philological and linguistic ideas, methods and institutions were not constituted in isolation from the rest of the world : Transfers to the German-speaking world must also be taken into account.

Announcement

Location, dates

The conference will take place in Paris, 25-27 January 2018.

Goal

The goal of this conference is to gain a better understanding of transnational exchanges between the German-speaking world and the rest of the world in the fields of linguistics and philology. The period under consideration stretches from the 16th century to the 20th.
We welcome proposals dealing with the history of these bi-directional transfers.

Themes

By all measures, Germany played an overwhelming role in the development of philology and linguistics during the 19th century. This ascendancy rests on the transmission to other national academies of theoretical constructs and views, methods and institutional practices. Transmission, however, was not simply a matter of inheriting a body of knowledge. Scientific transfers were channeled through traditions and individuals who reshaped the body of knowledge that had been bequeathed to them.

On the other hand, German philological and linguistic ideas, methods and institutions were not constituted in a theoretical vacuum and in isolation from the rest of the world : Transfers to the German-speaking world and their role in the constitution of philological and linguistic ideas, methods and institutions must also be taken into account.

The 19th and the beginning of the 20th century were certainly an acme, but understanding the advent and consequences of this golden age encourages the adoption of a broader perspective. What transnational transfers occurred before this time? Were German ideas, methods, and institutions transmitted back to their purveyors, and in what ways? To what extent does it even make sense to speak of national traditions, in particular of a specifically German tradition?

Proposals may deal with the following topics (the list is not intended to exhaust all possible subjects) :

  • The adaptation of Greek-Latin grammar to German.
  • The role of Grammaire Générale in Germany.
  • Early studies on language classifications and genealogies (e.g. by Gessner and Hervas y Panduro) and their role in later German linguistics.
  • The constitution of modern philology toward the end of the 18th century, the rise of hermeneutics, of Antiquity and Oriental studies, and the role of Germany in this evolution.
  • Historical and comparative grammar, the Neogrammarians and their role outside the German-speaking world (e.g. their reception and / or reworking by Bréal, Saussure, Rask, Verner, Pedersen, Baudouin de Courtenay, Kruszewski, Whitney, Bloomfield...).
  • Naturalist linguistics (with Schleicher and his counterparts in other countries, e.g. Hovelacque and Chavée).
  • Anthropological linguistics and its German roots (cf. Boas).
  • Linguistic geography and dialectology (and its offshoots in Ascoli’s work, as well as Gilléron’s and Edmont’s, Jaberg’s and Jud’s etc.).
  • Romance studies (such as Diez, but see also of the role of Jewish immigants to the U.S., like Spitzer and Auerbach).
  • The constitution of general linguistics and the interplay between German investigations (e.g. Gabelentz, or psychological linguistics) and their adaptations or parallels in other countries.
  • The influence of German psychological linguistics abroad, and foreign strands of psychological linguistics, as compared to their German counterparts.
  • The relations between Germany and foreign structuralist schools.
  • The import of German ideas in contemporary linguistics (with an eye toward the historical tranmission of these ideas).
  • Finally, papers may also focus on key individuals insofar as they played a part in these scientific transfers.

Instructions for authors

There is no registration fee.

Dealine for submission : September 15, 2017.

Acceptance notifications : September 30, 2017.

Papers will be allowed 30 min. (+10 min. for questions).

Abstracts of 300 - 400 words must be submitted by e-mail as a file attachment in Word to cglp@gmail.com.

Abstracts should include: name and affiliation, e-mail address, title of paper, abstract (if possible on one side of A4 in a typeface no smaller than 10). In your e-mail, please indicate the following: scheduling restrictions or other special needs for your presentation; audiovisual needs; need for written letter of acceptance (or indicate if an email acceptance is sufficient). Abstracts will be anonymized and submitted to a double-blind review.

The languages of the conference are English, French and German. A selection of the papers will be published.

Organizing Committee

The conference is the joint initiative of the following organizations : Labex TransferS, Société d’Histoire et d’Epistémologie des Sciences du Langage (SHESL), Société de Linguistique de Pari (SLP), the research groups “Germanic Countries” (Labex TransferS and Ecole Normale Supérieure), “History of Linguistic Theories” (University of Paris Diderot / Paris Sorbonne Nouvelle) and LaTTiCe (Labex TransferS, Ecole Normale Supérieure and Sorbonne Nouvelle University).

Members of the committee:

  • Benjamin Fagard (CNRS, Labex TransferS, group LaTTiCe)
  • Jean-Michel Fortis (CNRS, SHESL, Université Paris Diderot, group “History of Linguistic Theories”)
  • Jacques François (Université de Caen-Normandie, SLP)
  • Aimée Lahaussois (CNRS, SHESL, Université Paris Diderot “History of Linguistic Theories”)
  • Alain Lemaréchal (Université Paris-Sorbonne, EPHE, SLP)
  • Jean-Léo Léonard (Université Paris-Sorbonne, SLP)
  • Daniel Petit (Ecole Normale Supérieure Ulm, SLP)
  • Pascale Rabault-Feuerhahn (CNRS, Labex TransferS, group “Germanic Countries”)
  • Didier Samain (SHESL, Université Paris-Sorbonne, group “History of Linguistic Theories”)

Places

  • École normale supérieure , salle Dussane et salle Celan - 45 rue d'Ulm
    Paris, France (75005)

Date(s)

  • Friday, September 15, 2017

Attached files

Keywords

  • linguistique, philologie, Allemagne, histoire transnationale, histoire intellectuelle, circulation, savoir, transfert culturel, sémantique historique

Contact(s)

  • Comité d'organisation du colloque « La circulation des savoirs linguistiques et philologiques entre l'Allemagne et le monde (XVIe-XXe siècle) »
    courriel : cglp [at] gmail [dot] com

Information source

  • Pascale Rabault-Feuerhahn
    courriel : pascale [dot] rabault [at] ens [dot] fr

License

CC0-1.0 This announcement is licensed under the terms of Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal.

To cite this announcement

« The circulation of linguistic and philological knowledge between Germany and the world, 16th to 20th century », Call for papers, Calenda, Published on Wednesday, May 31, 2017, https://doi.org/10.58079/xqg

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