Workshop at Evolang 2026
The Geography of Linguistic Evolution
Short Title: EVOLANG

Date: 07-Apr-2026 – 10-Apr-2026
Location: Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Contact: Judith Verstegen
Contact Email: j.a.verstegen@uu.nl
Meeting URL: https://www.uu.nl/medewerkers/JAVerstegen/Extra1

Linguistic Field(s): Anthropological Linguistics; General Linguistics; Historical Linguistics; Typology

Submission Deadline: 30-Nov-2025

Workshop at the EVOLANG conference, 7-10 April 2026

Conveners: Judith Verstegen, Sietze Norder, Nicholas Q. Emlen, Derek Karssenberg & Rik van Gijn

Linguistic diversity is unevenly distributed across the globe: hotspots of language, genealogical, and structural diversity are surrounded by large areas with a low linguistic variation. This non-random spatial distribution suggests that, mediated through cultural behavior, the biophysical environment plays a key role in the evolution of linguistic diversity. This workshop brings together linguists, geographers, and scientists from related domains (e.g. ecology, anthropology) to discuss current research and future research directions on connections between geography and linguistic evolution. We will cover theoretical frameworks, case studies with empirical data, simulation and statistical modelling studies, as well as research directed towards innovation of research methodologies to study connections between geography and linguistics.

In this workshop, we will have a 15-minute introduction, six half-hour slots for presentations with two 30 minute breaks and one half-hour round table at the end. Out of the six presentation slots, one will be for an invited speaker, Peter Ranacher, from the University of Zürich, Department of Geography. The other six slots will be allocated to participants. Interested participants are requested to submit an abstract of their planned presentation.

Call for Abstracts:

We welcome abstracts of one page maximum (excluding references), written in English. They may cover theoretical frameworks, case studies with empirical data, simulation and statistical modelling studies, as well as research directed towards innovation of research methodologies to study connections between geography and linguistics. The work may be preliminary, recently finished, or already published; in the latter case, please make this clear in the abstract. The abstracts will be reviewed by the workshop conveners based on
1) fit to the workshop theme,
2) scientific quality, and
3) novelty of the methodology.
Accepted abstracts will get one of the six available presentation slots.

The submission deadline is November 30.

Please submit your abstract by emailing the abstract to Judith Verstegen (j.a.verstegen@uu.nl).

More information:

Conference website: https://sites.google.com/york.ac.uk/evolang2026/home?authuser=0
Workshop website: https://www.uu.nl/medewerkers/JAVerstegen/Extra1