Conference Description

This conference will bring together researchers working on the syntactic structure of less widely studied languages from a variety of perspectives. Contributions are expected to be based on first-hand data of individual languages or to adopt a broadly comparative perspective. All major theoretical frameworks are equally welcome, as is work done in analytical frameworks developed in typology or field linguistics.

Papers that adopt a diachronic/historical-comparative perspective or that discuss language-contact effects are also welcome, as are papers dealing with morphological or semantic issues, as long as syntactic issues also play a major role.

Authors should not presuppose detailed knowledge of their theoretical framework,and the papers should focus on widely relevant theoretical issues, minimizing theory-internal argumentation. We recognize that questions raised by theoretical frameworks often lead to the discovery of interesting phenomena in lesser studied languages. However, the goal of applying a theoretical framework should be seen as subsidiary to the main purpose of the conference, that of enlarging our knowledge and understanding of the syntactic phenomena of the world's languages.

The time allotted for presentation and discussion is 35 minutes. Participants may not be involved in more than two abstracts, of which at most one may be single-authored. English is the preferred language at the conference.