OXFORD, Miss.—William Kretzschmar, prominent linguist and editor-in-chief of the Linguistic Atlas Project, or LAP, will speak on the University of Mississippi campus Nov. 12.
The lecture, “The Complex Adaptive System of Speech: Corpus Linguistics, Lexicogrammar and Language Variation,” will cover the topics of variation in language, models of grammar and the rise of new language varieties.
“This is a great chance for students interested in language to hear from a leader in the field of sociolinguistics,” said Allison Burkette, UM assistant professor of modern languages and assistant editor of LAP.
While the lecture is specifically about language, background knowledge is not needed, and everyone is encouraged to attend. The lecture is open to the public and will take place in the Tupelo Room of Barnard Observatory at 5:30 p.m.
In addition to giving the lecture, Kretzschmar has other business on campus: to visit the newly established UM branch of LAP.
“I think it could be a good opportunity for [the university’s] students to gain some genuine research experience,” he said. “Here at Georgia, the Atlas Project is one of the largest providers of undergraduate research opportunities.”
Besides his role as editor-in-chief of LAP, Kretzschmar is the Harry and Jane Willson Professor in Humanities at the University of Georgia and has authored or co-authored several works. Some of his most notable works include “The Linguistics of Speech,” Oxford Dictionary of Pronunciation for Current English and Handbook of the Linguistic Atlas of the Middle and South Atlantic States.