Transnational Perspectives on the Study of Spanish in Society

In the centenary of Spanish being taught at the University of Edinburgh, we are delighted to host the ninth International Conference of Hispanic Linguistics and seventh Biennial Meeting of the International Association for the Study of Spanish in Society (SiS-EES). 

Languages travel and adapt to the new circumstances faced by their speakers. The growth of the Spanish language has always been transnational in nature, insofar as any expansion has been grounded in cultural and economic exchange.

This conference will bring together people with scholarly interests in the situation of the Spanish language in the contemporary world. Almost twenty years into the new millennium, we want to reflect on how Spanish speakers - be they in their countries of origin or in the diaspora - construct and negotiate concepts of community.

How is this achieved by recourse to ideas of borders, migration and contact? How do speakers move beyond notions of physical space, and push social, political, cultural and commercial boundaries, in order to break through the limits imposed on them by nations and continents? (Mar-Molinero and Stewart 2006; Foner 2005; Jackson et al. 2004)

Are we at present witnessing processes of homogenisation and standardisation of norms and uses, thanks to the global space in which Spanish speakers move and communicate, all made possible by technological advances, and policies of a Pan-Hispanic nature? Or, in fact, do we find ourselves in an unprecedented social situation which allows language to be more pluricentric, local, innovative and 'superdiverse' than ever before? (Lebsanft, Mihatsch and Polzin-Haumann 2012; Zimmermann 2014; Blommaert 2015; Arnaut 2016)

Now is the time to debate what methods and research protocols are the most effective at capturing the complexity that arises from such situations. What does it mean to view things transnationally? How can such a perspective benefit the study of the relationships between Spanish speakers in a global world? These will be our triggers for discussion.

Registration for the conference is priced at £165 (£100 for students and other concessions) and is available to book until 10th June 2019. 

Thereafter, registration will be priced at £195 (£100 for students and other concessions).

The cost includes attendance at all conference sessions, SIS-EES membership, refreshments and meals, including the conference dinner.

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Confirmed speakers

As well as panel sessions, the conference will feature a number of plenary speakers. The following are confirmed as speaking:

• Jennifer Leeman, George Mason University

• Rosina Márquez Reiter, University of Surrey
• María Soledad Montañez and Naomi Wells, University of London

Conference sponsors and partners 

Centre for Contemporary Latin American Studies, The University of Edinburgh and AHRC Open World Research Initiative, “Cross-Language Dynamics: Reshaping Community” – Translingual Strand.

The conference is being organised by Dr Carlos Soler Montes, a Lecturer in the School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures (LLC) at the University of Edinburgh where he teaches Hispanic Linguistics and advanced Spanish Language courses.

Transnational Perspectives on the Study of Spanish in Society conference paper (245.84 KB PDF)

Celebrating 100 years of Spanish at Edinburgh

2019 marks the centenary of the Spanish degree and the establishment of the department of Spanish at the University of Edinburgh. Today, we have grown into a large community of teachers, researchers and students in Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies (SPLAS). We offer a range of undergraduate degrees, MSc by Research degrees, and PhDs, as well as teaching on interdisciplinary masters programmes. Please do join us for events and activities over the course of the year, including the Main University Library’s first ever multi-lingual exhibition, ‘Conectando: Scottish Encounters with Spanish & Portuguese’ (5th April to 29th June 2019).

#SPLASatEd100

Find out more about Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies