Workshop: Variation and syntax: Where are we now, and where do we go next? Ann Arbor, MI, July 6-7, 2013

Michigan State University, East Lansing MI

Investigators

Abstract

This workshop responds to the growing interest in reconciling the study of sociolinguistic variation with syntactic theory. These vital subfields of scientific inquiry into human language have been estranged virtually since their inception, with longstanding disputes centered on fundamental methodological and theoretical issues. However, recent work has demonstrated that variationist empirical methods are indeed well suited for investigating variable phenomena of relevance to syntactic theorizing, and furthermore that independently motivated models of syntax and morphology have become sufficiently articulated that plausible formal mechanisms of intra- and inter-speaker variation can be proposed. The workshop has dual objectives. The first is to develop explicit strategies for evaluating competing theories of variation and syntax, which requires synthesizing current knowledge and identifying areas of consensus. For example, one influential approach holds that syntactic variation should be analyzed as "multiple grammars", while other accounts have located variable mechanisms in the grammatical architecture itself. The second objective is to stimulate collaborative research beyond the conventional domains of either variationist sociolinguistics or theoretical syntax, for instance second- or first-language acquisition, multi-lingualism/dialectalism, the emergence of new dialects/idiolects, language/dialect attrition or death, heritage languages/dialects, or language processing. The application of refined theoretical concepts and modified empirical methods to these and other exciting topics raises prospects for unification of a greater scope. To such ends, this workshop brings some of the most prominent scholars on syntactic variation from Europe and North America together with students and young researchers at the 2013 Linguistic Society of America Linguistic Institute at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, an ideal venue for intense cross-disciplinary interaction. In addition to invited speakers, the workshop will feature 30-minute talks, panel commentary, and plenty of time allotted for general discussion.