The Australian Linguistic Society (ALS) is an

academic association A learned society ( ; also scholarly, intellectual, or academic society) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and sciences. Membership may be open to al ...

for linguists. It was established in 1967 with the primary goal of furthering interest in and support for

linguistics Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...

research and teaching in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. The Australian Linguistic Society also publishes a

peer-reviewed Peer review is the evaluation of work by one or more people with similar competencies as the producers of the work ( peers). It functions as a form of self-regulation by qualified members of a profession within the relevant field. Peer review ...

academic journal An academic journal (or scholarly journal or scientific journal) is a periodical publication in which Scholarly method, scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. They serve as permanent and transparent forums for the ...

, the Australian Journal of Linguistics, holds an annual

conference A conference is a meeting, often lasting a few days, which is organized on a particular subject, or to bring together people who have a common interest. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always d ...

, an occasional linguistics institute, and has developed and endorsed several policies and statements relating to language and linguistics. The current president of the ALS is Bill Palmer, the Secretary is James Bednall, and the Treasurer is Robert Mailhammer. The Society recognises Accredited Linguists (ALing) who have completed relevant linguistic qualifications.

Objectives

The specific objectives of the Australian Linguistic Society are: # To further interest in, and support for, linguistic research and teaching in Australia. # To organise an annual meeting and visits of local and overseas speakers. # To publish a journal of international standing. # To organise an International Congress of Linguists when appropriate. # To organise an Australian Linguistic Institute.

Accredited Linguist

Accredited Linguist is a qualification awarded by the Society and indicates that the holder: * ''has completed a course of study equivalent to a pass degree with a major in Linguistics,'' or * ''been able to demonstrate a sound knowledge of Linguistics at an advanced level, and has applied that knowledge competently and ethically through practice for more than three years'' Accredited Linguists are entitled to use the post-nominal ''ALing''.

Publications

The official journal of the Australian Linguistic Society is the Australian Journal of Linguistics, a peer-reviewed journal of international standing. The journal is concerned with all branches of

, and has an international scope but with a particular focus on research about

Australian Aboriginal languages The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...

, varieties of

Australian English Australian English (AusE, AusEng, AuE, AuEng, en-AU) is the set of variety (linguistics), varieties of the English language native to Australia. It is the country's common language and ''de facto'' national language. While Australia has no of ...

, and research by Australian linguists. The current editor is Jean Mulder. The Society also publishes proceedings from the annual ALS conference. Since 1998, selected refereed proceedings have been made available online.

Conferences

The inaugural meeting of the Australian Linguistic Society was held in 1967 at the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...

. The Society was initially known as the Linguistic Society of Australia but was renamed the Australian Linguistic Society at the 1978 conference. Conferences have been held every year since the inaugural meeting, at different Australian universities. A list of past conferences can be found on the ALS website.

Awards

ALS offers several scholarships and awards. These include: # The

Gerhardt Laves Gerhardt Laves (July 15, 1906 – March 14, 1993) was a graduate student at the University of Chicago and Yale University who between August 1929 and August 1931 undertook extensive fieldwork on Australian Aboriginal languages. Laves was probably ...

Scholarship, to cover fieldwork expenses for postgraduate researchers studying indigenous languages of the Australian region. # The Susan Kaldor Scholarship, to support student members of ALS in attending an international linguistics summer/winter school or institute. # The

Michael Clyne Michael George Clyne (12 October 1939 – 29 October 2010) was an Australian linguist, academic and intellectual. He was a scholar in various fields of linguistics, including sociolinguistics, pragmatics, bilingualism and multilingualism, sec ...

Prize, to be awarded for best postgraduate research thesis in immigrant bilingualism and language contact. # The Jalwang Scholarship, to support linguists to give back to the community by converting some of their research into materials of benefit to the language community. # The Barb Kelly Prize, to be awarded to the most outstanding postgraduate research thesis in any area of linguistics. #The Talkley Award, to be awarded to a linguist who has made significant contributions towards promoting language and linguistics in the Australian public arena.

Policy statements

The Australian Linguistic Society has developed and endorsed policies relating to the

linguistic rights Linguistic rights are the human rights, human and civil rights concerning the individual and collective right to choose the language or languages for communication in a private or public atmosphere. Other parameters for analyzing linguistic right ...

of Aboriginal and

Torres Strait Islander Torres Strait Islanders ( ) are the Indigenous Melanesians, Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal Australians, Aboriginal peoples of the res ...

communities; the

ethical Ethics is the philosophical study of moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches include normative ethics, applied e ...

conduct of linguistic research, and the use of language analysis in relation to questions of national origin in

refugee A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...

cases.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official website
Linguistic societies Professional associations based in Australia