UiO - MultiLing - Center for Multilingualism in Society across the Lifespan

01/10/2026

Last week, we had the pleasure of hosting the annual Einar Haugen Lecture, and what an inspiring afternoon it was!

A heartfelt thank you to Professor Elizabeth Lanza for her thought-provoking and engaging lecture on family multilingualism across time and space. Drawing on decades of research and connecting contemporary multilingual experiences with Einar Haugen’s pioneering work, she invited us to reflect on how languages, families, identities, and communities are shaped by the many spaces we inhabit, from our homes and neighborhoods to schools, digital platforms, and beyond.

We are also deeply grateful to everyone who joined us in person and on Zoom. Thank you for your curiosity, insightful questions, and lively participation. It was wonderful to see so many people come together to celebrate multilingualism and engage in such important conversations.

Thank you for making this year's Einar Haugen Lecture such a memorable event. 💙

22/09/2026

MultiLingers and colleagues from our department visited Sámi allaskuvla/Sámi University of Applied Sciences/Samisk høgskole for the launch of the ReLing project last week. We enjoyed learning more about our colleagues' research, presented some of our work, and worked on our joint funding proposal.

10/08/2026

«Er «prøva» et ordentlig ord?», spurde ein niandeklasseelev på Austlandet.

– Mange bokmålselevar trur at a-endingar er dialekt. Ein del fryktar dårlegare vurdering eller til og med retting frå læraren viss dei skriv det, seier Unn Røyneland, professor i nordisk språk og fleirspråklegheit.

Ho var med i ei stor gruppe forskarar som granska norskbruken til ungdommar på niande trinn ved tre ungdomsskular på Vestlandet, Austlandet og i Nord-Noreg.

I ei veke overtok forskarane undervisinga. Dei samla inn elevane sine skuletekstar og Snapchat-meldingar, intervjua dei og gjennomførte mange ulike eksperiment.

Les meir om kva dei fann ut i saka nedanfor.

Det går an å bli gløymt, sjølv om du står fremst i alfabetet.

07/08/2026

Prosjektet Strategies to strengthen European linguistic capital in a globalised world - MultiLX arrangerer et seminar om unge kvener og kvensk språk. Den norske delen av prosjektet deler foreløpige funn 26. august. Mer info:

https://www.hf.uio.no/iln/forskning/aktuelt/arrangementer/gjesteforelesninger-seminarer/2026/halvdagsseminar-om-unge-kvener-og-kvensk-sprak.html

Hovedprosjektet ledes av Angela Creese (University of Warwick): https://multilx.com/

Etter over 100 år med målrettet fornorskning står det kvenske språket i en kritisk situasjon. Revitalisering avhenger av om unge kvener ønsker – og har mulighet til – å ta språket tilbake. Men hvilket forhold har egentlig kvensk ungdom til det kvenske språket, og hvilke barrierer til spr...

03/08/2026

A few of our MultiLing alumni had the honour of presenting at the 26th Sociolinguistics Symposium (SS26), hosted by the University of Fort Hare in KuGompo/East London, South Africa. 🇿🇦
This historic conference — the first SS to be held on African soil — brought together critical work on sociolinguistics, social justice, and decoloniality. We’re incredibly proud to see MultiLing’s former researchers and affiliated professors contributing to these important conversations and continuing to shape the field worldwide.

24/06/2026

We are delighted to invite you to this year’s Einar Haugen Lecture, featuring:

🎤 Elizabeth Lanza�Professor Emerita, University of Oslo

Who will talk about Family multilingualism across time and space

What happens to languages in families that move, grow, and change across borders? How do multilingual practices evolve across generations—and what can they tell us about today’s societies?
In this thought-provoking lecture, Elizabeth Lanza brings fresh insights into the dynamic world of family multilingualism—connecting personal stories with global perspectives.
💡 Whether you work with languages, study multilingualism, or are simply curious about how languages shape our lives, this lecture is for you!
👉 Come, listen, and be inspired�
👉 Bring colleagues, students, and friends!
💙 Everyone is warmly welcome!

When: 24th September, 2:15 - 4:00 p.m.
Where: Eilert Sundts hus, A-blokka: Auditorium 4, Blindern, Oslo

Visit https://www.hf.uio.no/iln/english/research/multiling/news-and-events/events/guest-lectures-seminars/einar-haugen-lecture/2026/family-multilingualism-across-time-and-space.html to learn more!

We are looking forward to meeting you there! 💙

22/06/2026

Last week a large group of former MultiLingers contributed presentations at NORDAND17 – Conference on the Languages of the Nordic Countries as a Second Language (Konferanse om Nordens språk som andrespråk), which was organized by the University of Bergen. The conference, held every other year in a Nordic country, covers a wide range of research on second languages and multilingualism in various contexts, and it turned into a great MultiLing reunion as well.

🔗 Read more about the conference: https://www.uib.no/en/lle/177410/conference-languages-nordic-countries-second-language

21/04/2026

The one-day conference Neurodiversity and Communication marked the conclusion of the NFR-funded AttCom project. Researchers from multiple disciplines came together to explore how ADHD and autism shape language processing, social interaction, and language learning across the lifespan.

Many thanks to everyone who contributed and participated, with special thanks to the keynote speakers Prof. Wenche Andersen Helland (University of Bergen) and Dr. Kirsten Abbot-Smith (University of Kent), and to the organizers, Franziska Köder and Marianna Kyriacou ☀️

15/04/2026

📢 Save the date for a Conference on Communication and Neurodiversity, the closing conference of the project “The role of attention in communication” (AttCom).
This 1‑day conference explores how neurodevelopmental conditions such as ADHD and autism influence language and communication, bringing together researchers from linguistics, psychology, education, and related fields. 🎓📚
🎤 Keynote speakers
• Prof. Wenche Andersen Helland (University of Bergen)
• Dr. Kirsten Abbot‑Smith (University of Kent)

When?
April 17th 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Where?
Helga Engs hus - Seminarrom 234
Sem Sælands vei 7, 0371 Oslo

Talks will be streamed on Zoom.

Visit https://www.hf.uio.no/iln/english/research/projects/adhd/attcom-closing-conference/ for more information and to stream the talks.

Meet you there!

Read this story on the University of Oslo's website.

21/01/2026

❗Please feel free to ignore this post if you are not a Hindi-speaking parent of a child aged 8-36 months living in India, as this post is intended for them.❗

🌿 हिंदी भाषा पर एक महत्वपूर्ण शोध में आपका सहयोग आवश्यक है 🌿
नमस्कार 🙏
दुनिया में यूरोपीय भाषाओं पर बहुत शोध हुआ है, लेकिन भारतीय भाषाओं, विशेषकर हिंदी, पर अभी भी बहुत कम जानकारी उपलब्ध है। हम एक शोध परियोजना पर काम कर रहे हैं, जिसका उद्देश्य हिंदी भाषी छोटे बच्चों (8 से 36 महीने) के भाषा विकास को समझना है।
यदि आपकी मातृभाषा हिंदी है और आपका बच्चा 8 से 36 महीने की आयु का है, तो कृपया इस शोध में भाग लेकर हमारा साथ दें।
आपका हर एक उत्तर हमें हिंदी भाषी बच्चों के पहले बोले और समझे जाने वाले शब्दों की सूची बनाने में मदद करेगा। यह ज्ञान हमारी भारतीय भाषाओं की पहचान और महत्व को मजबूत करेगा।
📌 बिना आपके सहयोग के यह शोध संभव नहीं है।
कृपया नीचे दिए गए लिंक पर क्लिक करके फ़ॉर्म भरें :
🔗 [https://nettskjema.no/a/539547]
आपका सहयोग हमें हिंदी भाषा की समझ को और समृद्ध बनाने में मदद करेगा।
कृपया इस संदेश को उन मित्रों, परिजनों और समूहों तक भी पहुँचाएँ, जिनके 8 से 36 महीने के बच्चे हैं।
🙏 आइए, मिलकर हिंदी भाषा की धरोहर को और मज़बूत करें।