ELDP held a one-week long fall school on theory and methods in modern language documentation focusing on the MENA region from October 10th through 17th. The school was held in collaboration with and hosted by the Zentrum fuer Allgemeine Sprachwissenschaft (ZAS) in Berlin, Germany. The school provided training in theory and methods of modern language documentation to students and scholars who are working on endangered languages and are living in the MENA (Middle East & North Africa) region. 24 trainees attended the school from Pakistan, Iran, Tajikistan, Georgia, Armenia, Yemen and Morocco. 

This school gave an introduction to documentary linguistics, semantics and lexicography, recording equipment for data collection and software. Sessions were taught by Mandana Seyfeddinipur (Language Documentation, Language Use, Visual Mode, Video & Grant Writing), Ulrike Mosel (Semantics and Lexicography), Saloumeh Gholami (FLEx and ELAN), Gema Zamora (Audio and Video Conversion & Editing), Martha Tsutsui Billins (Data Management and Metadata), Natalia Gagarina (Picture Based Data Collection) and Geoffrey Haig (Morphosyntax). Anne Pauwels also taught a session on Approaches to exploring language use and practices in situations of language endangerment and factors affecting language endangerment.

Thank you very much to all who took part in the Fall school, ELDP & ELAR wish you the best in your future research and language documentation!

Photos from Martha Tsutsui Billins, Anne Schwarz & Mahnaz Talebi Dastenaei