The 53rd Algonquian Conference was held virtually at Carleton University, Ottawa, October 14th to October 17th, 2021.
As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the conference took place fully online in 2021.
This conference is an international meeting for Indigenous and non-Indigenous researchers and community members to share research papers, workshops, engagement circles, and story-telling activities related to Algonquian peoples. Fields of interest include, but are not limited to, anthropology, archaeology, art, education, ethnography, ethnobotany, folklore, geography, history, language (teaching, revitalization, documentation,…), linguistics, literature, music, native studies, political science, psychology, religion and sociology.
Call for papers
If you are interested in making a presentation, please send proposals in English, French, or any Algonquian language. Abstracts should be no more than 300 words in length, excluding title and references. Presentations will be 20 minutes long followed by a 10-minute question period.
If you wish to offer or organize a workshop, an engagement circle, story-telling activities, or propose a panel, send a proposal of 300 words, labelled ‘OTHER’ with a description, the time required and if applicable, a list of confirmed participants.
The deadline for submission of abstracts and proposals is September 1, 2021.
Abstracts or proposals must be submitted via e-mail to algonquianconference@atlas-ling.ca as an attachment (Word or PDF). If you are using IPA or syllabic fonts please submit a PDF. In the subject field of the e-mail enter “Algonquian conference 53 submission”. In the body of the e-mail, include the following information:
- Proposal for a PRESENTATION or for OTHER ACTIVITY: (please specify type)
- Title of the paper
- Name(s) of the presenter(s)
- Department and affiliation
- Student or non-student
- E-mail address for each speaker
Special Session
The way forward: Drawing from Algonquian epistemologies to talk about Algonquian languages
Organized by Wesley Leonard and Marie-Odile Junker
Building on a growing movement to decolonize linguistic science, which has long had a focus on Indigenous languages but has largely used Eurowestern terminology and concepts to describe them, the 53rd Conference will feature sessions on using Algonquian epistemologies to talk about Algonquian languages. We envision workshops in both English and French to share, create, and discuss the implications of drawing upon Algonquian cultural norms to do Algonquian language work, while also examining the applied and theoretical outcomes of this approach.
We would like the conference participants to address the following questions:
- What are the existing, preferred, and needed terms to describe and teach language and grammar in your [the participant’s] language?
- How can thinking through Algonquian epistemologies about Algonquian languages advance community language work and science? What else might be gained from thinking in this way?
- What other issues do we need to consider for doing this type of work?
To this end, we are planning a lightning round series of pre-recorded five-minute presentations that introduce specific examples and/or practical solutions that address the questions above.
To present in this lightning round, please e-mail the conference organizers, specifying “lightning round” in the subject of the message, and provide a title and brief description. We also welcome full papers on this theme, using the regular abstract submission process. For any additional suggestions on how to address this theme, please contact the session organizers.
