Joseph H. Greenberg Endowed Research Fellowship

The Department of Linguistics at The University of New Mexico is proud to announce the Joseph H. Greenberg Fellowship, endowed by a generous bequest from the late Selma Greenberg. The fellowship will provide a stipend and a part-time research assistantship to an outstanding doctoral student for two years. The department will provide a further two years of support through a full-time teaching assistantship. The fellowship and the teaching assistantship will also provide six to nine hours of graduate tuition each fall and spring semester, as well as graduate health insurance coverage.

All new applicants to the Ph.D. program in Linguistics at UNM will be considered; there is no separate fellowship application form. Applications to the Ph.D. program in Linguistics at UNM are welcomed from students with an MA degree in Linguistics or the equivalent. The department specializes in functionalist linguistics, Native American language documentation and revitalization (especially Navajo and other indigenous languages of the American Southwest), and signed language linguistics. Applications must be submitted by January 15th for consideration for the Greenberg Fellowship. For application information, please go here, email lingasst@unm.edu, or contact the Department of Linguistics at (505)-277-6353.

Robert Young Endowed Scholarship

Robert W. Young (May, 28, 1912 - February 20, 2007), professor emeritus of Linguistics at the University of New Mexico, was an American linguist known for his work on the Navajo language. With Navajo scholar William Morgan, Young compiled the monumental The Navajo Language: A Grammar and Colloquial Dictionary, a dictionary accompanied by a 400-page grammar "sketch". Young, Morgan and Sally Midgette also produced the Analytical Lexicon of Navajo. In July 1996, Robert Young was honored, along with William Morgan, in the Navajo Nation Council Chambers for his work on the Navajo language.

The Robert Young Endowed Scholarship, established in 1997 by Judy and Garland Bills, supports students in the Department of Linguistics who are engaged in the study of Native American linguistics. Please visit our Development page and make your contribution to this worthy scholarship.

Phyllis Perrin Wilcox Endowed Scholarship

We are pleased to announce the establishment of the Phyllis Perrin Wilcox Endowed Scholarship for students in the Signed Language Interpreting Program. The scholarship fund was established with a generous pledge from a donor to match all funds contributed before June 30, 2007, up to $5000.

Please visit our Development page and make your contribution to this worthy scholarship. Once this fund reaches $15,000 we will be able to make an award to a deserving young student in the interpreting program, and thus contribute to meeting New Mexico's growing need for signed language interpreters.

Esther Martinez Native Languages Preservation Act

Esther Martinez, noted Ohkay Owingeh storyteller and linguist, died on September 16, 2006 in a northern New Mexico crash involving a suspected drunken driver. The Esther Martinez Native Languages Preservation Act, sponsored by Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., was signed into law in December, 2006. The act will establish grants for governments, colleges and other Indian educational organizations working to preserve native cultures and language.

Evolving English language examined in 'Larpers and Shroomers'

"U-boat," "Wonderbra" and "spliff" are among the terms featured in Larpers and Shroomers: The Language Report, a new book charting the creation of new words over the past 100 years. Read more

Language barrier

Reluctant publishers, translation difficulties and tired preconceptions have all hampered the progress of Arabic literature in the west, says Brian Whitaker. Read more

The French Connection

Learn about how undergraduate honors students in the Department of Linguistics are helping faculty and other students to study the historical connections between American Sign Language and French Sign Language.

Career Opportunities in Linguistics

Have you ever wondered what you can do with a degree in linguistics? Visit these sites to find out just a few of the career opportunities: [1] [2]