ScanDiaSyn – Scandinavian Dialect Syntax

ScanDiaSyn - Scandinavian Dialect Syntax is a project umbrella where nine Scandinavian research groups collaborate to systematically map and study the syntactic variation across the Scandinavian dialect continuum. The nine groups are spread across all of the five Nordic countries and one self-governed area (the Faroe Islands). Three non-Nordic groups and a group working on Finnish dialect syntax are liased with the project through a NordForsk network.

Together with CASTL ScanDiaSyn furthermore constitutes the backbone of the Nordic Center of Excellence in Microcomparative Syntax (NORMS) appointed by NOS-HS for the period august 2005 until July 2010. As of 1 April 2007 the ScanDiaSyn efforts have received direct support from (in the order of magnitude) NOS-HS, the Icelandic Centre for Research, the Swedish Research Council, the University of Oslo, the University of Tromsø, Academy of Finland, NordForsk/NorFA, the Danish Research Councils for the Humanities, the Nordic Language Council (Nordens Språkråd), and Nordplus språk. The network coordinator and project manager for ScanDiaSyn is Dr. Øystein Alexander Vangsnes at the University of Tromsø.

Read more about:

– The objectives
– The network
– The sub-projects
– Activities
– The history
– Methodology
– The database
– Status of the project
– Bibliography

Of current interest!

• Dialect meeting on Faroese and PhD course in field methods, The Faroe Islands, 9-17 August. Invited speakers are Caroline Heycock, Helge Sandøy, Carson Schütze, and Bert Vaux.
• Grand Meeting for Scandinavian Dialect Syntax at Sandbjerg Estate, Sønderborg, Denmark, 24-28 August.
• Revisiting Parameters: Holmberg and Platzack (1995) Reloaded, University of Lund, 16-17 October. Invited speakers: Anders Holmberg, Christer Platzack, Höskuldur Thráinsson, Frederick Newmeyer. See Call for Papers – abstract deadline: 15 July!

ScanDiaSyn and NORMS in the media:

ScanDiaSyn (incl. NORMS) has received considerable attention in the mass media. Below are the most recent news pieces about, with or by members of the network. See this page for older public relation material. (Or click ‘media’ in the left menu.)

• Interview with Øystein A. Vangsnes on Norwegian national radio about Övdalian (replay from November 2007), Språkteigen NRK, 9 May 2008.
• Skal forske på språket deres (‘Will research their language’), article in the newspaper Framtid i Nord, 29 May 2008.
• Radio interview with Øystein A. Vangsnes on the determiner use of ‘who’ in Norwegian dialects, Språkteigen NRK, 19 May 2008.
• Den fødte pratmaker (‘The born chatterbox’), article by PhD student Guro Busterud at NTNU in A-magasinet, 16 May 2008.
• Radio interview with Peter Svenonius on expressions for ‘space’, Språkteigen NRK, 12 May 2008.
• E, eg og æ e fra Lofoten (‘E, eg and æ come from Lofoten’), interview with Øystein A. Vangsnes in the newspaper Lofotposten, 19 April 2008.
• Nordisk språk under lupa (‘Scandinavian language under the magnifier’), article in Sunnmørsposten, 25 March 2008.
• Jølstramålet blir del av eit fellesnordisk språkforskingsprosjekt (‘The Jølster dialect becomes part of a joint Scandinavian dialect project’), article in Firda Tidend, 19 March 2008.
• Älvdalska lockar och förbryllar (‘Övdalian calls and astonishes’), article in LUM 2:2008, the February issue of University of Lund's Magazine.
• Lyngdal en av 50 (‘Lyngdal one out of 50’), article on the ScanDiaSyn fieldwork in Lyngdal, Farsunds Avis, 4 February 2008.
• Om 100 år er allting gløymt - men ikkje dialektane (‘In a 100 years all will be forgotten – but not the dialects’), article on the ScanDiaSyn fieldwork in Sirdal, Norway, Sirdølen 30 January 2008.
• Scandinavian dialects tell of life in the Nordic countries, interview with Jan-Ola Östman on the University of Helsinki web pages, January 2008. Finnish version. Swedish version.
• På veg mot fylkesdialekt (‘Towards a common county dialect’), feature article including interview with Øystein A. Vangsnes, Sogn Avis 15 January 2008. (Web version) (Various follow-up articles and responses can be found on this page.)
• Temperaturen blev taget på dialekten/Forsker:Bange for at vi er 30 år for sent på den (‘The temperature was taken on the dialect/Researcher: Afraid we're 30 years too late’), reportage in Dagbladet Holstebro-Struer, 10 January 2008.
• Forskere på besøk i Kirkesdalen: Dialekta under lupen (‘Researchers visiting Kirkesdalen: the dialect under the microscope’), article on the ScanDiaSyn fieldwork in Kirkesdalen, Nye Troms, 8 January 2008.
• Systrending leiar nordisk språkprosjekt (‘Systrondener is leading Nordic language project’), article about ScanDiaSyn in Sogn Avis, 7 January 2008.
• Interview with Øystein A. Vangsnes on Norwegian national radio about ‘how’ in Norwegian dialects and other Scandinavian varieties, Språkteigen NRK, 7 January 2008.
• Interview with Øystein A. Vangsnes on Norwegian national radio about kelais ‘how’ in the Sogn dialect, Språkteigen NRK, 6 January 2008.
• Dialekten din er viktig! (‘Your dialect is important!’), article by Curt Rice and Øystein A. Vangsnes in Labyrint 1:2007.
• Interview with Øystein A. Vangsnes about fieldwork in Gaupne, Luster, NRK Sogn og Fjordane, the morning program 19 December 2007.
• Interview with Kristine Bentzen on Norwegian national radio about the language acquisition lab in Tromsø, Språkteigen NRK, 10 December 2007.
• Fornöfn og eðli þeirra (‘Pronouns and their nature’), interview with Höskuldur Thráinsson about the NORMS workshop on binding, Morgunblaðið, 8 December 2007.