Concept of ETT
Language typology and language evolution are dynamic fields, driven in part by the work of early-career researchers. Emerging Topics in Typology (ETT) is an international conference series organised by and for PhD students working in linguistic typology. Previous editions have been hosted by leading institutions such as the University of Helsinki (2021), Stockholm University (2024), and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig (2025). The conference provides a platform for presenting innovative work in progress and for fostering international collaboration.
A core feature of ETT is its mentoring system. Each accepted talk is assigned a senior researcher with relevant expertise, who serves as a mentor and provides feedback to the speaker prior to the conference.
ETT 2026
ETT 2026 will take place in Mainz, Germany, 15–17 July 2026.
In line with the tradition of ETT, the conference welcomes submissions from all areas of linguistic typology. This year, we particularly encourage contributions addressing language variation and language change, inspired by the theme of the Annual Meeting of the Linguistic Society of Germany (DGfS 2025), “Variation and Change”, held in Mainz, Germany.
For more information, please follow updates on this website or contact us at ett-2026@uni-mainz.de.
Keynote Speakers
- Dr Anna Sjöberg (Stockholm University)
- Dr Andreas Hölzl (University of Potsdam)
- Dr Luca Ciucci (University of Passau)
In addition to the invited keynote presentations, the conference will include an opening lecture by Prof. Dr. Walter Bisang.
Call for Abstracts
Abstracts should not exceed 500 words (excluding references). Additional examples and figures (up to one A4 page in total) may be included. Abstracts should demonstrate a clear link to typological and/or descriptive research.
The call for abstracts is open to all current doctoral students. Submissions should be made via Sciencesconf: https://ett-2026.sciencesconf.org.
We recommend uploading a self-prepared PDF rather than using the platform’s automatic generation tool.
The submission deadline is 28 February 2026. Notification of acceptance will be sent by 1 April 2026.
Accepted abstracts will be presented as 20-minute oral presentations, followed by 10 minutes of discussion.
Registration
Conference registration is free of charge and open to anyone interested in the conference topics, including non-doctoral students. Registration will be open from 1 to 30 April 2026 via Sciencesconf: https://ett-2026.sciencesconf.org.
Key Dates
- Deadline for abstract submission: 28 February 2026, 23:59 CET
- Notification of acceptance: 1 April 2026
- Confirming participation: 15 April 2026
- Uploading final version of abstracts: 30 April 2026
- Conference: 15–17 July 2026
Program
Please see the list of the conference program here.
Organising Committee
Organiser:
- Yana Aquilina (Université Lumière Lyon 2 & Laboratoire DDL, France)
- Ting Zhang (Shenzhen University, China)
- Zhencao Zhong (Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz, Germany)
Advisor:
- Prof. Dr. Walter Bisang (Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz)
Consultant:
- Mrs Beatrix Spahn (Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz, Coordinator of BA/MA Linguistics)
Scientific Committee
Please see the list of the Scientific Committee here.