Organisation

Between multilingualism, language policy, revitalisation and standardisation

8-9 October 2025; Department of Romance Studies, Graz

The ARQUS Workshop on Romance minority languages in Italy and Italian as a minority language

Organisation together with Dr. Stefan Koch

Programme and further information: homepage.uni-graz.at/de/stefan.koch/workshop-minderheitensprachen-in-italien/

Section 9 at the 15th Lusitanian Conference, West Saxon University of Applied Sciences Zwickau, September 19-23, 2023

together with Víctor Lara Bermejo (Cádiz) and Miguel Gutiérrez Maté (Augsburg)

>> Section description and program

 

Hispanic studies in new environments: Digitization, Reinscriptions, Interfaces

February 23-25, 2023 in Graz

Congress of the German Association of Hispanic Studies

Together with Martin Hummel (Graz), Hans Fernández (Berlin), Elke Höfler (Graz), Stefan Koch (Graz)

>> to the congress homepage

July 22-24, 2021, together with Stefan Koch

>> Program and description of the workshop

June 9-11, 2016

together with Martin Hummel

>> Program

On this Google map you will find all study places at Spanish universities for which you can apply to at the Institute of Romance Studies. As an Erasmus+ coordiator for Spain, I will be happy to advise you on the choice of your host university and the courses to be taken.

You can find more detailed information on the application and administrative process on the website of the International Relations Office: https: //international.uni-graz.at/de/auslandsaufenthalte/studienaufenthalte/erasmus-studienaufenthalte/

You can also find further options at: https://romanistik.uni-graz.at/de/internationales/

Dinámicas lingüísticas en espacios multiculturales y multilingües: contactos y contrastividad en los procesos de interacción y cambio en las lenguas románicas

The seminar highlights various topics in which Spanish comes into contact with other (Romance) languages: the history of Romance languages; cultural and linguistic contact in Romance-speaking countries; minority languages and regional languages in multilingual contexts.

The seminar can be counted as an elective (3 ECTS; participation certificate without grade).

A detailed program will follow shortly (title of the seminar: Dinámicas lingüísticas en espacios multiculturales y multilingües: contactos y contrastividad en los procesos de interacción y cambio en las lenguas románicas).

Participating universities:

• Padua, Graz, Granada, Minho, Leipzig (Arqus University Alliance)

When?

• Online phase: September 15-19, 2025 (thematic introduction)
   
• Face-to-face phase: September 22-27, 2025 (lectures, workshops, and presentations by various instructors from the participating universities, joint cultural activities, and sightseeing in Padua)

Where

• Dipartimento di Studi Linguistici e Letterari
  Via E. Vendramini, 13
  35137 Padova, Italy

Who

• Bachelor's and Master's students of Romance languages
• Requirements: good knowledge of Spanish and preferably also knowledge of other Romance languages (especially Italian, French, Portuguese)

Organization

• Giulia Nalesso & Ana Polo (Dipartimento di Studi Linguistici e Letterari, Università degli Studi di Padova)

Application for an Erasmus+ BIP scholarship

Erasmus+ scholarships are available for students at the University of Graz, enabling them to participate in the BIP in Padua and receive 3 ECTS credits! The scholarship covers travel and accommodation costs of approximately €680.

Applications must be submitted by May 25, 2025 by email to Katharina Gerhalter (katharina.gerhalter(at)uni-graz.at) with the following information:

• Name
• Matriculation number
• Email address (@edu.uni-graz)
• Language skills (+ level)
• Field of study (subject and level)
• As attachment: Proof of academic achievement / ECTS Record (from UGO)

Scholarship recipients will be nominated based on their academic progress and achievements. Nominated students will be informed of the exact registration procedure by the Office for International Relations at the beginning of June.

Del árabe al romance aljamiado. Introducción a la historia, la lengua y la literatura de los moriscos (ss. XVI-XVII)

After the Reconquista, the Mudéjars (Muslims in Christian Spain) began to write in Aljamiado, i.e. Spanish with Arabic script. Despite the ban from the 16th century and despite persecution by the Inquisition, Aljamiado texts continued to be written secretly. Among them, a rich literature stands out, written not so much out of graphematic inability in Aljamiado, but for ideological reasons. This literature from the 16th and 17th centuries, which was written at the same time as the most representative works of the Siglo de Oro, forms a fascinating bridge between Arabic and Spanish culture.

In addition to an introduction to the history, culture, literature and language of the Moriscos, the GDP also includes a cultural program (including the Alhambra, casas moriscas in the Albaicín, historical archives).

Provisional program and course content: pdf
n May 28 and 29, 2025, there will be an introductory online phase, which is a mandatory part of the BIP. The in-person phase in Granada will take place from June 2 to 7, 2025.

• No knowledge of Arabic is necessary; good knowledge of Spanish is recommended.
• Scope: 3 ECTS (creditable as a free elective, PS “Aspectos de la cultura española”, KS “Introducción a los estudios culturales: España”; further crediting options by arrangement)
• Organization in Granada: Bárbara Boloix Gallardo (Departamento de Estudios Semíticos) and David Porcel Bueno (Departamento de Filologías: Románica, Italiana, Gallego-Portuguesa y Catalana)

Application and registration:

Application by February 20, 2025 by e-mail to katharina.gerhalter(at)uni-graz.at with the following key data:

• Name
• Matriculation number
• Email address (edu.uni-graz)
• Course for which the 3 ECTS are to be credited
• Attachment: Proof of academic success (from UGO)
   

The nomination of the 10 scholarship holders is based on their academic progress and success. The nominated students will be informed in March about the exact procedure for registration via the Office of International Relations (estimated deadline in mobility online: beginning of April).

2nd ARQUS International Seminar in Romance Studies

"Ibero-Romance Languages in Europe and America (Contacts, Influences, Convergencies)"

Granada, October 9-14, 2023

• Organization: Dr. David Porcel Bueno (Departamento de Filologías: Románica, Italiana, Gallego-Portuguesa y Catalana, Universidad de Granada) & Dr. Stefan Koch (TU Dresden)
• approx. 35 students from the Arqus partner universities Graz, Leipzig, Padua, Minho and Granada (advanced Bachelor and Master students)
• Lecturers from Graz: Prof. Martin Hummel and Dr. Katharina Gerhalter (Erasmus+ coordinator for the BIP)
• Crediting in Graz: 3 ECTS as a free elective (Bachelor's or Master's degree program)

The Erasmus+ Blended Intensive Program (2nd ARQUS International Seminar in Romance Studies) comprised several course units (workshops/modules) dealing with different linguistic aspects of Spanish, Portuguese and other Ibero-Romance languages (Gallic, Catalan, Mirandesian) in Europe and America (e.g. sociolinguistics of the Spanish-speaking world, language policy, minority languages, comparison between different varieties, language contact, analysis of individual linguistic aspects such as morphosyntax, phonetics, lexicon, historical considerations, etc.).

The courses were held by a total of 16 international teachers in Spanish, Gallic and Portuguese. One aim of the seminar was to promote Ibero-Romance intercomprehension. The participating students also carried out small assignments in groups in interactive work tasks. An introductory online phase also took place prior to the face-to-face phase.

In addition, there was a cultural program that included a visit to the Alhambra (with explanations of Arabicisms in Spanish) as well as a visit to the cathedral, the tomb of the Reyes Católicos and the monastery of San Jerónimo (with explanations of Spanish language history).

>> An activity organized by the Arqus International Forum on Romance Studies

>> Report on the activity on the main ARQUS homepage

Romance Languages in the Americas and in Africa

September 2022 in Graz, together with Stefan Koch (Graz)

From September 19-24, 2022 the Arqus Summer School in Romance Linguistics "Romance Languages in the Americas and in Africa" was hosted by the University of Graz. Bachelor and Master's students from the Universities of Granada, Graz, Bergen, Vilnius, Munich and Augsburg successfully attended the classes.

The summer school consisted of three modules, which were laid out according to the principles of a blended intensive program: a preliminary online module from 1 to 14 September 2022, as well as the general module and the research module, the latter both held at the Department of Romance Studies of the University of Graz from 19 to 24 September 2022.

Renowned experts from the Universities of Utrecht, Santiago de Chile, Graz, Salvador de Bahía, Cádiz, Augsburg, Granada and Bergen taught various classes, e.g., on the morphosyntax of Portuguese and Spanish in Southwestern Africa, sociolinguistics and the lexicon of Spanish in the Caribbean and in Chile, forms of address in Spanish and Portuguese on both continents, and syntactic change in Italo-Romance emigrant varieties in Southern and Northern America in contact with other languages. In a very interactive environment, the students were also made familiar with modern methods in linguistic field work.

Previously, during the online module, the students received an introduction to the overall topic and the historical background of Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian in Africa and in the Americas. In the concluding research module, the students worked in small groups on their own to carry out guided research tasks on specific topics, supervised by the teaching personnel.

Extracurricular activities included a guided walk in the UNESCO World Heritage historic center of Graz and a final excursion to the Styrian countryside.

The summer school was multilingual, and courses were taught in Spanish, Italian and Portuguese, aiming at improving the inter-comprehension skills of the students.

The Summer School is part of the permanent activities by the international network Arqus International Forum on Romance Studies (AIFRS), an academic network within the Arqus University Alliance. A follow up edition will take place in Granada in September 2023.

Organization

• Katharina Gerhalter (Graz) katharina.gerhalter(at)uni-graz.at
• Stefan Koch (Graz) stefan.koch(at)uni-graz.at

Teaching personnel and course topics

Miguel Gutiérrez-Maté (Augsburg): Portuguese and Spanish in the Bantu-speaking area of West and Central Africa. Morphosyntax

Roxana Sobrino Triana (Bergen): Spanish in the Caribbean - Sociolinguistics, Lexicon, and Linguistic Attitudes

Soledad Chávez Fajardo (Santiago de Chile): Spanish in Chile - Historical Sociolinguistics and Lexicology

Roberta D'Alessandro (Utrecht): Italo-Romance in the Americas - Emigrant varieties under scrutiny

Martin Hummel (Graz) & Victor Lara Bermejo (Cádiz): Portuguese and Spanish address forms in America and Africa

David Porcel Bueno, Mónica Martins Guedes & Javier Salcedo (Granada): Brazilian Portuguese and European Portuguese face to face: morphology, phraseology and lexical influences on Spanish

September 20-24, 2021

Location: Universidad de Granada (Departamento de Filologías: Románica, Italiana, Gallego-Portuguesa, Catalana)

Target group: advanced Bachelor students (Spanish, Italian or Portuguese) and Master students of Romance Studies in Graz and Granada.

Teachers: David Porcel Bueno, Victoriano Peña Sánchez, Anna Suadoni, Alessandra Sanna (Granada), Katharina Gerhalter, Stefan Koch, Fausto de Michele (Graz), Dainius Būrė (Vilnius)

The multilingual seminar dealt with various aspects of cultural and linguistic contact within the Mediterranean region (between the Iberian and Apennine peninsulas) and thus broadened the horizon of individual language studies (Spanish, Portuguese and Italian). The linguistic topics were contrastive and the literary topics were comparative. As the courses were held in Italian and Spanish, interest in the other language and intercomprehension were also encouraged.

You can download the detailed program here.

This seminar is organized within the framework of the Arqus International Forum on Romance Studies (AIFRS). Some of the eight participating students from Graz received an Arqus Twinning grant.

Here you can find the Arqus report on the seminar.