– the University’s creativity-championing research platform – hosted five workshop sessions in partnership with the , , and .

‘Writing for Wellbeing’ took place at Tameside, Rochdale and Bury Libraries on 13 - 15 June. Facilitators Rebecca Hurst, Tessa Harris and John McAuliffe worked with participants to explore the benefits of creative writing on personal wellbeing. 

One attendee commented:

‘Tasting Children’s Literature – An Edible Readathon’ returned on Friday, 14 June with two sessions: a private workshop for Reception children at St. Andrew’s C of E Primary School Levenshulme, held at Arcadia Library, and a public session at 91ֱ�� Central Library. Children enjoyed a storytime session with play food, colouring activities, and fruits to eat.

The Linguistic Diversity Collective held two well-attended workshops at The Portico Library on 12 and 14 June. The first, ‘What’s in a word and what’s in a dictionary?’ saw attendees take part in activities looking at how dictionaries define words and phrases. 

‘Blackout the jargon’ then invited participants to engage with scientific literature in a unique way through blackout poetry. 

Supported by , the Festival of Libraries 2024 was a testament to 91ֱ��’s enduring commitment to literacy, learning, and inclusivity. 

Find out more about the Festival of Libraries .

From 12-16 June 2024, Greater 91ֱ�� will once again celebrate the Festival of Libraries – which promises a rich tapestry of vibrant events for all ages and interests.

Authors, poets, performers, artists and historians will share their love for libraries and literature across the region’s libraries. The Festival of Libraries programme is brimming with imagination and attendees can expect exhibitions, author talks, performances, installations, live music, workshops, and international collaborations. 

These free events highlight the diverse offerings of libraries, showcasing their role as service, learning and creativity hubs which are open to all.

is delighted to be offering a series of workshops for the Festival of Libraries celebrations, partnering with the , and .

All workshops are free to attend but booking is required due to limited spaces.

This session delves into the meanings of everyday words and idiomatic phrases, offering insights into how dictionaries define words and how language learners acquire vocabulary. Run by the . 

• Wednesday, 12 June 2024, 3pm - Portico Library

Facilitated by professional writers from the , these workshops explore the positive effects of creative writing on mental health and wellbeing. 

• Thursday, 13 June 2024, 6pm -  
• Friday, 14 June 2024, 1pm – Heywood Library
• Saturday, 15 June 2024 – Ramsbottom Library

Participants will engage in blackout poetry, finding meaning in scientific texts by selecting certain words and redacting the rest to create literary and visual works of art. Run by the . 

• Friday, 14 June 2024, 3pm - Portico Library

An immersive experience and read-a-thon of classic and contemporary children’s literature aimed at young children aged 0-8. Run by the staff and students. 

• Sunday, 16 June 2024, 1pm - Central Library

An immersive audio experience allowing listeners to walk in the footsteps of those with the misunderstood condition of chronic cough. Run by the project. 

• Wednesday, 12 June 2024, 12pm, 2pm and 6pm – Longsight Library
• Thursday, 13 June 2024, 12pm and 2pm – Longsight Library

More information on the Festival of Libraries 2024, including the full programme, can be found on the website. 

This year was the 8th International Mother Language Day observed in 91ֱ��, a celebration of the cultural diversity and the near 200 languages spoken across the city.

collaborated with partners and colleagues to present a series of events to mark the occasion.

In partnership with the and , a workshop and language themed trail offered visitors of all ages a chance to learn about and celebrate languages and multilingualism. The ‘Language of Life’ workshop, led by Dr Nick Weise and Dr Tine Breban, explored the origins of scientific vocabulary and where the terms we use for chemicals in the body come from. 

The ‘Looking for Languages’ trail gave families the chance to explore 91ֱ�� Museum’s exhibits while thinking about languages along the way. Children who took part commented, ‘I enjoyed it because I learned so many different things,’ ‘It was so good,’ and ‘It was fun exploring.’

In partnership with The University of Manchester and colleagues at hosted the annual ‘Comics Up Close’ conference, this year with the theme ‘Origin Stories’ and featuring keynote speakers Dave Gibbons, Steven Appleby and Karrie Fransman. An exhibition, ‘Collectives for Change’, featuring comics from the Arab world, ran alongside the conference. 

This exhibition is also currently hosted at The University of Manchester, in the Samuel Alexander Building’s glass corridor exhibition space, until Friday, 15 March 2024.

To find out more about International Mother Language day and the local celebrations, visit the .

This year will be the 8th International Mother Language Day observed in 91ֱ��, a celebration of the cultural diversity and the near 200 languages spoken across the city.

Creative 91ֱ�� has coordinated with partners and colleagues from the , , and the to present events including:

• Wednesday 21 February, all day - at Sheffield Hallam University
• Wednesday 21 February, 1pm-2pm – at 91ֱ�� Museum
• Wednesday 21 February, 1pm-4pm -

Running alongside the Comics Up Close conference at Sheffield Hallam University is the ‘Collectives for Change’ exhibition, showcasing the thriving new comic movement across the Arab world. 

We are delighted to also be hosting this exhibition here at The University of Manchester. 

You can view the exhibition in the Samuel Alexander Building glass corridor exhibition space, between 19 February-18 March 2024.

The full programme of IMLD 2024 events can be found on the website.

– the University’s creativity-championing research platform – offered five workshop sessions in partnership with the , Programme in and .

‘Writing for Wellbeing’ took place at Marple and Chetham Libraries on 7 and 8 June. Facilitators from the Centre for New Writing, Dr Rebecca Hurst and Tessa Harris, worked with participants to explore the benefits of creative writing on personal wellbeing.

Also at Chetham’s Library, ‘What’s in a word, and what’s in a dictionary?’ saw the workshop group work with staff from the Department of Linguistics and English Language to look at how we define the meanings of words.

‘Tasting Children’s Literature – An edible readathon’ ran for two sessions: a private session for EYFS children at St Andrew’s C of E Primary School Levenshulme, at Arcadia Library, and a session open to the public, at 91ֱ�� Central Library. Children enjoyed a story time session with play food, colouring activities and fruits to eat.

The , overseen by Creative 91ֱ�� research fellow, Dr Chad Campbell, is also currently being hosted on campus and can be found in the glass corridor exhibition space in Samuel Alexander Building.

This year’s Festival of Libraries was a huge success and has been nominated for a Saboteur Award in the category of Best Literary Festival.

Find out more about the .

Following the success of the past two years of celebrations, the 2023 festival showcases a vibrant programme of events in libraries across all ten boroughs of Greater 91ֱ��.

– the University’s creativity-championing research platform - is delighted to be offering several workshop sessions in partnership with the , and .

Writers from the Centre for New Writing will be facilitating a ‘Writing for Wellbeing’ workshop which explores how creative writing can have positive effects on mental health and wellbeing. ‘What’s in a word, and what’s in a dictionary?’ is a session run by the Linguistic Diversity Collective exploring the meanings of everyday words and idiomatic phrases. ‘Tasting children’s literature – An edible readathon’ is presented by academics and students in the Programme in American Studies and offers an immersive experience and readathon of classic children’s literature aimed at young children and their parents.

All workshops are free to attend but booking is required due to very limited spaces.

Writing for Wellbeing

What’s in a word, and what’s in a dictionary?

Tasting children’s literature – an edible readathon

Festival of Libraries is funded by Arts Council England and enjoys the support and collaboration of authors, artists and creatives, who all believe in the vital community and cultural role of libraries.

Find out more, including the full .

Families were invited to collect their ‘Looking for Languages’ trail sheets from members of the , find the language-related items and take part in associated activities - including writing your name in hieroglyphs, learning about palindromes and roaring like a dinosaur. Children received a ‘language detective’ badge after completing the trail.

The Linguistic Diversity Collective designed the trail, in partnership with Research Platform and 91ֱ�� Museum, to encourage children to think about their own language and explore areas of linguistics in a fun and engaging way.

“We loved hunting the artifacts, thank you,” wrote Noah, who followed the trail with his brother Elias.

Parents who visited commented, “It’s guided very well, kids were engaged,” and “My 6-year-old daughter learnt a lot through the activity sheet and was interested in how to say a word in different languages.”

To keep up to date with activities run by the Linguistic Diversity Collective, which is part of the Department of Linguistics and English Language, you can .

A new video podcast exploring multilingualism and linguistic diversity across the globe has launched, as part of celebrations.

The podcast is hosted by Lecturer in Linguistics at The University of Manchester and current lead of the , . Dr Sagna has been active in contributing to, initiating and spearheading language revitalisation activities by using audio-visual media and producing literacy materials. He has previously organised and hosted a radio show in endangered language Eegimaa, and now brings his media skills to the ‘Multilingual World’ series.

‘Multilingual World’ features Dr Sagna in conversation with leading academics, and in future, multilingual speakers living in 91ֱ�� will also be invited to discuss their relationship with their languages, their sense of identity and their experience learning, transmitting, and using languages in their life in the city of Manchester.

On why he started the podcast, Dr Sagna says: “We all have one or more languages, spoken or signed, and everyone has an opinion about language. There is no education without language; no socio-economic development without language; no meaningful political stability without good language management.”

Two episodes are currently available:

The podcast production is supported by the Research Platform.

You can visit and subscribe to the Multilingual World YouTube channel .

This year will be the 7th International Mother Language Day observed in 91ֱ��, a celebration of the cultural diversity and the near 200 languages spoken across the city.

Creative 91ֱ�� has coordinated with partners and colleagues from the , , and the to present the following events:

• 21 February, 10am-5pm -
• 12 April, 1pm-5pm -

The full programme of IMLD 2023 events can be found on the .

included a cross-disciplinary panel and marked the official launch of the Linguistic Diversity Collective. The event was well attended by University staff, students and members of the public both in-person and via Zoom.

The panel discussed key themes relating to the endangerment and maintenance of languages from a range of perspectives.

Panellists included:

• Chair: Dr Serge Sagna, Lecturer in Linguistics at The University of Manchester
• Julia Sallabank, Professor of Language Policy and Revival at SOAS
• John Claughton of the initiative
• John Wilson of and Head of Modern Languages at Cheadle Hulme School
• Munira Alsusa, headteacher of Manchester Arabic School

The Linguistic Diversity Collective (LDC) is a group of academics in the Departments of Linguistics and English Language and Modern Languages and Cultures who research and champion linguistic diversity both locally and globally.

Find out more about the .

The and present a free event taking place on 19 October at 5.30pm in the University of Manchester’s penthouse event space.

‘Supporting 91ֱ��’s language communities: Language endangerment and maintenance’ includes a cross-disciplinary panel and Q&A session, language activity stands and a drinks reception. The event is open to all University staff, students and members of the public.

This is a hybrid event and can be attended in person or via Zoom. In-person attendees will be welcomed with a wine/beer/soft drink reception, a goodie bag and the opportunity to take part in language activity stalls.

The panel will explore key themes relating to the endangerment and maintenance of languages from a range of perspectives, will discuss the importance of multilingualism and intergenerational transmission among different communities in 91ֱ�� and will address questions including the following:

• How do languages die?
• What is lost when a language dies and why should we care?
• How can languages be maintained in traditional and in urban contexts such as 91ֱ��?
• What is the impact of multilingualism on language endangerment and language maintenance?

Panellists include:

• Chair: Dr Serge Sagna, Lecturer in Linguistics at The University of Manchester
• Julia Sallabank, Professor of Language Policy and Revival at SOAS
• John Claughton of the initiative
• John Wilson of and Head of Modern Languages at Cheadle Hulme School
• Munira Alsusa, headteacher of Manchester Arabic School

Places are free and can be booked .

15-19 June 2022 saw the return of  Festival of Libraries. 

Following the success of last year’s inaugural celebration, the 2022 festival showcased a vibrant and varied programme of 80 events in libraries across all ten boroughs of Greater 91ֱ��.

 – the University’s creativity-championing research platform – offered seven workshop sessions in partnership with the  and the .

Professional writers from the Centre for New Writing facilitated a series of ‘Writing for Wellbeing’ workshops which explored how creative writing can have positive effects on mental health and wellbeing. ‘Have you seen my duckling? – Storytime in mother languages’ was run by the Linguistic Diversity Collective for parents and caregivers from minority language backgrounds and their young children, encouraging shared book reading and building a narrative around a wordless picture book.

The workshops were well received and rated highly, with attendees of Writing for Wellbeing commenting, “A really good session that got me thinking, a very good facilitator,” and “I really enjoyed the session.” 

‘Have you seen my duckling’ attracted parents and caregivers with over 12 languages spoken between them. One attendee commented that “it was amazing to have a chat with a Professor of Linguistics.” 

The workshops took place in several libraries in the Greater 91ֱ�� area. 

Find out more

The Department of Linguistics and English Language are hosting a special conference next week: a joint event combining the 29th annual meeting of the Austronesian Formal Linguistics Association (AFLA) and the ninth edition of the TripleA workshop for semantic fieldworkers. This TripleAFLA virtual conference will take place from the 28th of June to the 1st of July 2022.

The  dates back to an initial meeting at the University of Toronto in 1994. Since then, the association has promoted the formal study of Austronesian languages, including, but not limited to, their phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics. 

The  was founded in 2014 by linguists from Potsdam and Tübingen with the aim of providing a platform for researchers who conduct theoretically-informed linguistic fieldwork that investigates meaning. Its focus is particularly on languages that are under-represented in the current research landscape.

You can find out more and register for free on the .

Poetry 

Poetry by local school children will be on display following the success of MA and PhD student-delivered poetry clinics as part of the annual Schools Poetry Competition in partnership with , the and the . These poems all reflect on the theme of Climate Change and capture a generation’s fears, passions and frustrations using the magic of words. 

Photography 

The top 30 photos from this year’s International Photography Competition run by the in partnership with Creative 91ֱ�� and the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures will have a satellite exhibition at University Place, where the public will get the opportunity to vote for the People’s Choice Award-winning photo. This year’s theme was ‘The Feeling of Home’ and the 30 shortlisted photos were selected by a panel of expert judges for their composition and storytelling ability. 

Language 

91ֱ�� is a city of many languages and dialects and The Linguistic Diversity Collective is inviting Community Festival attendees to explore how they use their own language by contributing to a linguistic snapshot of the city. There will be family-friendly activities for everyone to participate in which will help to paint a linguistic picture of Manchester. 

Jazz 

At 14.15, a jazz quintet will take to the performance area at University Place to treat attendees to some live music. The audience can listen out for some jazz standards and some improvisation from the ensemble, whose influences include Charlie Parker, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, John Scofield, Ari Hoenig and Jaco Pastorius. 

The Community Festival takes place on Saturday 25 June from 11.00 to 16.00 across campus, with SALC’s activities taking place at University Place (aka the Tin Can) on Oxford Road, 91ֱ��. 

Find out more .  

 platform will highlight and map out expertise, strengths and possible directions at the intersection of AI/data science and languages/linguistics at the University of Manchester.

This highly interdisciplinary area opens up a number of exciting possibilities for research, teaching, knowledge exchange and business engagement. Researchers from across the Digital Futures and Creative 91ֱ�� networks will spotlight their research in these areas. 

Speaking at the event will be , Senior Lecturer in Linguistics, , Lecturer in English Language, , Senior Lecturer in Linguistics and English Language and , Professor of Theoretical Physics.

This event is internal, and you can register . 

Following the success of last year’s inaugural celebration, the showcases a vibrant programme of 80 events in libraries across all ten boroughs of Greater 91ֱ��.

– the University’s creativity-championing research platform - is delighted to be offering seven workshop sessions in partnership with the and the Linguistic Diversity Collective.

Writers from the Centre for New Writing will be facilitating a ‘Writing for Wellbeing’ workshop which explores how creative writing can have positive effects on mental health and wellbeing. ‘Have you seen my duckling? – Storytime in mother languages’ is a session run by the Linguistic Diversity Collective for parents and caregivers from minority language backgrounds and their young children, encouraging shared book reading and building a narrative around a wordless picture book.

All workshops are free to attend but booking is required due to limited spaces.

 Writing for Wellbeing Workshops:

Storytime in Mother Languages:

Lemn Sissay OBE, University Chancellor and Festival of Libraries ambassador said: "A library is the loudest place on the high street, because books are bursting with very loud ideasI And yet it is where you can go for peace and quiet; amongst all that is happening in our world, peace and quiet has great value. Libraries change the world because people who use libraries change the world. This year’s Festival of Libraries demonstrates throughout its brilliant programme that all ages, all types, all are welcome. Your community. Your library.”

Find out more, including the full Festival of Libraries programme: 

UNESCO’s International Mother Language Day is a worldwide annual observance held on 21 February to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and to promote multilingualism.

2022 is the fifth year that 91ֱ�� has celebrated International Mother Language Day. The events taking place this year involve libraries, cultural venues, community groups, universities, schools, poets and writers, collaborating and presenting language-focused events for communities across the city.

Civic Engagement is one of the University’s key strategic themes and our creativity-championing research platform is delighted to be coordinating a number of online events with colleagues from HCRI and the Linguistic Diversity Collective, including:

• 22 February 2-4pm:
  Staff and student fieldworkers will present video recordings and photos from their field sites; followed by a discussion of the sociolinguistic setting in which children learn to speak their mother language(s). 
   
• 22 February 7-8.30pm:
  A virtual roundtable discussion on the challenges and opportunities of (heritage) language learning during a global pandemic.
   
• 23 February 3.30-5pm:
  Join us for Kathputli Utsav - A Festival of Traditional Indian Arts. Celebrate cultural and linguistic diversity with the Kathputli Colony, a colony of street performers in Delhi, India.
   
• 24 February 4pm:
  This online activity will actively involve speakers of different ages and proficiencies of languages spoken in 91ֱ�� - the intended audience are teachers and students at supplementary schools, those attending community centres, and anybody interested in exploring their own language. 

Find out more about International Mother Language Day 2022, including the full programme of events:

Thomas returns to The University of Manchester, where he spent five years as Professor of Musicology and Head of the Division of Art History, Drama and Music. He has also held posts at Bangor University, the University of Frankfurt and the University of Huddersfield.

The role formally began on 1 July and is dedicated to developing and driving strategic decision-making across the School.

Professor Keith Brown, Vice-President and Dean of Humanities has said on the appointment: “I look forward to working with Thomas as he returns to 91ֱ�� in this new role. I am confident he will build on Alessandro’s many achievements and will lead the School from strength to strength." 

Prior to joining the University for his appointment as Head of School, Schmidt was Visiting Professor at the University of Frankfurt, before moving to the UK in 2005 as Professor and Chair of Music at Bangor University. From 2012, he was Professor of Music at The University of 91ֱ�� (later also leading the Division of Art History, Drama and Music), and from 2017 he was Dean of Music, Humanities and Media at the University of Huddersfield.

Thomas studied at the University of Heidelberg and as a Fulbright Scholar in Chapel Hill. His key research interests are in music of the 15th/16th and the 18th/19th centuries.

On his appointment, Professor Schmidt said: "I am delighted to have been appointed as Vice-Dean and Head of School of Arts, Languages and Cultures. I enormously look forward to returning to the institution where I previously spent some of the most fulfilling years of my career; I am honoured and excited to be working with a dedicated team of staff in one of the leading Arts and Humanities schools in the UK, and with the outstanding students it recruits.”

 was edited by Matylda Wierietielny, a graduate of the University's Granada Centre for Visual Anthropology, who created the concept together with the MLM research team.

The film draws on footage collected between 2015 and 2018 at various MLM events. It opens with scenes from the launch event of an online resource on the dialects of Kurdish, created as part of the AHRC funded language documentation project.

It gives a glimpse of the work of Manchester Arabic School, one of a network of schools that form part of MLM's Supplementary School Support Platform, launched in 2017 to assist in the transmission of community and heritage languages.

The video also shows an example of creative engagement in a state school around the topic of languages and art in partnership with Community Rail Lancashire, and captures the atmosphere of Levenshulme Language Day, a family-friendly activity run by MLM in 2015 and again in 2017 to celebrate language diversity.

There are also scenes of MLM's student volunteer activity, which attracts over 100 participants every year, many of whom support English conversation sessions at partner community centres around the city, and from public discussions on the relevant of language provisions in public services.

The commentary addresses the role of expertise in public engagement, the process of reciprocal enquiry involving students and stakeholders, and the pitfalls of researchers providing outreach support and offering a community vision while avoiding the role of service deliverers and advocates/lobbyists.

Multilingual 91ֱ�� was founded in 2009-2010 as a unique model that brings together research, undergraduate and postgraduate teaching, and outreach and public engagement. Its thematic focus is on language diversity in the city.

It runs a cross-Faculty student volunteer scheme and a Faculty-based PhD student placement scheme, and has a strong public engagement portfolio.

MLM aims to raise awareness of language diversity among University staff and students and key stakeholders in the city, and to actively engage with local communities and public service providers around the challenges and opportunities of multilingualism.

It also pilots a model of civic university engagement, by creating a setting in which students and staff contribute to the work of local stakeholders by providing and using this engagement as a fruitful setting to trial research ideas and gain research insights.

More information can be found on the .

Dr Morley’s popular online phraseology resource tool, the Academic Phrasebank, was created originally to assist non-native researchers to improve their academic writing.

Increasingly, the Academic Phrasebank is used by both non-native and native speakers to improve their writing from various subject areas. Another innovative characteristic is that the Phrasebank is not discipline-specific, ensuring inclusivity for all specialisms.

The Director of the Centre said:

"This is great news and recognition for John but also for the Centre. Coming on top of the British Council visit (the Centre was ranked the #1 University Language Centre in the country), it means that the ULC has real impetus at the moment".

We continue to congratulate Dr John Morley and the rest of the fantastic winners within the University.

Following the British Council inspection in November 2017, the University Language Centre received ‘strengths’ in 13 out of a possible 14 areas.

To give this context, no other UK University has been judged to have as many strengths and no other Russell Group University has ever been awarded more than 11. 91ֱ�� was awarded eight in the previous inspection (2013).

The Director of the Centre, Gavin Dodsworth, said: “We’re making changes to the way that we approach and do things and for outsiders to come in and look around and say we’re on the right lines means everyone (and I mean everyone) should be really proud.

“You don’t do things just because someone will be inspecting you, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t happy. It’s a cliche, but the report is about everyone they saw at the University, from everyone in the Centre to the Head of School, from the cleaners to the Accommodation Office – they were impressed by both the Centre and also how we fit into the institution as a whole.”

Designed as a Quality Assurance scheme, Accreditation UK is run as a partnership by the British Council and English UK with all universities, colleges and schools eligible for the Scheme.

Find out more about accreditation on the .

The novel, which is based on a widower returning to his native India, was described by the University’s online arts journal, the 91ֱ�� Review, as "a compelling page-turner".

Dr Kalayil was born in Zambia in 1970 where her parents were teachers seconded from Kerala, India. She arrived in the UK aged eighteen and, after graduating, worked all over the world. She now teaches at The University of Manchester's  and is currently completing a doctorate in Linguistics.

She lives near 91ֱ�� with her husband and two daughters.

The Writers' Guild Award ceremony took place at the College of Physicians in central London, on Monday, 15 January 2018. Amongst the presenters were Paul Merton, Daisy Goodwin, April De Angelis, Helen Lederer, Mata Haggis, Howard Read, Charlie Hardwick, Tony Grisoni, Lisa Evans, Natalie Cutler, Jack Docherty, Brenda Gilhooly and Stefan Booth.

More information: