That's just learning parrot-fashion. This was the argument with which the proposal to establish a language lab at Leiden University was rejected in 1962. But six years later, the language lab was launched. And now the Academic Language Lab is celebrating its 50-year anniversary.

Moving to a different city as a student can be a daunting prospect, let alone to a different country. Each year, many students come to Leiden, and many find a home away from home thanks to the Humanities Master’s Buddy Programme. Kathleen Burke and Victor Jarzargaray experienced it first-hand. “It’s…

On January 30th, Lennart van der Velden succesfully defended his doctoral thesis and graduated. The Leiden University Centre for Linguistics congratulates Lennart on this great result.

Learn new ways to analyse and study cultures and languages and provides insight into how digital methods and artificial intelligence (AI) are changing our personal lives and societies in the minor Digital Humanities and Artificial Intelligence.

A linguistic test of hypotheses rooted in genetics and archaeology.

Like any language, the natural sign languages of deaf communities differ from each other in their grammars and lexicons. A growing number of studies indicates that sign languages make use of the gestures of hearing speakers to build linguistic structure. This implies that variation and similarities…

These are our lecturers (in alphabetical order) for the 2024 Summer School in Languages and Linguistics.

Find out how to apply for Translation at Leiden University by following our step-by step guide.

Find out how to apply for Modern Languages at Leiden University by following our step-by step guide.

Every year the Leiden Univeristy faculty of Humanitites organizes a linguistic summer school. This year Dr. Alessia Prioletta (Paris) will be teaching a class titled 'Non-Sabaic Ancient South Arabian languages'. The Summer school will be held from July 11 to July 22 at the faculty of Humanities of Leiden…

Speech Prosody is the biennial meeting of the Speech Prosody Special Interest Group (SProSIG) of the International Speech Communication Association (ISCA).

LeiCenSAA is dedicated to the study of Ancient Arabia and the sharing of knowledge and expertise on this topic. Thefore it aims to collaborate closely with other research in the field.

On October 31st, Paul Noorlander succesfully defended his doctoral thesis and graduated. The Leiden University Centre for Linguistics congratulates Paul on this great result.

Get the most out of your studies at Leiden University by taking part in our extracurricular activities.

This is special issue of the journal Language & Communication. The papers of this issue delve into the multifaceted realm of (non)belonging.

On the 14th of June, Yliana Rodriquez successfully defended a doctoral thesis. The Leiden University Centre for Linguistics congratulates Yliana on this achievement!

On the 13th of October, Cesko Voeten successfully defended a doctoral thesis and graduated. The Leiden University Centre for Linguistics congratulates Cesko on this achievement!

Leiden University has a leading position in research and education in the linguistics of languages around the globe, including sign languages. In recent years, digital approaches to studying spoken languages and their communities have rapidly expanded. Language technology and digital approaches relating…

On the 26th of January, Alex Reuneker successfully defended a doctoral thesis. The Leiden University Centre for Linguistics congratulates Alex on this achievement!

On the 23rd of September, George Saad successfully defended a doctoral thesis and graduated. The Leiden University Centre for Linguistics congratulates George on this achievement!

The 21st International Conference on English Historical Linguistics will be held from 7 to 11 June 2021 at Leiden University.

Get the most out of your studies at Leiden University by taking part in our extracurricular activities.

Data sets available for scientific/research purposes.

In our HANDS!Lab for Sign Languages and Deaf Studies, we run projects pertaining to sign language linguistics with a focus on Africa. In addition, we are running projects on sign language teaching, tactile signing, deaf people’s experiences with the legal system, and deaf history.

A linguistic reconstruction of the migration of the Tocharians from Europe to China

Lecture

Leiden University won five prizes at the 10th edition of the IBA International Criminal Court (ICC) Moot Court Competition – English edition of 2023, including Best Regional Team of Europe.

One Lecture about Immigrant Integration in the EU and its Member State at the Institute of European Studies at George Washington University, one class in a course on Immigration and Integration at Georgetown University, and a lot of judging in the international rounds of the Phillip C. Jessup International…

Since the early 1990s, one can isolate the optical signal of a single molecule and single-molecule spectroscopy has quickly grown into an important research field.

Papers written on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the institute of Prehistory, Volume II.

Thomas Mes defended his thesis on 9 January 2018.

A global synthesis of the extent, diversity and patterns in off-site fire use by historically documented and current hunter-gatherers with the remit of this study in the deeper past.

Speech Prosody 2024 includes seven special sessions. When making a submission, authors are asked to indicate whether they want their paper to be considered for a special session. You can find descriptions of each below.

When Russia invaded Ukraine at the end of February, normal life there came to a halt. To ensure that affected students and researchers can continue their studies and work, professor Ellen Rutten (UvA) and assistant professor Dorine Schellens (Leiden) set up an international mentor network.

Tensions are rising between Russia and the West. Can an invasion of Ukraine and an international war be avoided? Political scientist and Russia expert Hans Oversloot warns of the consequences if the West chooses a collision course. ‘Offer Russia a dignified exit strategy.’

Below thesis archives will be moved shortly (work in progress) to the Leiden Repository. Once this is done, theses submitted by MI students (from 2008 onwards) can be accessed via the Repository and will be removed from this site.

Lecture, Comparative Indo-European Linguistics (CIEL) Seminars

There is a growing demand throughout the world for ways to understand and preserve cultural heritage. Heritage has a crucial role to play because it strengthens societies and promotes understanding among cultures. Leiden expertise in the area of heritage spans the whole world.

On this page you will find more information about the selected projects of the Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) Fund for 2025.

What is the impact of religion and its discourse on the lives of queer people in countries where LGBTQIA+ individuals are not accepted? University Lecturer Eduardo Alves Vieira wants to know just that. With an NWO-grant, he will take a closer look at the inclusive religion movement in Brazil.