written by Professor Aditi Lahiri & Professor Martin Maiden (University of Oxford)

Every two years The International Conference for Historical Linguistics (ICHL) brings together historical linguists and specialists in related fields to explore advances in areas such as methods and practices of linguistic reconstruction, formal approaches to language change, historical sociolinguistics, computational approaches to historical linguistics, contact and areal linguistics, interfaces between historical linguistics and other disciplines, and many other related areas. ICHL25 was held at the University of Oxford (1–5 August 2022) and involved 421 participants whose oral presentations and posters covered all these areas. Reports we received from participants suggested that the conference was a great success.

The Philological Society sponsored a reception on the final day,  which was attended by 383 participants, and also provided Martin Burr Fund support for a student based in the US to present a paper (see James Tandy’s report: https://blogphilsoc.wordpress.com/2022/08/18/25th-international-conference-on-historical-linguistics-ichl25-oxford/). At the final session of the conference, Professor Aditi Lahiri and Professor Martin Maiden thanked the Society for their contribution. Professor Maiden introduced Professor Lutz Marten, the editor of the Transactions of the Philological Society (TPhS), who then presented a comprehensive account of the society’s goals, encouraging participants to join the society if they were not already members. Professor Marten also discussed the goals of TPhS, pointing out its breadth of coverage and relevance for historical linguistics research. Since there were more than 100 students registered at the conference, Professor Marten also provided information about the Robins Prize, encouraging potential applicants to submit their written work to the competition. Providentially, the winner of the previous Robins Prize, Dr Emily Lindsay-Smith (a leading member of the organising committee), was present and received his congratulations.