The conference is jointly organized by the Institute of Humanitarian Research and Problems of Indigenous Peoples of the North, Russian Academy of Sciences, International Arctic Social Sciences Association (IASSA) and the Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North of Sakha Republic, and organized under the framework of the 2019 International Year of Indigenous Languages.

The conference aims to unite the efforts of researchers, civil society, practitioners, indigenous communities, and indigenous language speakers to discuss the issues and possibilities of sustainable development of indigenous peoples living in the North and the Arctic. The discussions will draw from the diverse approaches of folklore, literature, anthropologic, ethnographic, historic, politic, social, cultural, legislative and economic practices. 

Conference themes cover diverse areas of socio-economic development of Indigenous peoples of the North and the Arctic:

  • Languages of indigenous peoples of the North and the Arctic: issues of interaction and language typology;
  • Traditional epistemologies and indigenous languages;
  • Indigenous languages and globalization: tendencies and perspectives of development, successful and effective practices of indigenous communities in language revitalization and maintenance;
  • Indigenous written languages of Russia: contemporary state and functionality issues;
  • Yakut language: contemporary state and new dimensions in the research;
  • Literature and folklore as sources of safeguarding and enrichment of Indigenous languages;
  • Ethnic history of indigenous peoples of the North and the Arctic: past, present and future;
  • Current issues related to traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples as the bases of their sustainable development;
  • The role of contemporary technologies and mass media in revitalization and development of indigenous languages.

The conference invites linguists, philologists, historians, anthropologists, ethnographers, cultural scientists, philosophers, sociologists, policy scientists, economists, teachers, indigenous language speakers and leaders of the indigenous organizations, and graduate students. As part of the Conference the participants are also invited to take part in the traditional Yakut celebration of solstice, Yssylakh.

An electronic peer-reviewed collection of papers is expected to be published upon the selection of the articles made by the organizing committee. Criteria for the article format will be defined later.

The deadline for abstract submission is March 1, 2019. 

Email: inip@ysn.ru. Fax: (+7 4112) 35-49-96, 36-01-97.) In the email subject please put “Conference”.

The application should include:

  • name of the participant
  • title of the paper
  • organization/place of work
  • academic title
  • contact phone number
  • contact e-mail

There is no registration and publication fee. Support for accommodation and travel expenses is not available at this time.

Conference working languages: Russian, English