Heidelberg Center for Ibero-American StudiesAward for Research Project on Spanish Language in Europe
Press Release No. 103/2024
12 September 2024
Interdisciplinary institution in Heidelberg to receive prize worth 50,000 euros
Researching new spaces for Spanish in Europe has earned an award for the Observatory of Spanish in Europe (OSE) at the Heidelberg Center for Ibero-American Studies (HCIAS) of Heidelberg University. The project “Nuevos espacios del español en Europa / New spaces for Spanish in Europe” is to receive the 50,0000-euro prize Premio de Hispanismo Internacional Fundación Duques de Soria. The Observatory focuses on the social, cultural and linguistic dynamics of Spanish-speaking communities in Europe that emerge through migration between Latin America, Spain and other European countries.
The prize-winning project consists of two initiatives. “El Español en Europa” was recognized as a research network of approximately 80 researchers from over 50 European universities and institutions that studies the social reality of the Spanish language in Europe from interdisciplinary perspectives. It makes quantitative and qualitative descriptions of the linguistic and cultural geography of Spanish and its speakers. The research focuses on the dynamics of migrations and education, as well as on the use of Spanish as a language of origin in the family environment. Since 2020 the network has been led by Prof. Dr Francisco Moreno-Fernández, Prof. Dr Óscar Loureda and Dr Héctor Álvarez Mella at HCIAS, in cooperation with Prof. Dr Johannes Kabatek at the University of Zurich (Switzerland).
The second initiative is devoted to expanding the interdisciplinary Observatory of Spanish in Europe into a think tank. At OSE, academics analyze and explain how Spanish-language communities in Europe arise, how they preserve the Spanish language over generations and how they create spaces for cultural and knowledge-based exchange. By combining linguistics, human geography and sociology, the OSE provides information, observations and empirical analysis on key issues and new trends in the Spanish language in Europe. Prof. Moreno-Fernández is the OSE director.
The entire project now being honored includes establishing an interactive database for researchers and decision-makers in language policy and education. In addition, there are plans to devise new research lines on the intergenerational transfer and preservation of Spanish, as well as a demolinguistics of Spanish in digital spaces.
The Premio de Hispanismo Internacional Fundación Duques de Soria is being awarded by the Fundación Duques de Soria de Ciencia y Cultura Hispánica, a foundation that recognizes outstanding projects in international Hispanic studies. The award ceremony will take place in autumn in Soria (Spain).