SEALS 34

SEALS34 has successfully concluded. We had some 74 onsite participants and more than 40 variously presenting and viewing online. The venue was magnificent, in particular, the staff were wonderfully friendly and helpful, and the catering was spectacular. An archive of images, abstracts, and slides has been established on this site; we are still deciding what to do with video taken at the meeting, it takes time to process. The business meeting accepted an offer from NTU Singapore to host the 2026 meeting - we hope to see you there.

Update (June 9)

• Onsite Registration opens 8 am on Wednesday, and the formal opening remarks start at 8.45, so don't be late . Follow the signs and take the lift to the rooftop Titanium 11 room,  the registration desk will be at the entrance. 

• Registration, session talks (Keynote and off-site presentations), will be hosted in Titanium 11.  From 10:40 a.m., sessions 2 and 3 will proceed in Rooms Titanium 2 and 3 at the lobby level. All rooms are handy to the liftwell, allowing movement between levels. 

• Lunches will be in the restaurant on the lobby level. The conference dinner on Thursday evening commences at 6 pm outside at the Infinity Rooftop (if the weather is bad, the dinner will be moved into the adjacent ballroom). 

• Google Meet Video links for all sessions have been posted on the Program page. If you are presenting from offsite, click on the relevant link some minutes BEFORE your allocated time (allowing for timezone differences!) and ask to be let in, and check that it is all working for you. If you have concerns that your internet connection may not be good enough on the day, you can prerecord your slide show, and email a link to <seals34bali@google.com> a couple of days before the event, and we will have it ready just in case (please try to keep the file size modest). If you are not familiar with Google Meet, please familiarize yourself with it BEFORE the meeting.

• Panel Chairs: basic instructions for panel chairs  are provided on the Commitee & Organization page.

• If you have not registered yet, please do so at the link on the Registration page and ensure that payment is made without further delay.  All participants must complete the online registration form before the meeting to qualify to receive certificates of presentation/participation.

• The program is finalized. Any further changes will only be made in extraordinary circumstances and will be announced onsite.

• PRESENTERS: bring your Power Point file on a USB stick (compatible with PC!), so these can be uploaded to the laptop provided (we will not connect your laptop to the projector). Please also include a PDF version of your talk in case there is difficulty with formatting or fonts in your PPT file (use only unicode fonts if possible).

• Panel chairs have been assigned; please check the program for allocations. Panel chairs have the following duties:
  - Introduce speakers and keep time
  - Monitor Google Meet, record talks, admit virtual participants, monitor chat for questions/comments
  Additionally, there will be nominated Room Monitors (blue name tags) who can assist chairs if necessary.

• An IT support person will be present to assist with managing the offsite presentations in the Session 1 room , and assist elsewhere in emergencies.

• If you consented to have your talk recorded (in the online registration form) your talk will be archived and made available later under a Creative Commons license. 

• A SLACK network for unofficial communication and collaboration related to SEALS34  has been established: click on this link.  If you want to network with others about social activities, accommodation, academic cooperation, tips, and advice, please go ahead. Thank you to Yuko Kitada for taking the lead on this.

• We are actively seeking offers to host future conferences; please bring your offers and suggestions to the SEALS Business Meeting, 4pm Friday 13 June. You can participate onsite or online, you do not need to have registered for SEALS34.

Announcement

Celebrating the great linguistic diversity of Mainland and Island Southeast Asia, the Southeast Asian Linguistics Society (SEALS) invites scholars and students to present their research and ideas over 3 days in the beautiful paradise of Jimbaran Beach, Bali, Indonesia. Following the resumption of in-person SEALS meetings in Chiang Mai (2023) and Taipei (2024), we are excited to confirm this special opportunity for an on-site focused event. A limited number of off-site talks will also be offered within the program (with emphasis on facilitating participation for those who face special difficulties attending in person). Unlike other regional conferences that are devoted to single language families, SEALS offers scholars working on diverse language families the opportunity to interact with each other in person. 

Important dates

• December 1, 2024: Abstract Submission opens

• January 31, 2025: Deadline for Abstract Submission

• February 28, 2025: Notification of Acceptance

• March 1 – April 30, 2024: Online Registration 

• June 11‐13, 2025: SEALS Conference

June 2025 will see other regional linguistics conferences in Indonesia, so please take the opportunity to coordinate with SEALS 34 to maximize your conference experience!

• • • • AFLA (Austronesian Formal Linguistics Association) 2-4 June Jakarta

      • ISLOJ (International Symposium on the Languages of Java) 4-5 June Jakarta

      • ISMIL (International Symposium on Malay and Indonesian Linguistics) 9-10 June Bali

      • KIMLI (Linguistics Association of Indonesia) 16-18 July

Call for abstracts

Abstract submission opens December 1st. SEALS 34 will be a hybrid conference, held concurrently in-person and online (via Google Meet) with a preference for on-site participation. Possible topics include, but are not limited to: phonetics and phonology; morphology; syntax; genetic and areal relationships; historical-comparative studies; language endangerment; language documentation; language revitalization; semantics; pragmatics; discourse analysis; sociolinguistic studies; psycholinguistics; neurolinguistics. Presentations will be 20 minutes followed by 10 minutes for discussion. Each individual may present up to one single-authored paper and one joint paper (all named authors must register as presenters). Abstracts will be ranked on merit; the selection committee reserves the right to reject any abstract based on ranking or scope.

Scope: SEALS welcomes contributions that relate directly to languages of Mainland and Island Southeast Asia, and deal with general and applied linguistic issues as opposed to cultural or anthropological topics, or acquisition or teaching methodology. Preference is given to contributions that relate directly to languages spoken in the region of Southeast Asia (ASEAN countries, Taiwan & Lingnan China), and reflect the linguistic diversity of the region. Abstracts will be selected based on merit ranking by the SEALS Executive Committee. 

Abstracts should be written in English and submitted in PDF format. Abstracts must conform to the following: 

(i) Abstracts must have a clear and informative title. 

(ii) Abstracts must be no longer than 300 words. No references are required. Tables, figures, and examples are permitted within the one A4 page limit. 

(iii) Style/format: font type/size: Times New Roman or Times, 11 point; single-spaced; A4; 2.54 cm margins on all sides. 

(iv) Abstracts must be anonymous: authors’ names, affiliations, or pictures should not be indicated anywhere in the document. 

(v) Email your abstract before the closing date: midnight Jan. 31 (Hawaii time, GMT +10 hours) to <SEALS34Bali@proton.me>, indicating in your message: 1) author names and affiliations 2) on-site or off-site participation for each author, 3) full or student registration, 4) name and email of one corresponding author for all communication regarding abstract selection. 

(vi) Participants will only be accepted as 1st first-named author on one paper. There is no limit on secondary authorship, but all authors/participants must register and pay registration (unless there is a special arrangement with the organisers).