The National Language Research Institute (1998-11-27)

Research on the World's Language Research Institutes:

Intermediate Progress Report for 8/98-11/98

The National Language Research Institute, Tokyo, Japan

About This Research

The purpose of this research is to investigate the functions of language research institutes throughout the world. Since existing information on language research is limited, this research aims to make a thorough database. Information about the institutes are collected through literature, and the internet, and by requesting embassies and foundation offices. Data include address and access numbers of each insititute, as well as purpose of establishment, form of establishment, their budget resources, publication, etc. Although we are conducting further investigations ourselves, we are asking for more specific information. Following are the initial inquiry sent to embassies, list of institutes, and partial sample analysis.

An Inquiry for Information about Language Research Institutes

The National Language Research Institute of Japan, attached to The Agency for Cultural Affairs, conducts scientific research on the Japanese language and language usage. We also conduct research projects in order to build a foundation to rationalise the national language. We are made up of 67 researchers; in sections such as Language Systems, Language Behavior, Language Change, Language Education, and Information & Data; Japanese Language Education Center; and Dictionary Compilation.

Following on recent political reforms in Japan, we are currently conducting research on language institutes throughout the world. We would appreciate it if you would offer information about language research institutes in your country. It would also help if you could recommend a person who has information on these institutes.

The research items are as follows:

1. Name of the institute

2. Location (Address)

3. Phone numbers and web addresses(Phone number, Fax number, E-mail address, Homepage address)

4. Purpose of establishment

5. Year founded

6. Form of establishment

7. Source and amount of budget

8. Publications

9. Organization a) Number of researchers and members b) Number of books and periodicals c)Name of chair or director d) Name of secretary

10. Major research projects (field and purpose).

The literature we have access to are:

Coulmas, F. (Ed.). (1989). Language Adaptation. Cambrigde, New York; Cambridge University Press.

Europa Publications Limited. (First edition 1949, 48th edition 1998). The World of Learning. England; The Gresham Press.

Kamei, T. et al. (Eds.). (1996). Gengo-gaku Daijiten (Encyclopedia of Linguistics). Tokyo; Sanseido

The National Language Research Institute. (Ed.). (1996). Language Institutes Around the World. Tokyo; The National Language Research Institute

Since the information we have is restricted and insufficient, your help is needed to collect further details. We will report our research results at a later date.

If you have any questions, please contact the ¡ÈResearch on the World's Language Research Institutes¡É at the following address.

Mail address:
The National Language Research Institute
Project on Language Research Institute of the World
3-9-14 Nishigaoka, Kita-ku, Tokyo 115-8620, Japan

E-mail address: surv@kokken.go.jp

Fax number: 81-3-5993-7640

Mutsuro Kai

Director of the National Language Research Institute

List of Institutes

Following are the Institutes we currently have:

<United States of America>

The Ohio State University National Foreign Language Resource Center

The National Association for Bilingual Education

Center for Applied Linguistics

ERIC Clearinghouse on Languages and Linguistics

Office of Bilingual Education and Minority Language Affairs

Center on English Learning and Achievment (CELA)

The National Foreign Language Center (NFLC)

<United Kingdom>

Centre for Information on Language Teaching and Research (CILT)

Modern Humanities Research Association

Academy Gymreig/Welsh Academy

Institute of Linguists

Institute of Translation and Interpreting

Dictionary Research Centre at The University of Exeter

<Israel>

Academy of the Hebrew Language

Language Policy Research Center

<Italy>

Accademia della Crusca

Circolo Filologico Milanese

Societa Filologica Roman

Societa Filologica Friulana

<Iran>

Farhangestan

<India>

Abul Kalam Azad Oriental Research Institute

Academy of Sanskrit Research

Anjuman-i-Islam Urdu Research Institute

Bhandardar Oriental Research Institute

Cama, K. R., Oriental Institute and Library

Deccan College Postgraduate and Researh Institute

Ganhanatha Jha Kendriya Sanskrit Vidyapeetha (Central Sanskrit Researh Institute)

International Academy of Indian Culture

Kuppuswami Sastri Research Institute

Mumbai Marathi Granth Sangrahalaya

Nava Nalanda Mahavihara (Nalanda institute of Buddhist Studies and Pali)

Oriental Institute of Indian Language

Oriental Research Institute

Sri Venkateswara University Oriental Researach Institute

Vishveshvaranand Vedic Research Institute

Vishveshvaranand Vishva Bandhu Institute of Sanskrit and Indological Studies

Department of Official Language

The Commision of Scientific and Technical Terminology

The National Council for Promotion of Urdu Languge

The National Council for Promotion of Sindi Language

The Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL)

Central Institute of English & Foreign Languages

Maharishi Sandipani Rashtrya Veda Vidya Pratishthan

Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan

Kendriya Hindi Sansthan, Agra

<Indonesia>

Pusat Pembinaan dan Pengembangan Bahasa (National Centre for Language Development)

<Ukraine>

Potebnya, A. A., Institute of Linguistics

Shevchenko, T. G., Institute of Literature

Lviv's Branch of Taras Shevchenko Insitutue of Literature

Institute of the Ukrainian Language

Ukrainian Lingua Information Fund

<Egypt>

Academic Arabic Society

Academy of Arabic Language

<Australia>

The National Language & Literacy Institute of Australia

Australian National Dictionary Centre

<Canada>

International Center for Research on Language Planning (CRLP)

Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages

Modern Language Centre

Canadian Languages Network (CLN/RCL)

Agence francophone pour l'enseignement superieur et la recherche (AUPELF- UREF)

The Second Language Education Center

<Republic of Korea>

The National Language Research Institute

<Democratic People's Republic of Korea>

Institute of Ethnic Classics

Institute of Juche Literature

Institute of Linguistics

<Saudi Arabia>

King Abdul Aziz Research Centre

<Sweden>

Svenska Akademien (Swedish Academy)

<Spain>

Euskaltzaindia/Real Academia de la Lengua Vasca (Academy of the Basque Language)

Insituto Aula de 'Mediterraneo'

Real Academia Sevillana de Buenas Letras (Seville Royal Academy of Belles Letters)

Reial Academia de Bones Lletres (Royal Academy of Belles Lettres)

Real Academia Espanola

Instituto Cervantes

<China>

Applied Linguistics Institute

Chinese Literature Institute

Foreign Literature Institute

Institute of Linguistics

Journalism Insitute

Literature of Minority Nationalities

Committee of Language Standardization and Character Simplification

<Denmark>

Danske Sprog-og Litteraturselskab (Society for Danish Language and Literature)

Filologisk-Historiske Samfund (Philological-Historical Society)

Research Institute for Danish Dialects

Institute for Nordic Philology

Institute for Lordic Language and Literature

Research Institute for Language and Culture in Jutland

Dansk Sprognavn

<Germany>

Arbeitsstelle fur osterreichische Literatur und Kultur Robert-Musil-Forschung

Institut fur Deutsche Sprache

Dudenredaktion Sprachberatugsstelle

<Turkey>

Turk Dil Kurumu (Turkish Language Institute)

<Pakistan>

Anjuman Taraqqi-e-Urdu Pakistan

Baluchi Academy

Idarah-i-Yadgar-i-Ghalib

Institute of Islamic Culture

Iqbal Academy

National Language Authority

Pakistan Academy of Letters

Panjabi Adabi Academy

Pashto Academy

Shah Waliullah Academy

Sindhi Adabi Board

Urdu Academy

Urdu Dictionary Board

Urdu Science Board

<Hungary>

Magyar Tudomanyos Akademia Irodalomtudomanyi Intezete (Institute of Literary Studies of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences)

<Bangladesh>

Bangla Academy

<Philippines>

Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino (Commision on the Filipino Language)

The Insititute of National Language

Sntro ng Wikang Filipino (Filipino Language Center)

<Brazil>

Academia Brasileira de Letras (Brasilian Academy of Letters)

Academia Cearense de Letras (Ceara Academy of Letters)

Academia de Letras da Bahia (Bahia Academy of Letters)

Academia Paraibana de Letras (Paraiba Academy of Letters)

Academia Paulista de Letras (Sao Paulo Academy of Letters)

Academia Pernambucana de Letras (Pernambuco Academy of Letters)

Instituto Nacional de Estudos e Pesquisas Educacionais

<France>

Institut de recherche et d'histoire des textes (IRHT)

Institut national de le langue francaise (INALF)

Institut de recherche en pedagogie de l'economie et en adiovisuel pour la communication dans les sciences sociales (IRPEACS)

Institut des textes et manuscrits modernes (ITEM)

Litterature oral, dialectologie et ethnologie du domaine arabo-berbere

Center de Recherche Pour un Tresor de la Langue Francaise

Center de Etude du Francais Moderne et Contemporain

<Viet Nam>

Institute of Linguistics

Institute of Literary Studies

Institute of Research on Chinese and Demotic Characters

<Poland>

Instytut Badan Literackich PAN (Institute of Literary Research)

Instytut Jezyka Polskiego PAN (Polish Language Institute)

<Portugal>

Instituto de Lexicologia e Lexicografia da Lingua Portuguesa,,

Instituto Portugues da Sociedade Cientifica de Goerres (Portuguese Institute of
the Goerres Research Society)

Insituto Camoes

<Malaysia>

Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (National Language and Literary Agency)

Tamil Language Society

The Language Institute

<Mexico>

Academia Mexicana de la Lengua (Mexican Academy of Letters)

El Colegio de Mexico

Centro de Investigaciones Filologicas

<Romania>

Insitutul de Filologie Romana 'Al, Philippide' (Al, Philippide Institute of romanian Philology)

Insitutul de Fonetica si Dialectologie ¡ÆAl. Rosetti¡Æ (Al. Rosetti Insitutute of Phonetics and Dialectology)

Institutul de Lingvistica (Insitutute of Linguistics)

<Russia>

Gorkii, A. M., Institute of World Literature

Institute of Linguistic Research

Insitutute of Linguistic Studies

Institute of Russian Literature (Pushkin House)

Russian Institute for Cultural Research,,

Vinogradov Institute of the Russian Language

Saint-Petersburg Department of Foreign Languages

Department Literature and Language (LDD)

<Europe>

The European Center for Modern Languages

Language Engineering

Sample Analysis

(Partial, Includes data collected by 98.10)

Number of institutes (See Figure 1)

Among the 32 countries that we currently have data on, the countries that have the largest number of institutes are: India(25), Pakistan(15), Russia (8), U.S.A. (7), Denmark (7), China (7), England (6), Ukraine (5), Brazil (5), and France(5). The number of institutes tends to be large in countries where multiple languages are used.

Purpose of establishment

In order to analyze the distribution of establishment purposes, the establishment purposes were categorized into five major purposes: political, research, educational, organizational, and service. Each category consists of the following sub-purposes:

Political purposes: Administration, administrative guidance, administrative reform, assessment, political advisory, guidance to government-funded agencies, decision making for research priorities, qualification examinations, prizes, promotion of literature, translation of certain languages for their protection, establishing translation agencies, research grants, scholarships

Research purposes: dictionaries, encyclopedias, vocabulary indexes, supplementary grants for universities

Educational purposes: teacher training, developing learning materials, developing instructional programs, secondary education, post-graduate programs, language courses, calligraphy classes

Organizational purposes: international conferences, seminars, symposiums, workshops

Service purposes: information collection, lending informative materials, answering telephone questions, organizing information

Since most institutes were established for multiple purposes, subcategories were counted as manys times as they were listed.

Number of institutes in each of the major purposes. (See Figure 2) Among the above five purposes, the purpose that had the largest number of institutes was research purposes (51.8%), followed by political (42.3%), service (17.5%), educational (14.6%), and organizational purposes (8.8%). However, the purpose of establishment for 24.2% of the entire number of institutes is unknown because of lack of information.

Number of countries per each major purpose. (See Figure 3) As far as research purposes are concerned, the country that had the largest number of institutes was India (19 institutes), followed by Ukraine (11), Pakistan (11), the United Kingdom (3), and Israel (3). Regarding political purposes, the country or region that had the largest number of institutes was India (16), followed by Pakistan (15), U.S.A. (4), Indonesia (2), Bangladesh (2), Malaysia (2), and Europe (2). As for service purposes, the country that had the largest number of institutes was Ukraine (5), followed by the United Kingdom (4), U.S.A. (2), India (1), and Pakistan (1). Regarding educational purposes, the country or region that had the largest number of institutes was India (10), followed by United Kingdom, Ukraine, Germany, Pakistan, Malaysia, and Europe, each having one institute. As for organizational purposes, the country or region that had the largest number of institutes was India (4), followed by Pakistan (2), and Europe (2).

Some countries had distinctive tendencies. More than half of the institutes in the U.S.A. were developed for political purposes (4/7). In the United Kingdom, the major purposes were service (4/6) and research (3/6). In India, the top three purposes were research (19/25), political (16/25), and educational (10/25). In Ukraine, the majority were established for research purposes (11/5) and service purposes (5/5). However, in Pakistan, the major purposes were political (15/15) and research (11/15).

Figure 1 Distribution of Institutes Throughout the World

Figure 2 Number of Institutes per Major Purpose

(Institutes are counted multiple times)

Figure 3 Relationship Between Number of Institutes and Major Purposes
for Each Country



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