The Vice-Chancellor of Victoria University of Wellington, Professor Grant Guilford, invites you to a public lecture by Professor of Linguistics Miriam Meyerhoff.

Vanuatu is the most linguistically diverse country on the planet; many of its 110 or so languages are spoken by communities of only a few hundred speakers. Conventional wisdom holds that such languages remain strong and vital when their communities are tightly knit, and that they are threatened by urbanisation and international migration. In her professorial lecture, Professor Meyerhoff will discuss how modern technologies—video, mobile phones and CDs—are, in fact, helping the community of Hog Harbour in north-eastern Vanuatu to counter the threats that mobility presents to maintaining a vibrant speech community.

This is Professor Meyerhoff’s inaugural lecture as Professor of Linguistics at Victoria University of Wellington. Our public lecture series gives you the opportunity to engage with the latest thinking on the world’s major issues.

Email rsvp@vuw.ac.nz with ‘Meyerhoff in the subject line, or phone 04-463 7458 before Friday 2 September. Our inaugural lectures are very popular. RSVP as spaces are limited.