Samarkand Summer School

Distrib. by: Central-Eurasia-L – Announcement List for Central Eurasian Studies
PROG. INFO.- Samarkand Summer School on Languages and Society, Aug. 23-Sept. 17

Posted by: Samarkand Summer School <samarkandsummerschool@googlemail.com>

Samarkand Summer School
Language courses and seminars will take place in the central building
of the Samarkand State Institute of Foreign Languages. The duration of
the school is four weeks.
Participation is limited to 15 MA or PhD students.

(5th edition)
August 23rd ­ September 17th, 2010

Application deadline: April 30th, 2010

The Italian Society for Central Asian and Caucasian Studies (ASIAC,
http://www.asiac.net) is pleased to announce the fifth edition of its
Summer School, to be held in Samarkand in cooperation with the local
State Institute for Foreign Languages (SamSIFL,
http://sifl.50megs.com/indexen.html), and the support of the
University of Turin (http://www.unito.it). The School’s syllabus
includes intensive courses in Uzbek, Tajik or Russian, as well as
afternoon seminars. Excursions to places of historical, archaeological
and/or anthropological interest in Samarkand city and in the region
will also be proposed. The Samarkand Summer School can rely on solid
links with local and international scholars and research institutions.

Syllabus

The 2010 edition comprises:

1. Language training in Uzbek, Russian, Tajik. Daily classes are
structured in group sessions for up to five students according to
language level. Lessons are held by qualified teaching staff from the
Samarkand State Institute of Foreign Languages and the Samarkand State
University. Each language course has the duration of 80 hours and
includes grammar lessons, exercises and conversation.

2. Seminar program on Contemporary Uzbek Society will be held three
afternoons per week. All the seminars will be held in English, or a
translation into English will be provided. Topics covered by the
seminar series will include:
 * State- and nation-building in Central Asia
 * Ethnicity and identity issues
 * Cultural traditions and religion
 * Sociolinguistic situation in Uzbekistan
 * Anthropological and historical research in urban centres
 * The Samarkand countryside and rural studies
 * Community development projects
 * Russian culture in urban context

More topics will be added or adapted according to the specific
interests of this year’s participants.

Participants to the Summer School will have the opportunity, if they
wish, to present and discuss their own ongoing researches or projects
during additional seminar sessions. Do no hesitate to contact us for
inquiries about the syllabus or any other question!

Accommodation
 * Home-stay in selected families where the language of communication
  will be the one chosen by the student
 * Bed and Breakfast

Registration fees

The basic fee is 1250 euros : 100 euros will be asked as a registration fee,
to be transferred by May 2010. The remaining 1150 euros will be paid once
in Samarkand.

This includes the School’s full pedagogical offer, registration (OVIR)
fees, travel costs from Tashkent to Samarkand and return. Our partner,
SamSIFL, is providing visa assistance (LOI) for the duration of the
School.

Travel fares to and from Uzbekistan, visa expenses and food expenses
are not included. Staying in Tashkent before or after the School is
not included either, but we offer assistance to book a room in a hotel
or hostel, and will pick you up at the airport if necessary.

Accommodation (including all breakfasts) will be paid separately.
Home-stay costs 200 euros, whereas staying in a B&B will cost approx.
20-25 USD/night. Once the number of those wishing to stay in a B&B
will be known, the School’s organisers will negotiate the best
possible deal.

Who’s who

About the Italian Society for Central Asian and Caucasian Studies (ASIAC):
http://www.asiac.net

Advisory Board

Prof. Marco Buttino, University of Turin, Italy
Prof. Shahriyor Safarov, Rector of the Samarkand State Institute of
Foreign Languages (SamSIFL)

Summer School Director

Christilla Marteau d’Autry
PhD Candidate in Social Anthropology, LESC, Paris Nanterre University

Local Coordinator

Piera Viale, Samarkand State Institute of Foreign Languages (SamSIFL)

Application Procedure

To obtain further details and to apply please write to:
samarkandsummerschool@gmail.com

Please include the following information to your application:
 – your CV (max. 2 pages)
 – a short outline of your research topic and/or interests  (50-250 words)
 – the language you wish to study (Uzbek, Russian or Tajik) and your
  current level of proficiency. If you wish to study Tajik, please
  mention if you would prefer literary Tajik or Samarqandi dialect. If
  you have already studied Uzbek, please mention if you are better
  familiar with the Latin or Cyrillic script.
 – preferred type of accommodation (family or Bed and Breakfast)