Emerging Landscapes brings together researchers from 17 countries

The international conference Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Landscapes in Language, Society, and Cognition (ILANSCO 2026): Emerging Landscapes: Languages and Landscapes in Conflict took place on 16-18 September 2026 at the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague.

The conference brought together 38 participants in person and two online participants from 17 countries and three continents. Over three days, researchers from different disciplinary and geographical backgrounds explored the complex relationships between language, society, cognition, and landscape, with particular attention to landscapes shaped by conflict, political change, memory, identity, and social transformation.

The programme featured three keynote lectures. Thora Tenbrink opened the conference with “Landscapes, languages, and climate change: From threats to opportunities.” Jaroslav David presented “Fragments from a Beer Glass: The Linguistic Landscape of Havlíčkův Brod over the Last Two Centuries,” while Maoz Azaryahu addressed “Street Names: Memory, Language, and the Politics of Identity.”

Alongside the keynote lectures, the conference programme featured a wide range of presentations on linguistic and symbolic landscapes, contested place names, the politics of street naming, landscapes of Ukraine and Israel/Palestine, post-socialist landscapes in Central Europe, linguistic landscapes of protests and public spaces, gender and memory, multilingualism, and the relationship between human beings and natural landscapes.

The conference also included an excursion through Prague on a historic tram dating from the first half of the twentieth century, offering participants an opportunity to experience and discuss the city's urban and historical landscape.

Beyond the individual presentations, the conference created opportunities for new partnerships and future research collaboration among participants. Discussions also laid the groundwork for a planned edited book based on selected conference contributions, which is intended for publication with a prestigious international academic publisher.

We thank all keynote speakers, speakers, and participants for their contributions, stimulating discussions, and friendly atmosphere, and for helping to make ILANSCO 2026 a successful and productive international gathering.

The conference was organised by Přemysl Mácha and Rose Smith from the Institute of Ethnology, Czech Academy of Sciences and Žaneta Dvořáková from the Institute of Czech Language, Czech Academy of Sciences.