Canadian Linguistics Association National Achievement Award 2014

The 2014 recipient of the Canadian Linguistic Association National Achievement Award is Dr. Jila Ghomeshi of the Department of Linguistics, University of Manitoba.

This award honours researchers whose work has expanded our knowledge in linguistics and has brought distinction to the Canadian linguistics community. It also recognizes their role as ambassadors in the promotion of Canadian linguistics here and abroad. Jila is a very worthy recipient of this award.

Dr. Ghomeshi is recognized for her effective communication about language and her engagement with the broader community on the social significance of language and language choices. Since the 1990s Dr. Ghomeshi has appeared in the popular press and radio, community panels, writers’ festivals, and other public forums to speak on issues relating to gender and language, language and power, clichéd language, and slang.

Dr. Ghomeshi’s characteristic perspicacity and engaging style have made her a go-to spokesperson on linguistics. Her 2011 book, Grammar matters: The social significance of how we use language, stayed on the Winnipeg best-sellers’ list for three months. By bringing in current examples of popular language use, Dr. Ghomeshi wowed readers by insisting on the relevance of linguistic choices for public debate on class, race, and the creation of authority.

The fifth winner of the National Achievement Award, Dr. Ghomeshi received her Ph.D. from the University of Toronto and has a broad range of specializations in linguistics, including distinguished research on the Persian language which has helped shape the Persian linguistics community in North America. Her excellence in teaching has been acknowledged by Outstanding Teaching Awards at the University of Manitoba, where she was the Director of the Institute for the Humanities from 2005–2007.

Dr. Ghomeshi gave a plenary lecture as part of Congress 2014 at the annual conference of the Canadian Linguistic Association, Brock University, entitled “Who are we talking to when we talk to ‘the public’ about linguistics?”.

Dr. Ghomeshi does what other scholars may only dream of. Her writing and speaking engage the public around issues of language and linguistics with clarity, wit, and rigorous insight. For these contributions she richly deserves the recognition embodied by the National Achievement Award of the Canadian Linguistic Association.

CLA president Leslie Saxon presents the National Achievement Award to 2014 honoree Jila Ghomeshi.

La présidente de l’ACL, Leslie Saxon, présente le Prix d’excellence national 2014 à la récipendiaire, Jila Ghomeshi.

Prix national d’excellence 2013 de l’Association canadienne de linguistique

La récipendiaire du Prix d’excellence 2014 de l’Association canadienne de linguistique est Jila Ghomeshi du Département de linguistique, Université du Manitoba.

Ce prix est décerné à des chercheurs qui ont su repousser les frontières de nos connaissances en matière de recherches linguistiques et faire avancer la discipline. Il prend acte également du travail d’ambassadeur pour la promotion de la linguistique canadienne, au Canada et à l’étranger. Jila est une récipiendaire très digne de ce prix.

Mme Ghomeshi s’est, au fil des années, distinguée par la qualité de ses travaux et conférences portant sur le langage et par son engagement à faire connaître l’importance sociale de la langue et des choix linguistiques auprès de l’ensemble de la communauté.

Depuis les années 1990, Mme Ghomeshi fait partager son expérience dans la presse, à la radio, sur des panels communautaires, lors de festivals d’écrivains et sur de nombreux forums publics sur les sujets suivants : le genre et la langue, la langue et le pouvoir, les usages clichés de la langue ou l’argot.

La perspicacité de Mme Ghomeshi ainsi que son charisme naturel font d’elle le porte-parole tout désigné du domaine de la linguistique. Son livre, Grammar matters : The social significance of how we use language, paru en 2011, a figuré pendant trois mois au palmarès des meilleures ventes à Winnipeg. Au travers d’usages quotidiens du langage courant, Mme Ghomeshi a su mener les lecteurs à la découverte de l’importance des choix linguistiques dans les débats publics...