Linguistic cultures and communities in Europe (past and present) Discover and retrieve data relating to the linguistic culture in Europe

Join the 3rd edition of Museum Lab EUROTALES and help bring Europe’s diverse languages—past and present—to life beyond borders!

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CIVIS focus area
Society, culture, heritage
Open to
  • Bachelor's
  • Master's
  • Phd
Field of studies
  • Art, Design and Media
  • Social Science and humanities
Type
  • Blended Intensive Programmes (BIP)
Course dates
6 February - 22 May 2026
Apply by
30 octobre 2025 Apply now

The course (now in its 3rd edition) invites students to collaborate in building our innovative Museum Lab EUROTALES, aimed at representing and preserving the languages spoken in Europe now and in the past in their variety and dynamic relationship with the European territory, and to acknowledge, describe and preserve the linguistic culture of Europe outside narrow national boundaries, and based on active citizenship. Students in this CIVIS course will learn about the linguistic cultures of Europe by preparing materials for both the physical and virtual museum venues of Eurotales. Eurotales is both a Sapienza incorporated Museum Collection and a subproject of Calliope (CAsa delle Lingue e delle Letterature In OPEra).

It is also a member of the international network of language museums (ICON) and it works with AND - AmbientiNarrativi Digitali srl for digital processing, data collection, and the website. All of these entities are stakeholders in the project.

Main Topics addressed

  • What are the main issues in trying to describe languages, and how to address them
  • How do languages relate to people and places
  • How can the memory of orality be retrieved and preserved?
  • How to account for linguistic cultures outside the canon

Learning outcomes

  • Appreciation of the multicultural and multi-layered nature of linguistic history within European territory
  • Recognition of multilingualism and multiculturalism in communities and nations
  • Insight on how language shapes history, identity and culture
  • Knowledge of how languages live and are shaped within different geographic spaces
  • Retrieval of linguistic genealogies within individuals, past and present
  • Retrieval of the memory of languages in objects and places
  • Investigation of the linguistic dimension of cultural heritage
  • Fieldwork research methods experience
  • Presenting academic knowledge to the public (outreach)
  • The evaluation will be carried out by the coordinators in participating institutions and will consist of an assessment of the work submitted by students.
Dates:  6 February -  22 May 2026 Total workload: 180 hours
Format: Blended ECTS: 6*
Location: Rome, Italy Language: English (B2)
Contact: nadia.cannata@uniroma1.it  

*recognition of ECTS depends on your home university

Physical mobility

The physical section of the BIP will take place between 18-22 May 2026 in Rome. 

Detailed schedule: 

  • Rome seminars and itineraries (20 hrs)
  • Discussion and presentation of the work students submitted. Visit to the EUROTALES museum. Seminar with curators from another European Language Museum.
  • Visits to sites echoing the languages of Medieval, Renaissance and contemporary Rome (e.g. Basilica of s. Clemente, Santa Croce in Gerusalemme; Pantheon and Piazza Navona; Cimitero Acattolico; Pasolini and il Pigneto)
  • Multilingual Theatre workshop
  • Music concert (traditional music from across Europe)

Virtual part

The virtual part will take place between 6 February 2026 - 15 May 2026.

  • 06 February, 15.00 - 17.00 CET Introduction and Scope of Eurotales Project and Museum - Language, Community and Place

a. Greetings and introductions

b. EUROTALES Museum Laboratory Concept and Collections [PPT lecture]

- Break

c. Course Syllabus and Moodle Platform

d. Resonances Present – Questionnaires

e. Distribute email list and make WhatsApp group for the class
 

  • 13 February, 15.00 - 18.00 CET Field and Research Methods in sociolinguistics and history

a. Traces - What are they? - Template (PPT lecture)

- Break

b. Resonances of the Past - What are they? - Template (PPT lecture)

c. Discussion of First Questionnaires - Q & A

 

  • 27 February, 15.00 - 18.00 CEST The Basics: Inscriptions, Primary Sources and Bibliographies for Resonances Past and Traces - Q & A

a. Research and Resources (Resonances Past and Traces) (PPT lecture)

- Break

b. Discussion of choice of Resonances Past and Traces.

  • 6 March, 17.00 - 18.00 CEST: Drop-in office hour
     
  • 13 March, 17.00 - 18.00 CEST: Drop-in office hour
     
  • 20 March, 15.00 - 18.00 CEST Itineraries and Working Groups

a. Making itineraries: themes, areas, people (PPT lecture)

- Break

b. Division into Working Groups on Traces and Resonances Past: discuss topics, and bibliography.

DUE: Collect bibliography and images for Traces and Resonances and write the short label text for your Trace(s).
 

  • 27 March, 15.00 – 18.00 CEST

a. Students break up in groups and exchange their drafts of Resonances Past. Class time is spent reading and commenting mutually on drafts.

- Break

b. Students discuss the Itinerary themes they are considering to choose

  • 3 April, 17.00 – 18.00 CEST: Drop-in office hour
     
  • 10 April, 15.00 - 17.00 CEST: Students present the Itinerary themes. Commentary and Discussion.
     
  • 17 April, 17.00 – 18.00 CEST: Drop-in office hour
     
  • 24 April, 15.00 - 18.00 CEST

a. Students break up in groups and exchange their drafts of Traces. Class time is spent reading and commenting mutually on drafts.

b. General discussion on issues and problems in the drafts.

  • 8 May, 17.00 – 18.00 CEST: Drop-in office hour DUE: Revisions (based on classmates’ feedback) of Traces and Resonances Past. These will be commented upon by the professors.
     
  • 15 May, 15.00 – 17.00 CEST

a. Discussion of issues and problems to fix in written work - Q & A

- Break

b. Students’ proposals for activities in Rome

Assessment

Students will be assessed on participation in online and in-person seminars and on the quality of their research in the following percentages:

  • 20% - participation in virtual and in-person seminars and workshops
  • 15% - field work for Resonances present
  • 45% - 3 historical Traces and/or Resonances
  • 20% - collaborative linguistic itinerary project

Students are expected to participate actively in sessions, peer review each others’ work, engage on a collaborative itinerary and present the results of their individual research in both oral and written forms. We will be evaluating each of these components based on whether they have understood the goals of the different museum collections and how much effort they have put into their various research opportunities, as well as on their participation individually and collectively in seminars. Since we accept both undergraduate and graduate students, we have differentiated evaluation criteria for the research components. Undergraduates must master basic research skills and develop their projects together with our guidance. The results must be clean on a formal level and competent in the mastery of approach and bibliography. From graduate students we expect something beyond mastery of research skills. Graduate students must develop a new individual approach to their subjects that goes further than what is known in the research area. If students satisfy these criteria, they will pass the course, or receive an appropriate passing numerical grade if their university requires.

The programme is open to students at CIVIS member universities from all academic levels (Bachelor, Master, PhD) with an academic backround in the scientific fields of Modern Languages, Linguistics, Media and communication, Museum Studies, History, European Literatures, Medieval and Renaissance Studies, History.

A good level of English (B2 level) is also required, as the course will be conducted in English and implies active participation from all students. 

Critical thinking, working in groups are highly appreciated as well.  

This CIVIS course is a Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) - a new format of Erasmus+ mobility which combines online teaching with a short trip to another campus to learn alongside students and professors across Europe.

NB: Visiting Students - Erasmus Funding Eligibility

To be eligible for your selected CIVIS programme, you must be a fully enrolled student at your CIVIS home university at the time you will be undertaking the programme. 

This course is also open to students with the same academic profile, who are enrolled at a CIVIS strategic partner university in Africa. Please check here, if you can apply and this particular course is open to applications from your university. Successful applicants will receive an Erasmus+ grant covering travel and subsistence costs during their stay. Applicants should be willing to extend their stay at the host university for 1-3 weeks for additional research and/or training purposes.

Partner universities:

  • Aix-Marseille Université (France)
  • National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Greece)
  • Sapienza Università di Roma (Italia)
  • Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (Spain)
  • University of Bucharest (Romania)
  • University of Glasgow (UK)
  • Université Hassan II de Casablanca (Morocco)
  • University of Sfax (Tunisia)

Professors

  • Giulia Fabbiano, Anthropologist, Aix-Marseille Université (France)
  • Domenica Minniti Gonias, Italianist, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Greece)
  • Nadia Cannata, Romance languages and Philology, Sapienza Università di Roma (Italia), Director, Eurotales
  • Lorenzo Bartoli, Renaissance Studies, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (Spain)
  • Roxana Utale, University of Bucharest (Romania)
  • Leila Maziane, Historian, Université Hassan II de Casablanca (Morocco)
  • Salem Mokni, Historian, University of Sfax, (Tunisia)
  • Maia Gahtan, Kent State University, Florence campus (co-director of EUROTALES)
  • Margaret Sonmez, METU, Ankara (co-director of EUROTALES)
  • Dragana Kazandjiovska, Sapienza Università di Roma (Italia)
  • Riccardo Vannuccini, Artestudio, Rome - Actor and theatre director
  • Francesca Ferri, musician

Our partners include linguisticians with expertise in a wide variety of languages, an anthropologist with expertise in the relations between Algeria and France, and two north African institutions.

Send your application by filling in the online application form by 30 October 2025, and also including:

  • CV
  • Motivation Letter
  • Language level (According to CEFR)

Applications will be evaluated based on:

  • Interest in the project and in fieldwork
  • Good knowledge of English
     

Apply now

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