Dear Visitor | | IOW's NEWSLETTER #11
July 2025
Thank you for subscribing to IOW's Newsletter!
By subscribing to IOW’s Newsletter, you will be updated about the latest keywords uploaded, and provided news about the project in general and the activities of IOW's collective. The Newsletter will also disseminate Calls for conferences and publications connected to issue of Othering.
And you can become an active participant to IOW's dictionary, by proposing and discussing words that are used to (re)produce different forms of Otherness, and/or suggesting keywords that you would like to be discussed! You can visit regularly www.iowdictionary.org to find further info on keywords and on how to join the project. |
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Forthcoming entries
- AI/Otherness: Andrea C. Valente asked ChatGPT to write an entry on Otherness complying with the different steps of IOW dictionary. The entry, generated by AI, then undergoes a process or revision and commentary by Andrea. The test offers a double perspective: on the one hand, AI is ‘other’ in relation to humans, but on the other hand AI can also reproduce different forms of otherness in terms of bias, equity, and representation.
- casta by Natalia Ortesio Ruiz. From the perspective of media and political discourse analysis and interaction analysis, the author examines the use and meaning of this term as defined and employed by Javier Milei, the actual president of Argentina. Far from being a neutral word, it serves as a label for the political class and those seen as complicit in its corruption— a term marked by contempt and hostility, whose discursive construction will be the focus of this analysis.
- chelha by Ramdane Touati. This entry examines a term used in Tamazight (Berber), Arabic, and French to refer to languages and ethnic groups. In most contexts, aside from southern Morocco, the term signifies alterity—particularly concerning language—and often carries a pejorative connotation. Chelha specifically refers to a subaltern language that lacks recognition and legitimacy from others.
- remake by Charleine Saad. The entry discusses how remake, the reinterpretation of an existing work, is connected to Otherness. Do remakes promote a deeper understanding of the other or contribute to the emergence of resistance to the other values and cultural norms. Do they bridge the gap between foreignness and familiarity, and contribute to cultural diversity?
- trans by Victoria Odeniyi and Romain Potier. The keyword entry problematises contemporary uses of trans as largely unhelpful and discriminatory. Anti-trans discourses can hide racism and other forms of discrimination (social class, Islamophobia). There is growing evidence that the erasure of trans existence is part of a wider goal to maintain supremacy of one group of people over others.
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Giorgis, P. (2025) Otherness/Othering. https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/display/document/obo-9780199756841/obo-9780199756841-0316
While the Other as the counterpart of the Self has long been a matter of inquiry in many disciplines, the entry focuses on the hegemonic relation between the Self and the Other, presenting some of the fields of study – just to name a few: feminist studies, post-colonial studies, dis/ability studies, critical language studies, LGBTQ+ studies, etc. – that highlight the characteristics of such an ideological construction grounded power structures and hegemonic practices of oppression, discrimination, and stigmatization. |
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IOWers at CONFERENCES May-July 2025
- Université Grenoble Alpes, France, 21-23 May: Hate speech and emotions: ideological and epistemological issues.
Paola Giorgis, Ivanka Mavrodieva, Bilyana Todorova, Andrea C. Valente presented Deflating Words of Hatred. In Other Words (IOW) – A Contextualized Dictionary to problematize Otherness, discussing the path from emotion (embodiment) to rhetorical & symbolical aspects (political trolls; nostalgia) also offering some examples on how to deflate hate speech from IOW dictionary.
- Kent University, UK, 3 June (online): 7th Modern Languages Teaching Forum (MLTF).
Paola Giorgis and Antonella Giacosa presented: Subverting Otherness in L2 classes: a case study, presenting In Other Words (IOW) dictionary (what, how, who, some data, structure, replicability) and the case study of the collectively written entry terrone (research methodology, study context, findings, key takeaways).
- Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary: 11-13 June: International Association for Intercultural Education (IAIE) Conference: Currents in Education. Navigating Changes in Languages, Cultures, and Communities.
Paola Giorgis and Antonella Giacosa presented: In Other Words - A free online resource to promote intercultural education and challenge discriminatory language, presenting IOW dictionary as a critical, creative, interdisciplinary and intercultural free resource that can be used in different educational contexts to develop intercultural competence, critical thinking skills, reading and writing skills.
- University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia, June 18-21 June: Rhetoric in Society #9. Rhetoric in the Digital Age.
Ivanka Mavrodieva presented: Rhetorical and communicative features of podcasts. Based on rhetorical and discursive analysis and on the cyber ethnographic method, Ivanka presented the results of her 14-month study (Jan. 1st, 2024-March 1st, 2025) of a selection of podcasts in Bulgaria.
- Libre Université de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium, 7-10 July: Discourse Net Conference 2025. Discourse and imaginaries of past, present, and future societies.
Paola Giorgis, Bilyana Todorova, Ivanka Mavrodieva, and Olena Semenets presented Re-designing an imaginary past to construe imaginaries for the present – and the future. A cross-cultural perspective. Bringing forth examples from IOW dictionary, the presenters analyzed the rhetorical strategies mobilzed to construe specific imageries of the past that contribute to shape contemporary controversial and divisive sentiments and attitudes in Bulgaria, Italy, and Ukraine.
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CALLS FOR PAPERS: CONFERENCES |
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Chieti-Pescara University, Italy. 9th edition of the Languaging Diversity Conference (LD2025).
Languaging Diversity and Identity in Digital Environments Dates: 3-5 December 2025 Deadline: 15 July 2025
The Conference welcomes contributions that explore how language, literature and culture intersect in digital spaces, with a focus on identity formation, social belonging and exclusion online.
Papers could be sent for individual presentations (20-minute talk + 10-minute Q&A) and panel proposals (4 to 8 participants).
Please follow instructions at https://www.unich.it/progetti-ricerca/i-land-conference
Please note that the conference will be held exclusively in person. For full details and abstract submission, please visit the conference website https://www.unich.it/progetti-ricerca/i-land-conference
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University of Naples ‘L’Orientale’, Naples, Italy.
International conference: Echoes of Hate, Screens of Resistence: Discourse, Media, and Pedagogy in the Digital Age.
Dates: 23-25 October 2025 Deadline: July 30 2025
The international conference marks the culmination of the PRIN 2022 project ECHOES – English Studies to Contrast Hate Online and Enhance Solidarity, a multidisciplinary initiative funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research. The project focuses on the critical analysis of harmful online practices (HOPs) in English multimodal discourse, with an emphasis on promoting solidarity, inclusion, and responsible digital citizenship.
• Abstracts (max 300 words, including references) for individual 20-minute papers must be submitted via email in English, accompanied by a brief bio (maximum 150 words)
• Panel proposals (3-4 speakers) should include a panel rationale (max 300 words, including references) and individual abstracts (max 200 words each, without references).
Proposals should be sent to: prin2022echoes@unior.it
Full CfP and further info at: https://www.anglistica.it/2025/07/02/echoes-of-hate-screens-of-resistance-discourse-media-and-pedagogy-in-the-digital-age/
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University of Salerno, Italy.
Passaggi di senso: traduzioni e linguaggi oltre i confini [Passages of meanings: translations and languages beyond borders].
Dates: 23-24 February 2026
Deadline: 15 September 2025
The conference aims to promote interdisciplinary and multilingual reflections on the role of languages in processes of mobility, contact and mediation in contemporary global contexts. Contributions may explore a wide range of topics related to language variation, translation practices, intercultural communication and sociolinguistic dynamics in multilingual and multicultural settings.
Proposals (max. 300 words) should be submitted by 15 September 2025 to convtradspec2026@unisa.it.
Further details, including participation options and publication opportunities at: https://www.dipsum.unisa.it/uploads/rescue/487/11559/cfp-passaggi-di-senso.pdf
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Bilyana Todorova of IOW’s Editorial Board is the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal Ezikov svyat - Orbis Linguarum: https://ezikovsvyat.swu.bg/index.php/en/
Orbis Linguarum is the academic journal of the Faculty of Philology at South-West University Neofit Rilski. It publishes materials in the field of linguistics, literary studies, cultural studies, teaching methodology, reviews and opinions on books and academic events.The journal is indexed in several international databases – Scopus, CEEOL, ERIH PLUS, Ulrich's Periodicals Directory, Crossref and RISC.
Orbis Linguarum is free of charge and open access.
The issue 23.2 is out, July 2025. It contains 21 texts in English, Ukranian, Bulgarian, French, and Russian.
The journal accepts materials for Issues No 24.3 (2026) and 25.1 (2027).
Please submit your manuscript here: ezikovsvyat@swu.bg.
More information about the journal and the guidelines for authors can be found at: https://ezikovsvyat.swu.bg/index.php/en/pren
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Ivanka Mavrodieva of IOW’s Editorial Board is the Editor-in-Chief of the
Rhetoric and Communications journal, an open access peer-reviewed quarterly scientific journal. The journal publishes original research papers, review articles and brief reports, aimed to cover all aspects of research into rhetoric, media communication, public communication, intercultural communication, Internet communication, business communication, academic communication, pedagogical communication, advertising communication, visual communication, brand communication, marketing communication, argumentation, and applied linguistics.
More information about the journal and the guidelines for authors can be found at: https://journal.rhetoric.bg/
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TRANSCULTURAL & INTERCULTURAL ISSUES
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ESTIDIA (European Society for Transcultural and Interdisciplinary Dialogue) is a non-profit organization that fosters dialogue across disciplines and cultures, cultivates contacts with university networks and publishers, and promotes initiatives and projects among its members. ESTIDIA brings together senior and junior colleagues belonging to various disciplines and professional orientations, who wish to establish contacts and to collaborate across cultural and disciplinary borders in Europe and beyond. By becoming a member of ESTIDIA you will be part of a vibrant international community and enjoy several advantages. You can find more info and subscribe here:
https://www.estidia.eu/membership
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| The Center for Intercultural Dialogue (CID) facilitates intercultural dialogues through helping scholars learn about the work of international peers, locate researchers with similar interests in other countries, or collaborate for research purposes.
It is a rich and updated online resource that offers a lot of info about intercultural issues, language and linguistics – call for papers, job offers, fellowships, conferences, international programs, interviews, videos, and podcasts.
https://centerforinterculturaldialogue.org
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------------------------------- We are looking forward to hearing your comments and suggestions, as well as to welcoming your contributions! In the meanwhile, take care & stay tuned!
Paola Giorgis on behalf of IOW's Editorial Board
For further info, please write to: info@iowdictionary.org
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