Name Responsible Activity "Grammar and Pragmatics" "Mieke Vandenbroucke" "The research agenda of Grammar and Pragmatics (GaP) is in full agreement with the general interest for 'Language in Use' that characterizes the research done within the department of Linguistics at the University of Antwerp. GaP unites researchers who share an interest for the study of (linguistic) MEANING in all its forms. Starting point of the research conducted within GaP is the assumption that grammatical knowledge (and linguistic knowledge in general) is built up through experience, through contact with actual language use and exposure to interaction. Therefore, language can only be studied from a USAGE-BASED PERSPECTIVE, which is reflected in the importance that is ascribed to the study of situated language use in specific contexts, by means of corpus analysis and ethnographic research. The more grammar-oriented GaP-research has an outspoken functional-cognitive orientation and focuses on uses of verbal and nominal (morpho)syntactic constructions like passive and focus constructions, modal, evidential and mirative constructions, tense, aspect and insubordination. Processes of grammaticalization and constructionalization are studied on the basis of present-day and historical corpora. The functional-cognitive orientation further implies that cognitive mechanisms (e.g. schematizing, priming, analogical relations) are considered to be important explanatory factors. Moreover, it is assumed that grammar (and language in general) is crucially imbedded in the communicative function of language, i.e. language is the product of communication between people. The more pragmatics-oriented Gap research studies intercultural and international communication, language and ideology, language and institutions and discursive practices in multilingual environments. Theory building within the broadly conceived field of linguistic pragmatics is also aimed at in order to provide a consistent framework integrating the different perspectives from which linguistic knowledge and language use can be approached. Interdisciplinarity is key in this respect." "Functional and Cognitive Linguistics: Grammar and Typology (FunC), Antwerp Campuses" "Anna Kisiel" "The research group FunC consists of researchers conducting research in the field of cognitive-functional linguistics. Over the last decade the research group FunC has mainly been concerned with the semantics and pragmatics of different types of verbal and (pro)nominal constructions, both synchronically and diachronically." "Functional and Cognitive Linguistics: Grammar and Typology (FunC), Brussels Campus" "Anna Kisiel" "The research group FunC consists of researchers conducting research in the field of cognitive-functional linguistics. Over the last decade the research group FunC has mainly been concerned with the semantics and pragmatics of different types of verbal and (pro)nominal constructions, both synchronically and diachronically." "Functional and Cognitive Linguistics: Grammar and Typology (FunC), Kulak Kortrijk Campus" "Anna Kisiel" "The research group FunC consists of researchers conducting research in the field of cognitive-functional linguistics. Over the last decade the research group FunC has mainly been concerned with the semantics and pragmatics of different types of verbal and (pro)nominal constructions, both synchronically and diachronically." "Functional and Cognitive Linguistics: Grammar and Typology (FunC), Leuven" "Anna Kisiel" "The research group FunC consists of researchers conducting research in the field of cognitive-functional linguistics. Over the last decade the research group FunC has mainly been concerned with the semantics and pragmatics of different types of verbal and (pro)nominal constructions, both synchronically and diachronically." "Language and literature" "Studying languages is an exciting choice, particularly in a city such as Brussels where probably more languages are spoken than anywhere else in Europe. Competence in languages is not just a luxury. It is a necessity in a society where international relationships are part of every day life. Language students access other cultures and thus broaden their horizons. They have the opportunity to see how people communicate and how the human mind works. In a multilingual city such as Brussels, where the VUB is located, you can personally experience some of the linguistic and cultural aspects of Romance and Germanic languages and even Classical languages such as Latin. Studying languages at the VUB allows you to choose two of the following languages: Dutch, English, German, French, Spanish, Italian and Latin. These two languages will be your major languages during your Bachelor programme. You can add a third language from the second year of studies onwards, if you wish to do so. You start to study your languages and their literature in a way that is different from the subjects you took during your secondary education. Authors, styles and schools are studied in depth and special attention is given to certain aspects of the language, communication and speech behaviour. Since languages are a necessary competence in today's Europe, the study programme also includes a focus on real life situations." "Comparative, Historical and Applied Linguistics, Brussels Campus" "Toon Van Hal" "Comparative Research, Historical and Applied Linguistics, Campus BrusselsResearch (and teaching) concentrating on French grammar and linguistics, didactics of French as a foreign language, French language proficiency and translationDirection : Dr. Isabelle Peeters" "Comparative, Historical and Applied Linguistics, Leuven" "Toon Van Hal" "Comparative Research, Historical and Applied Linguistics, LeuvenDir. P. SwiggersResearch (and teaching) focusing on:(1) historical, comparative, ciontrastive-typological linguistics of the Romance languages and the two classical languages Greek and Latin(2) the relation between syntax and information structure in the Romance languages(3) the historiography and metahistoriography of linguisticsCoHistAL Leuven houses the CHL, the Center for the Historiography of Linguistics" "Germanic Languages" "The strong points of this department relate to the following topics: 1. Research on Multilingualism and Bilingualism: A strong team of internationally known people has been working for a number of years in this field. 2. Dutch in the 19th century: This original research is innovative and important at the same time. It offers new insights in the development of the written language. 3. Theatre research: Within the department the study of Modern Dutch Theatre has a strong tradition. 4. Dutch Literature: The study of Modern Dutch literature, prose as well as poetry, has been carried out for years. It continues the tradition started with Jean Weisgerber. 5. Dutch Grammar: The study of grammar is carried out from a socio-pragmatic point of view with a strong non-traditional theoretical approach diverging from the Chomskyan one. 6. German Literature: This study focuses on modern German literature and deals with topics such as gender studies (female authors), youth literature and the editing of correspondences of literary figures." "Comparative, Historical and Applied Linguistics, Kulak Kortrijk Campus" "Toon Van Hal" "French, Italian and comparative linguisticsDir. Piet DesmetResearch (and teaching) in the field of:(1) French and applied linguistics (esp.language didactics)(2) computer-assisted language learningThe CoHistAL group at KULAK  houses the research team ITEC (Interactive technologies), focusing on domain-specific educational technology."