Hermann-Paul Lecture
Invitation to the Hermann Paul Lecture 2025
Dear colleagues,
We are happy to announce this year´s Hermann Paul lecture, the highlight of our academic calender here in Freiburg. We are equally happy to announce our speaker and topic:
Human-centered LLMs for Inclusive Language Technology
Prof. Dr. Barbara Plank
LMU München
The lecture will be held in English.
Date: 03.07.2025
Time: 6 pm
Place: FRIAS Gebäude, Seminarraum EG, Albertstraße 19
We cordially invite all professors, researchers, and students to participate. Prof. Dr. Plank will discuss how human-centered approaches in the development of large language models (LLMs) can contribute to promoting inclusive language technologies. Following the lecture, there will be a reception offering an opportunity for discussion and exchange to jointly explore current questions and ideas.
We look forward to your participation and engagement!
Best regards,
Uta Reinöhl
Direktorin des Hermann-Paul-Centrums für Linguistik
Since 2009 — and annually since 2014 — the centre has organised the “Hermann Paul Lectures,” in which leading experts present their perspectives on fundamental questions in linguistics.
Speakers and Topics:
03.07.2025 Barbara Plank
Human-centered LLMs for Inclusive Language Technology
11.07.2024 Petra Schumacher
The Future of Experimental Pragmatics
13.07.2023 Salikoko Mufwene
Individuals, Community, and Language Evolution: Hermann Paul, Ferdinand
de Saussure, and William Labov
22.07.2022 Hans-Jörg Schmid
“There is nothing quite so practical as a good theory” (Kurt Lewin). Does this also apply to linguistic theory?
25.02.2021 Marianne Mithun
What shall we model?
11.12.2019 Henning Lobin
Sprachkampf. Sprachpolitische Kontroversen und das Bild der Sprache in Wissenschaft und Öffentlichkeit
26.11.2018 Geoffrey K. Pullum
Why Linguistics Matters
09.05.2017 Jürgen Trabant
Weltansichten – Wilhelm von Humboldt und die Sprachen der Welt
14.06.2016 Anne Cutler
Variations on ‘native language’
22.10.2015 Adele E. Goldberg
Constructing meaning
17.12.2014 Utz Maas
Wie Deutsch zur Schriftsprache ausgebaut wurde
15.05.2009 William Labov
Sound change: the regular, the unconscious, the mysterious