Hyper-diversity in Dutch Studies
Flemish prime minister Geert Bourgeois and Rector Magnificus Carel Stolker attended the opening of the 19th Colloquium Neerlandicum at the Academiegebouw (Academy Building) on Monday 17 August. This is a three-yearly conference for members of the international society for Dutch Studies (IVN) to share ideas and experiences.
Building bridges
The theme of the colloquium in Leiden is ‘Hyper-diverse Dutch Studies’. According to Jan Renkema, professor emeritus Text quality and chair of the International Society for Dutch Studies (IVN), we can 'spend a week in Leiden discussing how we do research in our own area, how we teach, and how we work on translations.' Renkema explains that Dutch Language and Culture is taught in over 40 countries to around 15 thousands students outside of Flanders and the Netherlands. 'People from all those countries have gathered in Leiden for five days to build bridges from their own regions, based on our education and research into literature, language and culture,' the chairman tells us enthusiastically.
Leiden as birthplace
Carel Stolker, rector and president of Leiden University, and proud host of the conference, called Leiden the birthplace of Dutch Studies. Stolker named three Dutch language specialists hailing from Leiden who were key figures in their field: Matthijs Siegenbeek, Matthias de Vries and Jan de Vries. Their efforts contributed to the success of the worldwide study of Dutch at university level.
Shared language
Bourgeois proved to be the ultimate ambassador for the Dutch language: 'We see the Dutch language as an ideal tool for enhancing social cohesion in an increasingly diverse Flanders. The government is putting great emphasis on staying connected, on taking part in public culture. A shared language is an important part of that.’
Full text Geert Bourgeois' address
Presentations
In
Hoe vertaal je beeld naar woord? De zaak Saul en David ('How to translate images into words: the case of Saul and David'), Emilie Gordenker, director of the Mauritshuis, took the audience on a search for the origin of the painting ‘Saul and David’, which can be attributed to Rembrandt for a number of reasons.
Frank Westerman, author of documentary novel Stikvallei (Choke Valley), rounded off the afternoon with an intriguing story about the origin of myths. A news item about the mysterious death of thousands of people and animals during the night of 21 August 1986 near Lake Nyos in north-west Camaroon inspired him to take his audience on a tour of the stories surrounding these events from three perspectives: the myth-killers, the myth-bringers and the myth-makers.
In recent decades, the international field of Dutch Studies has grown into a dynamic, diverse community of researchers, lecturers and translators. For its members, the three yearly conference Colloquium Neerlandicum is the perfect opportunity to share results, ideas, experiences and case studies. In addition to this, the colloquium offers the ideal opportunity to strengthen and expand the International Dutch Studies network.
The colloquium took place 17-21 August in the Lipsius building.
More information about the nineteenth Colloquium Neerlandicum