The Joint Conference of the 1st Conference on Cantonese Applied Linguistics (CALA-1) and the 9th Forum on Cantonese Linguistics (FoCaL9) was successfully held on 4 July 2026 at the PolyU West Kowloon Campus. The event was jointly organised by the Hong Kong Cantonese Applied Linguistics Association and the Linguistic Society of Hong Kong, with support from PolyU CPCE’s Division of Languages and Communication.
The joint conference brought together 142 participants—keynote speakers, presenters, chairs and volunteers—onsite and online for presentations and discussions conducted entirely in Cantonese. This collective effort underscored the potential of Cantonese as a language of academic exchange and laid the groundwork for more inter-institutional collaborations in the future. The organising committees played a pivotal role in this endeavour: CALA-1 was coordinated by linguistic scholars, while FoCaL9 was led by postgraduate students. Together, they provided a valuable platform for scholarly dialogue, peer feedback, and community building.
The success of the conference affirmed the vitality of Cantonese in academic communication and the strong sense of community among participants. Building on this achievement, the organisers will continue to promote collaboration and advance research in Cantonese theoretical linguistics and Cantonese applied linguistics.
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